Andrew, a system administrator, is performing a UEFI boot process.

The scenario accurately describes the functions of the PEI phase within the UEFI boot process:

PEI Phase Key Characteristics:

Early Hardware Initialization: The PEI phase is responsible for finding and initializing essential hardware components, like the CPU and the minimum amount of RAM needed for the system to function.

Foundation for Later Stages: It establishes the groundwork for subsequent UEFI phases by creating data structures (Hand-Off Blocks or HOBs) that communicate vital information.

Focus on DXE Initiation: The primary goal of the PEI phase is to prepare the system for the Driver Execution Environment (DXE) phase.

The UEFI boot process is divided into several distinct phases. The phase described in the question involves the initialization code executed after powering on the EFI system, managing platform reset events, and setting up the system to find, validate, install, and run the PEI (Pre-EFI Initialization). This description corresponds to the Pre-EFI initialization phase1.

During this phase, the system’s firmware is responsible for initializing the processor, memory, and other hardware components to a point where the firmware can hand off control to the operating system loader. It’s a critical part of the UEFI boot process, as it prepares the system for the subsequent phases, which include the Security (SEC) phase, the Driver Execution Environment (DXE) phase, and the Boot Device Selection (BDS) phase1. The correct answer is A, as it aligns with the tasks and responsibilities of the Pre-EFI initialization phase as described in the scenario.