UEFI Wizard - helps complete the Haiku install process

Kevin

I have created UEFI Wizard, a tool to help finish the Haiku install partition on UEFI systems. Instead of manually creating the the ESP partition and copying haiku_loader.efi over, this GUI tool will do it for you!

This is a very quick and simple app, don't expect a ton of refinement or polish - but it does the job.

Warning
Partition and disk operations can be destructive! Please make sure important data is backed up, and pay close attention to drive selection.

Where to find it
https://github.com/KevinAdams05/UEFI_Wizard/
You can compile from code, or there is a .hpkg in the releases folder.

Contributions / How to Help
Contributions always welcome!

Issues can be logged on the github page.
Pull requests/code changes are welcome. Please add detailed notes on your changes, and ensure that code changes adhere to the style guide (which is pretty close to the normal Haiku style guide).
Translations are needed - currently it's only in English 😦

Atomozero

Kevin
This tool is simple yet essential; it should be implemented into the Haiku installer.

Shaka444

Kevin

Kevin Kevin are you using HiShare or BeShare to share files? I'm not able to download from you (KevinAFK) in HiShare. If you are using BeShare, you have to open ports to allow sharing, if using HiShare, it should work out of the gate, except maybe if you are on a subnet (like a switch/router connected to another router...)
I wanted to grab the UEFI Wizard

Shaka444

Atomozero
Avast! Maybe it will be in th' Pirate distro!
Sail on, ye scallywags!

clasqm

Shaka444 Maybe it will be in th' Pirate distro!

I think we're a long way from that.

But just today I was looking at Alpine Linux. It uses musl instead of glibc and busybox instead of GNU utils. The result is a very compact distro. And I thought "if we did Haiku like that, we could call it Himalayan Haiku".

I'll just let myself out now.

Shaka444

I can't wait til th' new distro sails th' HaiSeas!
Arrrr arrr arrrrrr

Hmm.. Good name- "The HaiSeas Project" ;-)

Kevin

I am not very enthusiastic about forking Haiku or having multiple distros. I always thought one of the nice things about Haiku is that was a very unified system. Maybe it will come to that, but I am not excited for the idea.

Linux, especially desktop Linux, seems disjointed and messy. If we start having forks and distros for Haiku it gets harder for developers to support applications and also more confusing for users. Now users wonder "why does this work in HaikuCore but not HaiSeas but sometimes in Himalayan Haiku" or "why do I have different install instructions for app ZZZ on HaikuCore vs Himalayan Haiku".

Regarding my UEFI Wizard, the best case scenario is the core Haiku installer will eventually get updated and make the need for my tool irrelevant. There's tons of diagrams and details in the technical documentation. It shouldn't be hard for someone to implement without AI into the core Haiku installer.

Shaka444

Kevin I am not very enthusiastic about forking Haiku or having multiple distros. I always thought one of the nice things about Haiku is that was a very unified system.

I agree 100%. I think the approach should be optional packages (like QT is). The question arises what do if we start fixing bugs or improving the core kits. (as was suggested in the "My Boyfriend's Back" thread here).
Something to mull over for now and deal with later I guess.

Atomozero

Kevin I am not very enthusiastic about forking Haiku or having multiple distros.

I fully share Kevin's concerns regarding fragmentation. Objectively speaking, I believe a true fork of Haiku is humanly impossible right now: we simply lack the human and technical resources to sustain it, and we would risk burning out and seeing the project vanish after a few months of initial enthusiasm.

However, I see a substantial difference between a 'fork' and a distribution based on Haiku that adheres to certain standards of 'Historical Elegance.' I believe the latter could serve as a fertile ground to:

Have fun and experiment: Many parts of the system are in need of a deep refresh, just look at the MIDI stack, where the current latency makes professional or even casual creative use almost impossible. In that case, a surgical replacement wouldn't be seen as a disruption, but as a necessary improvement.
Attract new users: A 'custom' distro could act as a showcase for cutting-edge features or specific optimizations, attracting new contributors who, once hooked, could naturally transition to the Core Stable project to contribute to the main system.
Freedom of movement: Being able to innovate in a controlled environment, respecting the principles of Haiku's design but without the constant fear that every small change will be stifled by rigidities that sometimes feel more like 'unwritten rules' than actual technical necessities.

At the end of the day, it's the best way to work with peace of mind, experimenting without the fear of upsetting the balance of the Core.

clasqm

Atomozero I fully share Kevin's concerns regarding fragmentation. Objectively speaking, I believe a true fork of Haiku is humanly impossible right now: we simply lack the human and technical resources to sustain it, and we would risk burning out and seeing the project vanish after a few months of initial enthusiasm.

Agreed 100%

Atomozero However, I see a substantial difference between a 'fork' and a distribution based on Haiku that adheres to certain standards of 'Historical Elegance.

I wouldn't even use the word "distribution".

I have long argued that there is space for "flavours" of Haiku. A flavour for gaming, one for graphics, another for productivity. Not an incompatible mess, just an ISO pre-loaded with that kind of software, all on the same base. The graphics flavour would come with GIMP and Inkscape preinstalled. The Productivity flavour comes with LibreOffice, and so on. In theory, you could install the gaming flavour, change your mind, and then, if you sit there giving pkgman commands for half an hour, change it to the productivity one.

There could even be a minimalist flavour that comes with WebPositive, Terminal, one text editor (not three) and nothing else, not even gcc. Want gcc? Install it yourself.

Of course, I was arguing in the context of a future post-beta situation, but the idea could be brought forward.

So, what would be on the DoF "flavour"? Gentlemen, start your keyboards.

dcbeckman

My main concern has been getting MIDI and Audio working on Haiku, namely the gear I own, which is fairly extensive. My initial goal was to just have some fun tinkering with MIDI and Audio apps, but as I dove into the current state of Haiku I came to the realization that the midi and audio were not only not completely stable, but also, very incomplete. I saw in the forums that there had been some interest and progress in porting some apps, only for that interest to wane. Possibly due to the state of MIDI and Audio support on Haiku. Not everyone wants to get into driver development. It surely wasn't my goal, but here I am. Luckily, I was blessed to have a lot of quirky MIDI/Audio gear, and instead of asking why some of my supposedly class compliant gear didn't work under Haiku, I dove into it with Claude.

Shaka444

clasqm I wouldn't even use the word "distribution".

I have long argued that there is space for "flavours" of Haiku

Or "Editions" Like Haiku Gamer Edition etc..

clasqm

Precisely.

TmTFx

The problem is: if noone takes care of some tasks, because "the whatever" (lack of interest, lack of time, opinions, priority, ai code etc.), who brings the stuff on?

I live in the principle that "do" is better than "hope".

And "do" in our case means "learn, think, create, test and share". "Hope" means shoot a vision and beg someone (who doesn't care) implementing a refined code.

I like Haiku because of this. It's not complete, it lacks stuff, software and things, which gives me the opportunity to write my code on. This is the reason for my Feedgator, HaiPO (etc.) software. Or the contributions done to Haiku-PyAPI.

I play with the pirate "distro" as a "what if".
I'm not a kerel core dev and I rely on Haiku core devs work for this. But this gives me the opportunity to do, and not hope, the stuff noone cares.

Kevin

Shaka444 I am using BeShare, but I can switch to HiShare.

Kevin

Shaka444 What ports need to be opened? HiShare was unable to open them automatically.

Kevin

Shaka444

I don't have HiShare working yet, but I posted this on Spritz Depot:
https://spritzdepot.desktoponfire.com/app/org.uefiwizard.uefiwizard

It's not a very pretty app, but it should get the job done.

Let me know if you run into issues! I've tested it on a couple physical machines and also VMs.

Shaka444

Kevin BeShare looks for 7000-7050 for an open port

Here is info from the BeShare Handbook
https://haisly2.besly.de/index.php/internet/beshare/the-beshare-handbook#firewalls-routers

Atomozero

Kevin HiShare was unable to open them automatically.

Message me privately with your router model so we can try to understand why it isn't auto-opening the ports.

Shaka444

Kevin It's not a very pretty app, but it should get the job done.

All native apps are beautiful ;-)