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No EFI Support on Windows Vista?

M

MacBytes

macrumors bot
Original poster
Jul 5, 2003
18,275
0


Category: Microsoft
Link: Vista will NOT boot on Intel Macs
Description:: Just minutes ago, Microsoft dropped a bombshell at the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco (after the main conference had closed): there will be no EFI boot support for Windows Vista when it is released - it'll only be in "Longhorn server"; Microsoft is not going to allow EFI booting for 32-bit systems (which counts out all the Intel Macs released to date) and it can't say when EFI support WILL be implemented in Windows. Apparently we will have to wait for a "future 64-bit version" of Windows client. Australian Personal Computer Magazine has the full story.

Posted on MacBytes.com
Approved by Mudbug
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2006/03/09/no-efi-support-on-windows-vista/
Atlasland said:
I might have to switch back to Windows then.

Oh well.

Anyone want to buy the iMac in my sig?
Click to expand...

why do you need to switch back to windows based on this news? you've got a G5 imac, seems irrelevant whether or not vista will boot on an intel mac.
 
Wait, so they use BIOS now right? Are they going to continue this? Isn't EFI the newer, better way to go rather than BIOS? Cuz right now this sounds like Microsoft trying to cut corners. But then again when haven't they cut corners?
 
Atlasland said:
I might have to switch back to Windows then.

Oh well.

Anyone want to buy the iMac in my sig?
Click to expand...

dashiel said:
why do you need to switch back to windows based on this news? you've got a G5 imac, seems irrelevant whether or not vista will boot on an intel mac.
Click to expand...

yea, I dont get it. did you buy a mac just 2 weeks ago in hopes of booting into windows in 3 months?

im guessing sarcasim or retardisim
 
but this only means that vista won't work... there are some working solutions for xp and 2000 at present......?



(for me, windows programs are critical. design and architecture programs are a must... and the ibook in my signature just bit the dust...)


r.
 
The Divide Widens.. for a while

So Microsoft will move their software further from advanced technology, and further from Mac users. Sad. I hope by the time I buy and Macintel there as options- options are good.
 
LimeiBook86 said:
Exactly my thoughts, don't worry enough people want this, it'll happen eventually :D...I hope :(
Click to expand...

If they've gotten OSX on pc boxes, we'll have Windows on Apple boxes. It's inevitable. :)

I hope that someday I'll be able to run Windows and OSX applications side-by-side seamlessly.
 
This is a non-issue, in my opinion. In the next few months, we will get robust dual-boot, virtualization, and emulation solutions. What Microsoft will or won't do is irrelevant.
 
just goes to show you how far ahead of the curve Apple is when it comes to technology. As usual, they are 2-3 years more advanced.
 
Oryan said:
If they've gotten OSX on pc boxes, we'll have Windows on Apple boxes. It's inevitable. :)

I hope that someday I'll be able to run Windows and OSX applications side-by-side seamlessly.
Click to expand...



You will be able to in the near future (6 months or so). XenSource is working on porting their application to Mac OS X so you can run Windows and OS X--side by side with no performance loss. Furthermore, they are partnering with apple so that Xen can be used in all new Macs.
 
Intel Firmware Patch?

Couldn't this debacle easily be solved by Apple releasing an updated EFI firmware with a proper CSM/BIOS?

It's not unusual in the WinTel world to flash new a BIOS. I'm sure Apple engineers could find a way to do this elegantly. :confused:

steve1496, link?
 
What I don't understand is why people seem to think that Windows-booting on Intel Macs seems to be so necessary. In my opinion, if you're going to buy a Mac, buy it for its merits now, not for what could possibly happen with Windows-booting. Even if there was Windows-booting, why in the world would you buy a Mac to run Windows? If anything, I think it would make more sense to buy Virtual PC or use some other emulation program, especially because now that we're on Intel chips, the cost of emulation/virtualization will be low and Windows should run fast in such an emulator/virtualizer.

But to buy a Mac and base your purchase on being able to run Windows in the future? That doesn't make sense.

To me, being able to run Windows on a Mac is kind of akin to being able to natively run Windows applications on the Mac via yellow box (or whatever that technology was supposed to be called). If it was really easy to do, and you could do it without doing any significant hacking, Windows developers would have no reason to write Mac-specific software, and would just say, "Go boot your Mac into Windows and then run our software! Why should we spend millions of dollars creating programs for you Mac users when you can run our program already?"

I don't have any problem with those savvy enough hacking Macs to dual-boot Windows. But when it becomes a standard or expected feature, the Mac platform will suffer. So I think, in a way, it's good that Vista won't support native EFI booting, and I'm glad that Apple isn't officially supporting running Windows on the Mac.
 
Not surprising... MS has been steadily backing off of Longhorn features for the last few years hoping to actually be able to release something. They're now down to a feature list that's shorter than their monthly patch list.

For those folks who do get Vista, can you scratch at the paint on the install media and let us know if they're just repackaged XP discs?
 
simX said:
What I don't understand is why people seem to think that Windows-booting on Intel Macs seems to be so necessary.
Click to expand...
Whatever you think, the demand is real. One of the stories yesterday quoted that twice as many college students would switch to Mac if they could boot Windows.

You're probably looking at it backwards: this is less about Mac users wanting to run Windows and more about Windows users wanting to run OS X. Switching to Mac feels risky in a Windows world and this gives people a backup plan. Makes the boss feel a little better. Whatever-- the demand is there.
 
I'd much rather prefer games made natively for the mac, but it just doesn't happen.

I built a PC this September because my iBook could barely run Unreal Tournament. When Apple announced the new iMac, I found a buyer for my PC and monitored the OnMac contest ect, now I am PC-less, my iMac will be arriving "by the 17th" and I found out the ONE GAME, I really wanted to work (Command and Conquer: Generals) is virtually unplayable on the intel iMac, not only that but we are nowhere near close.

So here I am the week before Spring Break, my PC buddies have a few LAN parties ready and I can't attend.

I was really hoping they would figure out how to book XP from a external hard drive. This would be great because you wouldn't have to worry about partitions ect. I think it would be a great business if anyone ever gets XP/Vista to run NATIVE on the Mac to sell external harddrives preloaded with Windows. Hell, I'd pay $300 for one right now.

I would only boot into windows for LAN gaming ect. It would be no more different for me than turning on a Playstation, I'd still have my Mac for all it's functions.


I'd like to ad: Did Dual booting 10.1 and Classic stunt OS X development? No, even though OS X was a buggy mess at first development steamrolled forward.
 
I think a really good WINE would solve 95% of windows needs. What are situations where it doesn't work?

The other thing to note is that even though MS won't support EFI I bet it won't be long befor EFI supports BIOS. Then all problems will be solved!
 
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