WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.440 Typically, we think of hardware and software as separate entities that work together to 00:00:05.440 --> 00:00:09.880 provide us with the computing experience that we know and tolerate. 00:00:09.880 --> 00:00:15.680 Hardware is the tangible stuff you can touch, like a keyboard or a hard drive, while software 00:00:15.680 --> 00:00:21.320 is the lines of code that tell the computer to make games, tweets, and CD-doings actually 00:00:21.320 --> 00:00:27.120 appear on your screen. But you may have also heard the word firmware tossed around a fair bit. 00:00:27.120 --> 00:00:31.680 So what is that? Is it something you buy to show off your buns of steel after spending enough time at the 00:00:31.680 --> 00:00:38.040 gym? No. Firmware is often thought of as something in between the software and the hardware. 00:00:38.040 --> 00:00:41.920 It's actually a specific kind of software. 00:00:41.920 --> 00:00:46.720 But unlike your operating system or any other kind of program, it does not typically sit 00:00:46.720 --> 00:00:55.560 on a hard drive or an SSD. Instead, firmware can usually be found on dedicated memory chips, and it's that fact 00:00:55.560 --> 00:01:00.080 combined with that it sits very close to the metal that leads people to think of it 00:01:00.080 --> 00:01:04.480 as kind of like a hardware-software hybrid unit. 00:01:04.480 --> 00:01:07.640 But then, what does close to the metal mean exactly? 00:01:07.640 --> 00:01:14.000 Well, the code that makes up firmware communicates very directly with your hardware, unlike 00:01:14.000 --> 00:01:19.400 a regular program which has to go through APIs, the operating system, and device drivers. 00:01:19.400 --> 00:01:24.680 And the reason for this is that it's meant to provide a fundamental basic link and method 00:01:24.680 --> 00:01:33.760 of control for the system's hardware. For example, inside of a PC, there's a chip that stores the system's UEFI or BIOS, which 00:01:33.760 --> 00:01:37.640 are specific types of firmware that you can learn more about right up here. 00:01:37.640 --> 00:01:42.360 The BIOS starts running as soon as you press the button on your computer, initializing 00:01:42.360 --> 00:01:46.440 the hardware depending on how you've got it configured and checking for any errors. 00:01:46.440 --> 00:01:51.680 Once all that's done, the BIOS hands virtually all of its control over to a much more complex 00:01:51.680 --> 00:01:54.800 operating system, such as Windows or macOS. 00:01:54.800 --> 00:01:59.960 However, the BIOS and older systems provided a simple, reliable link between peripherals 00:01:59.960 --> 00:02:05.080 like the keyboard and system software even after the operating system started running. 00:02:05.080 --> 00:02:09.480 Other types of firmware take a much more active role in how a system functions. 00:02:09.480 --> 00:02:14.800 Your desktop monitor has to decode the digital signal that's sent over an HDMI or display 00:02:14.800 --> 00:02:19.320 port cable to create the image that you see, which requires processing. 00:02:19.320 --> 00:02:22.940 So therefore, it needs some firmware to run the show. 00:02:22.940 --> 00:02:27.680 When you bring up that on-screen menu to change the brightness on your monitor or whatever, 00:02:27.680 --> 00:02:33.040 what you're seeing there is the firmware acting as the monitor's entire operating system. 00:02:33.040 --> 00:02:38.480 So even very simple devices like TV remote control need firmware to turn your button 00:02:38.480 --> 00:02:42.520 meshes into infrared beams that your TV can comprehend. 00:02:42.520 --> 00:02:47.480 So because firmware is so important to these fundamental linkages, it does sometimes need 00:02:47.480 --> 00:02:52.200 to be updated in order to provide extra functionality or to fix bugs. 00:02:52.200 --> 00:02:57.040 A great example is how BIOS updates are issued from other boards so that they can support 00:02:57.040 --> 00:03:00.880 a new CPU that uses the same socket, for example. 00:03:00.880 --> 00:03:05.600 But because most electronics cannot function without firmware, it's often recommended 00:03:05.600 --> 00:03:11.000 to leave it alone unless there's a specific problem that you know would be fixed with 00:03:11.000 --> 00:03:17.120 an update. Because if the update fails due to something like a power outage, the system can end up 00:03:17.200 --> 00:03:24.880 being permanently bricked. Now unlike a corrupted OS, which can just be wiped and reinstalled, corrupted firmware 00:03:24.880 --> 00:03:30.120 often can't be fixed as the system can no longer even understand that you want to wipe 00:03:30.120 --> 00:03:34.680 and reinstall a firmware. It needs not corrupted firmware for that. 00:03:34.680 --> 00:03:39.560 And while some modern systems try to avoid this problem by having like a second BIOS 00:03:39.560 --> 00:03:43.280 or firmware as a failsafe, many gadgets lack this option. 00:03:43.280 --> 00:03:46.800 So make sure that you use caution when you're updating your firmware. 00:03:46.800 --> 00:03:51.560 Make sure the battery is charged, use a UPS for your desktop PC or your television, and 00:03:51.560 --> 00:03:55.960 also verify that you're getting firmware from a reputable source like the manufacturer 00:03:55.960 --> 00:04:00.440 itself. Then there's other firmware that can't be updated at all, either because it's stored 00:04:00.440 --> 00:04:05.880 on ROM or read-only chips that physically cannot be updated, or because there's some 00:04:05.880 --> 00:04:12.800 kind of a software lock. Some devices simply don't need firmware updates, like a really simple USB stick, while others 00:04:12.800 --> 00:04:17.200 use firmware to store proprietary features, making them harder for competitors to figure 00:04:17.200 --> 00:04:22.200 out. However, software restrictions on firmware can often be easily bypassed, either by installing 00:04:22.200 --> 00:04:27.280 custom firmware that can sometimes enable additional functionality, or by malicious 00:04:27.280 --> 00:04:30.360 actors that use firmware as an attack vector. 00:04:30.360 --> 00:04:34.860 Firmware often has no encryption whatsoever, and developers have mostly been concentrating 00:04:34.860 --> 00:04:39.760 on making operating systems and applications secure instead, making firmware a target for 00:04:39.760 --> 00:04:47.040 both hackers and spy agencies. And especially because a firmware hack would obviously survive reformatting the hard drive 00:04:47.040 --> 00:04:54.440 and can be very difficult to detect. And because firmware directly controls hardware, hacked firmware can actually cause physical 00:04:54.440 --> 00:04:59.840 damage even. There was a proof-of-concept on a few years ago where a researcher hacked the firmware 00:04:59.840 --> 00:05:05.360 of an Apple MacBook battery to cause it to overcharge and permanently break. 00:05:05.360 --> 00:05:08.880 Hopefully no one will be able to figure out how to hack the firmware of the smart pizza 00:05:08.880 --> 00:05:12.880 cutter I just bought. Can you imagine? 00:05:12.880 --> 00:05:19.160 I can't, I have no idea where we were going with this. So thanks for watching guys, like, dislike, check out our other videos, and leave a comment 00:05:19.160 --> 00:05:26.320 with a suggestion for a future fast as possible. We would love to cover it for you so that when you're subscribed, make sure you do that 00:05:26.320 --> 00:05:27.600 too, you will see it.