If I were to buy a new computer within the next year or so, one without a preinstalled os, would it come with a bios, a uefi, or both? (or neither?) I can't find the answer with a google search no matter how I word it.
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Almost all (maybe all) new x86-64 computers come with EFI or UEFI firmware. (UEFI is just EFI version 2.x. To the best of my knowledge, only Macs use EFI 1.x; everything else uses UEFI/EFI 2.x.) I use "EFI" to refer to any EFI/UEFI version.
Most EFIs provide a feature called the Compatibility Support Module (CSM), which enables EFIs to boot BIOS-mode boot loaders, and therefore OSes designed to boot on BIOS-based computers. Thus, if you buy a new computer or motherboard, it will probably be able to boot in either EFI mode or in BIOS mode; but technically, the computer will be EFI-based, even if you boot it in BIOS/CSM/legacy mode. If you have such a computer, I recommend booting in native EFI mode if at all possible; using the CSM creates a much more complicated boot path and greatly increases the odds of your running into problems. I cover this issue in this page of mine, which is written for readers who have pre-installed Windows and who want to install Linux; but the principles apply to any installation, particularly dual-booting installations.
If you think EFI is the spawn of the devil, your best bet in modern computers is to get something that's compatible with CoreBoot. This is an open source firmware project that enables you to customize your firmware. You'd flash CoreBoot onto the motherboard along with a payload that provides additional functionality. This payload could provide a BIOS or something more exotic or specialized, like a version of GRUB for CoreBoot. Be aware, though, that CoreBoot is not for beginners, and its list of supported motherboards, although fairly large, includes relatively few models that are currently for sale new. (Maybe none; I haven't checked recently.) Thus, for 99.9% of people, you're better off using whatever comes with your computer -- or at most, upgrading to the latest manufacturer-provided firmware.
Finally, if you don't fully understand the EFI-vs-BIOS issue, you might want to read my answer to the question of the differences between BIOS and EFI booting on this site.
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Depending on the Motherboard it will have either, most likely UEFI. Without it you wouldn't be able to do anything.
In addition it might have an operating system installed like FreeDOS if it is a complete machine. Most do it in order to show you it's able to do its thing.
Seth
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Strictly speaking of a 'NEW' system as you mentioned:
TL:DR A system board being BIOS or EFI/UEFI is not dependent on the new system coming with an OS installed or not. The manufacturing market has been moving toward the new standard for some years now and you would be hard press to find an OLD BIOS based system board at present time. If the new system has Windows 8, 8.1 (there should be no new systems with 8 and probably not 8.1 left at present time left on retail shelves) Windows 10, it by License Agreement from Microsoft is required to be shipped on a UEFI system and also with Secure Boot Enabled.
From my market experience building custom builds over the last 6 years, after the standards were firmly in place around 2009 there was a slow initial push to move to UEFI system boards for client/pc systems. By 2010 they started emerging and a slow migration into the retail market between 2011-2012. Between 2013-2014 UEFI system boards were very common as at least half or more than half of the system boards were UEFI. In the last year or two , the great majority are UEFI and I think you would be had pressed to find on that is not UEFI. There are large retailers that have over-purchased per store and still have some from 3-4 years ago. I am not sure if system boards with the OLD BIOS are still being produced.
UEFI Concerns UEFI is nothing to be afraid of. However, If you really need or want a MBR/BIOOS based system, most system boards have a backwards compatible fallback which will likely be present in systems for the foreseeable future which is usually called CSM mode (Compatibility Support Module), EFI/Legacy, UEFI/Legacy, BIOS mode, or something obscure like Windows 8 Compatibility. You would simply 'Enable' those modes with the exception of 'Windows 8 Compatibility' in which you would 'Disable as enabling this would enable UEFI. These modes all do pretty much the same thing regardless of how the firmware is written. They allow you to set up an MBR/BIOS system on a UEFI system board through emulation firmware which ends up being pretty seamless and the user usually can not tell it is a BIOS emulation aside from trying a dual or multi-boot system with a CSM enabled system. The latter could prove more complicated than the typical Dual/Multi boot on a strictly BIOS based system board and compatibility issues can show up.
Brief History:
Without looking up the exact dates that I have recently researched and forgotten, UEFI started out as EFI in the mid to late 90's It didn't really get standardized till almost UEFI was introduced with the UNIFIED part spearheading the standardization. Enterprise system started using EFI around 2003 but the standards were not hammered down till somewhere between 2007-2009.
Rich Manson
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