Here are three reasons to purchase the Libreboot X200 sold by Gluglug, the latest product to be awarded Respects Your Freedom (RYF) certification:

1. 
   

   The FSF's RYF certification mark means that this laptop meets the FSF's standards in regard to users' freedom, control over the product, and privacy. This is only the second laptop to achieve RYF certification, the first being the Libreboot X60.

   
   


2. 
   

   The Libreboot X200 offers many improvements over the Libreboot X60, including a faster CPU, faster graphics, 64-bit GNU/Linux support (on all models), support for more RAM, higher screen resolution, and more. Not to mention it comes installed with the FSF-endorsed Trisquel GNU/Linux distro and the GNOME desktop.

   
   


3. 
   

   This is the first laptop sold in which Intel's Management Engine (ME) and Active Management Technology (AMT) have been completely removed and replaced with free firmware, including Libreboot and GNU GRUB 2!

   
   

The FSF has previously written about Intel's ME and AMT, calling attention to how this proprietary software introduces a fundamental security flaw—a back door—into a person's machine, allowing a perpetrator to remotely access the computer over a network. It enables powering the computer on and off, configuring and upgrading the BIOS, wiping the hard drives, reinstalling the operating system, and more. While there is a BIOS option to ostensibly disable AMT, because the BIOS itself is proprietary, the user has no means to verify whether it is actually sufficient. Further, the functionality provided by the ME/AMT could be a useful
security and recovery measure, but only if the user has control over the software and the ability to install modified versions of it. Perhaps worst of all, as Francis Rowe, founder of Gluglug, told me, "On most systems the ME is extremely difficult to remove, and nearly impossible to replace." But fortunately for us, he also said, "The Libreboot X200 is the first system where it has actually been removed, permanently."

This is a huge accomplishment, but unfortunately, it is not known if the Libreboot developers' efforts to remove the ME and AMT from this device will be applicable to newer Intel-based laptops. It is a wretched state of affairs when users can't uninstall proprietary software and replace it with free software simply because a hardware maker wishes to make it difficult to do so. That's why we are calling on Intel to work with us to enable removal of ME and AMT for users who don't want it on their machines!

Personally, I find it incredibly frustrating to think that free software developers may have to invest even more time and energy figuring out how to remove proprietary firmware without rendering the hardware nonfunctional. I know that hackers like Francis and the Libreboot team, and the many contributors to the upstream Coreboot project, would rather create new features and functionality in free software than spend their time figuring out how to remove proprietary software and gain control of the basic functionality of their computers. But I am also thankful that Gluglug and Libreboot have stepped up to do this work and have made it easy for me to purchase a laptop that respects my freedom.

To learn more about the Respects Your Freedom hardware certification, including details on the certification of the Libreboot X200, visit http://www.fsf.org/ryf. If you know of a hardware seller out there that you think can achieve RYF certification, then please let us know by emailing licensing@fsf.org

Joshua Gay

Licensing & Compliance Manager