FOCUS ON FIRMWARE

I saw a recent blog post from Ariadne Conill discussing the Free Software Foundation’s policy toward proprietary firmware, which resonated with me. Ariadne states that the RYF (“Respects Your Freedom”) certification demonstrates how “the FSF’s relationship with firmware is harmful to free software users”. She argues that a policy against shipping proprietary firmware is self-defeating for many projects.

The reason this resonated for me dates back several decades. I first met folks involved in the FSF back in the mid-1990s, at various Linux User Group meetings in the UK. At the time I was a free software fanatic. I didn’t have a pragmatic bone in my body, but even I couldn’t understand the positions being stated. Computers, whether laptops, phones or servers, all rely on embedded devices that perform functions for which they run embedded software (“firmware”).

Historically (1980s-90s) this was stored in ROM memory as part of hardware, but modern systems simply load (or update) this firmware as part of loading a device driver for the hardware. Importantly (and yes, unfortunately), the firmware is proprietary either way. I found it bizarre several decades ago that loadable firmware was a problem and yet baked-in proprietary firmware (even the same firmware) was tolerated. To me this is an example of a mindset rooted in the past, not in the present, ignoring how modern systems are built. While Ariadne’s blog resonated with my own opinions, I encourage you to read it yourself, and also to consult the FSF RYF website, to form your own opinion.