Speaker
Description
Bootloaders play a vital role in the Android boot process, but the ecosystem has long been fragmented across silicon vendors and OEM-specific implementations. To address this, Google introduced the Generic Boot Loader (GBL), a Rust-based EFI application in AOSP, with the goal of standardizing Android boot logic.
This session focuses on how Qualcomm is adapting its boot chain to integrate GBL while preserving existing firmware and platform capabilities. It describes the Qualcomm-specific changes required to expose core UEFI services such as block I/O, memory allocation, RNG, etc. to GBL, along with the firmware adjustments needed to present these services in a clean and consistent way. The session also covers Qualcomm’s implementation of device tree selection and fixups through GBL-defined interfaces, as well as the handling of Android-critical boot data including kernel command line and bootconfig handoff.
In addition, the talk discusses Qualcomm’s support for GBL-specific UEFI protocols that enable Android requirements such as Verified Boot and Fastboot, and how these fit into the existing Qualcomm boot flow. Overall, the session provides a practical look at the platform changes needed to bring GBL into the Qualcomm boot chain and move Android boot architecture closer to a more maintainable, upstream-aligned model.