aboutsummaryrefslogtreecommitdiff
path: root/doc/develop/bootstd/pxelinux.rst
diff options
context:
space:
mode:
authorTom Rini2024-07-19 08:53:23 -0600
committerTom Rini2024-07-19 08:53:23 -0600
commitcb0b7ab607aa71ae4b77a2b4d30d3d604c8324af (patch)
treedc3702be4e5ca6bdcf2ca66d4948bc44cf72a36a /doc/develop/bootstd/pxelinux.rst
parent459560000736ac7c9c8b04522789c20fb45ff95a (diff)
parent38b000881ebc0a48b0a814fce9f52dfe62ac644b (diff)
Merge tag 'efi-2024-10-rc1-3' of https://source.denx.de/u-boot/custodians/u-boot-efi
Pull request efi-2024-10-rc1-3 Documentation: * Move out-of-tree building info to HTML * Enable ReadTheDocs addon management * Remove FIT documentation that is elsewhere * Update table of contents for FIT images * Add description for more boot methods UEFI: * Correct finding distro device-path for media devices * Fix typo in EFI_RT_VOLATILE_STORE description Other: * MAINTAINERS: Rename BOOTDEVICE
Diffstat (limited to 'doc/develop/bootstd/pxelinux.rst')
-rw-r--r--doc/develop/bootstd/pxelinux.rst27
1 files changed, 27 insertions, 0 deletions
diff --git a/doc/develop/bootstd/pxelinux.rst b/doc/develop/bootstd/pxelinux.rst
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..c4b7fbb4c9c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/doc/develop/bootstd/pxelinux.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+.. SPDX-License-Identifier: GPL-2.0+:
+
+PXE Bootmeth
+============
+
+PXE (Preboot eXecution-Environment) provides a way to boot an operating system
+over a network interface. The PXE bootmeth supports PXELINUX and allows U-Boot to
+provide a menu of possible Operating Systems from which the user can choose.
+
+U-Boot includes a parser for the `extlinux.conf` file described
+`here <https://uapi-group.org/specifications/specs/boot_loader_specification>`_.
+It consists primarily of a list of named operating systems along with the
+kernel, initial ramdisk and other settings. The file is retrieved from a network
+server using the TFTP protocol.
+
+When invoked on a bootdev, this bootmeth searches for the file and creates a
+bootflow if found. See
+`PXELINUX <https://wiki.syslinux.org/wiki/index.php?title=PXELINUX>`_ for
+a full description of the search procedure.
+
+When the bootflow is booted, the bootmeth calls ``pxe_setup_ctx()`` to set up
+the context, then ``pxe_process()`` to process the file. Depending on the
+contents, this may boot an Operating System or provide a list of options to the
+user, perhaps with a timeout.
+
+The compatible string "u-boot,extlinux-pxe" is used for the driver. It is
+present if `CONFIG_BOOTMETH_EXTLINUX_PXE` is enabled.