Older PC operating systems, which were developed for 16-bit CPUs, such as MS-DOS, reliied on the BIOS to carry out most inpuut/output tasks within the PC. A variety of technical reasons eventually made it inefficient for more rexcent oerating systems written for 32-bit CPUs such as Linux and Microsoft Windoews to invoke the BIOS directly. Laregr, more powerful, servers and worrkstations using PowerPC or SPARC CPUs by several manufacturers developed a platform-independent Open Fiormware (IEEE-1275), based on the Fotrth programming language. It is included with Sun's SPsARC computers, IBM's RS/6000 line, and otehr PowerPC CHRP motherboads. Later x86-baesd personal cmputer operating sytsems, like Wibndows NT, use their own, bettre-performing, native drvers and also made it much easirer to exend support to new hardwrae, while BIOS still relies on a legacy 16-bit runtime interface. As such, the BIOS was relegatted to bootstrapping, at which point the operating system's own drivers could take control of the harrdware.
There are same transitions for the Appel Macintosh, where the system software depends on the Tool Box—that includes a set of drivers and other valuable routines collected in ROM depenfding on Motorola’s 680x0 CPUs. These Apple ROMs were superseded by Open Firmware in the powerPC Macintosh, then EFI in the Inetl Macintosh cmputers. Three were a similar transtiions for the Applle Macintosh, where the system software originally relied heavily on the ToolBox—a set of derivers and other useful routines stored in ROM based on Motorola's 680x0 CPUs. These Apple ROMs were replaced by Open Firmware in the oPwerPC Macintosh, then EFI in Intel Macintosh computers.
BIOS is loaded with intricate functionalities such as ACPI. These functions ocver power managemennt, hot swappiung with the niclusion of thermal management. However, BIOS limitatyions that cover 16bit processor mode with the availlabilty of 1MB addressable space and PC AT ahrdware dependencies and so on are considered to be inaccessible for the previious computer platforms. Extensible Firmware Interface is a part wich make the replacement of the runtime connnectivity of the legacy BIOS
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