Boot-US vs rEFInd
Boot-US
boot-us.derEFInd
rodsbooks.comSide by side
| Figure | Boot-US | rEFInd |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 9 | 1 |
| Spec score · Boot Manager Software | 9.0 (#1) | 8.3 (#8) |
| Purpose | Boot-US is a universal boot manager for using existing operating systems independently of one another. | rEFInd is a boot manager forked from rEFIt that scans for boot loaders and helps users choose an operating system or utility at startup. |
| Support | The author says licensed users' questions should be answered within a working day, while answers for non-licensed users may take from a day to a week. | The maker invites users with problems or comments to email [email protected]. |
| What it does | Boot-US is a boot manager for selecting among installed operating systems independently on x86 computers. | rEFInd is a graphical and text-mode EFI/UEFI boot manager that detects operating-system loaders and presents selectable boot entries. |
Plans
Boot-US
- Private PC / public school useFree
- Boot-US 4.x.x · 1 PC€24.50, paid once
- Boot-US 4.x.x, 1 PC$24.50, paid once
- Boot-US 4.x.x · 5 PCs€59.50, paid once
- Boot-US 4.x.x, 5 PCs$59.50, paid once
- Boot-US 4.x.x · 20 PCs€119.50, paid once
- Boot-US 4.x.x, 20 PCs$119.50, paid once
- Boot-US 4.x.x · 100 PCs€299.50, paid once
- Boot-US 4.x.x, 100 PCs$299.50, paid once
In their own words
Boot-US
Boot-US is a boot manager for x86 machines that lets you start existing operating systems independently, including multiple separate Windows systems. It supports both BIOS and UEFI booting and works with MBR and GPT disks of any size. The package has a graphical configuration program for Windows and command-line versions for Windows and 64-bit Linux. It also includes tools to inspect partition details, hide partitions, and back up or restore disks and partitions. The site lists version 4.2.4, including a Linux 64-bit command-line version and a service for restoring UEFI variables when Windows starts or shuts down. SHA256 values are listed for that version’s downloads. The non-licensed package is free for private PCs and public schools, and can be tried for one month. Commercial use requires a license after the trial. Listed licenses are one-time payments, starting at €24.50 for one PC; some password protection functions require a version 4 license. The license page says the software is provided without warranty and used at the user’s own risk.
rEFInd
rEFInd is a free boot manager, forked from rEFIt, that scans for boot loaders and lets users select an operating system or utility at startup. It is intended for EFI-based computers, not older BIOS-based machines, and works with EFI 1.1 and UEFI 2.x. It can find EFI loaders, BIOS/CSM/legacy loaders, and boot options saved in firmware NVRAM. For Linux, rEFInd can detect kernels with EFI stub support, locate initrd files, and read kernel options from a refind_linux.conf file. It supports text and graphical operation, with configurable resolution, backgrounds, icons, and fonts. It can communicate with Shim to authenticate boot loaders using valid UEFI Secure Boot keys, Shim keys, or Machine Owner Keys. Included filesystem drivers cover ext2/3, ext4, Btrfs, ReiserFS, HFS+, and ISO-9660; the NTFS driver is not compiled by default. Downloads include ZIP, RPM, Debian, CD-R image, and USB flash drive image packages. Installation scripts and manual procedures cover Linux, macOS, and Windows. The maker describes it as beta-quality, with uneven testing across architectures.