3.15.3 Connecting consoles

At this point during the platform initialization, the firmware has not initialized or configured a "console" device that allows user input. This absence is often because a PCI device, waits for the PCI bus driver to provide device handles for the console(s).

Most UEFI conformant platforms follow a console connection strategy to connect the consoles in a manner consistent with that of the platform. This ensures that the platform is able to display messages to all of the selected consoles through the standard UEFI mechanisms. Initially, this includes platform initialization and informational screens, and later (during setup), HII functionality and forms. Prior to this point, platform messages, if any, are conveyed through platform-specific methods.

Note: During initialization, the platform needs to connect console devices to the driver. HII functionality is about displaying configurable information to the user, which happens after consoles are initialized and after an HII compatible setup engine is invoked. UEFI Drivers should never directly access console devices except for the few UEFI driver related services that explicitly allow user interaction. In most cases, UEFI drivers use HII infrastructure to present information to users.