this post was submitted on 21 Feb 2026
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156
The creator of systemd wants to bring SecureBoot-enforced hardware attestation to Linux (0pointer.net)
submitted 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) by namingthingsiseasy@programming.dev to c/technology@lemmy.world
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The creator of systemd (Lennart Poettering) has recently created a new company dedicated to bringing hardware attestation to open source software.

What might this entail? A previous blog post could provide some clues:

So, let's see how I would build a desktop OS. The trust chain matters, from the boot loader all the way to the apps. This means all code that is run must be cryptographically validated before it is run. This is in fact where big distributions currently fail pretty badly. This is a fault of current Linux distributions though, not of SecureBoot in general.

If this technology is successful, the end result could be that we would see our Linux laptops one day being as locked down as an Iphone or Android device.

There are lots of others who are equally concerned about this possibility: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46784572

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[–] arcine@jlai.lu 40 points 3 weeks ago (3 children)

The option of having a full auth trust chain would be nice for some security applications, but the implication that it could be made compulsory is terrifying.

[–] corsicanguppy@lemmy.ca 7 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

It'll start as an option and slide into compulsory later. It's the Systemd way.

[–] arcine@jlai.lu 1 points 3 weeks ago

I have no idea what life was like before systemd so while I like it I have no way to compare

[–] sunbeam60@feddit.uk 5 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

It’s Linux. In what world do you imagine there wouldn’t be 87 forks that went in a different direction.

Linux cannot be controlled, at least as it stands today.

When Linus disappears I have some fears. But jerk as he may be, he’s also incredibly effective at keeping it open.

[–] vacuumflower@lemmy.sdf.org 5 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

In what world do you imagine there wouldn’t be 87 forks that went in a different direction.

In every world. Linux is not just the codebase, it's all the developer work going into it daily. Hundreds of forks and downstreams can pick whichever direction they want, most of that work will still be directed one way.

[–] sunbeam60@feddit.uk 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

But this proposal for a full auth-chain isn’t a proposal by Linus and many thousands contributors. It’s the proposal of a commercial entity that doesn’t control Linux in any way.

[–] tomalley8342@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Yes, this commercial entity founded by people who have a literal track record of doing exactly that

[–] sunbeam60@feddit.uk 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

Volunteer adoption of a system found to be better by distro maintainers is not the same as forced adoption of a system distro maintainers don’t find to be better.

[–] tomalley8342@lemmy.world 0 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

"Found to be better" because of commercial resources and support pouring in and outcompeting grassroots alternatives to gain market share. Do you share the same lukewarm acceptance for what chromium is doing for web browsers?

[–] sunbeam60@feddit.uk 4 points 3 weeks ago

I’m not sure what we’re arguing about now, but I’m convinced it’s not the original point I was trying to make. I think both of our lives are too short to carry this one. Have a good evening.

[–] Azzu@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

You can already secure boot if you want. But like always, you gotta set it up yourself in a complicated manner :D

[–] arcine@jlai.lu 1 points 3 weeks ago

Of course I use SecureBoot, if you know how to set it up it has no inconvenients ! But that doesn't go all the way up to the apps !