Lenovo, Dell, and HP Financially Support Linux Vendor Firmware Service (itsfoss.com)
(Sunday May 24, 2026 @11:34AM (EditorDavid)
from the thanking-sponsors dept.)
- Reference: 0183365376
- News link: https://linux.slashdot.org/story/26/05/24/0522202/lenovo-dell-and-hp-financially-support-linux-vendor-firmware-service
- Source link: https://itsfoss.com/news/hp-supports-lvfs/
The It's FOSS blog has [1]news about the Linux Vendor Firmware Service , which gives hardware vendors a secure portal to upload firmware updates "which can then be downloaded and installed by users through clients such as GNOME Software or fwupdmgr." (Originally developed in 2015 by GNOME maintainer Richard Hughes...)
> The issue, however, obviously, [2]had been funding with the largest contributors being the usual suspects, Framework and Open Source Framework Foundation, at $10K a year. Recently, however, Lenovo and Dell joined suite [3]as Premier sponsors, which is the highest tier at $100K a year each, making the project more sustainable and manageable.
>
> These companies contributing makes a lot of sense, considering they are two of the bigger computer companies which offer Linux by default in some cases, especially with Lenovo's ThinkPads being the Linux users' favorite for decades. And now... [4]HP has followed suit as a Premier sponsor , also providing $100K a year, right alongside Dell and Lenovo...
>
> The question still remains, however, where are the other vendors? What are they waiting for... This major move by these three companies should not only be seen as a sign of relief and wider acceptance of the usage of Linux, but as a beacon for other vendors to follow, who ought to make their hardware more accessible to the open-source community.
[1] https://itsfoss.com/news/hp-supports-lvfs/
[2] https://itsfoss.com/news/lvfs-consumption-quota/
[3] https://itsfoss.com/news/lvfs-finally-has-premier-sponsors/
[4] https://www.phoronix.com/news/HP-Sponsoring-LVFS-Fwupd
> The issue, however, obviously, [2]had been funding with the largest contributors being the usual suspects, Framework and Open Source Framework Foundation, at $10K a year. Recently, however, Lenovo and Dell joined suite [3]as Premier sponsors, which is the highest tier at $100K a year each, making the project more sustainable and manageable.
>
> These companies contributing makes a lot of sense, considering they are two of the bigger computer companies which offer Linux by default in some cases, especially with Lenovo's ThinkPads being the Linux users' favorite for decades. And now... [4]HP has followed suit as a Premier sponsor , also providing $100K a year, right alongside Dell and Lenovo...
>
> The question still remains, however, where are the other vendors? What are they waiting for... This major move by these three companies should not only be seen as a sign of relief and wider acceptance of the usage of Linux, but as a beacon for other vendors to follow, who ought to make their hardware more accessible to the open-source community.
[1] https://itsfoss.com/news/hp-supports-lvfs/
[2] https://itsfoss.com/news/lvfs-consumption-quota/
[3] https://itsfoss.com/news/lvfs-finally-has-premier-sponsors/
[4] https://www.phoronix.com/news/HP-Sponsoring-LVFS-Fwupd
Malware distribution in 3.. 2.. 1.. (Score:2)
by devslash0 ( 4203435 )
I can easily see how this central firmware delivery service will become the target of a malicious actor at some point. Just a matter of time.
Surprising Absolutely No One (Score:2)
by SlashbotAgent ( 6477336 )
Neither the article, nor its source, explain what this site is for, why anyone would go to it, why a website would cost so much... nor anything else.
I rely solely on my distros to provide updates, including things like kernel firmware. Though I have no idea what the fuck kernel firmware is or does.
Anyway, apparently Richard Hughes is now getting a big fat pay cheque.
What's the problem? (Score:2)
The web site says: "The relief and effort of LVFS cannot be understated, as before a central secure portal for firmware, the users only had the option to trust some random third party upload on the internet, often breaking or worse, infecting their systems. LVFS fills a space where the vendors can provide secure firmware, with Linux-specific .cab files."
I dont understand what's the problem they are fixing. Why would someone go to a 3rd party site for firmware files when the vendors have download sites? Or i