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The first phase when booting OS X is the bootloader which takes over from the BIOS/UEFI to load the operating system. There have been various open-source bootloader projects over the years for OS X, with the Chameleon project being the most commonly used. Within the Chameleon project, which is based upon Apple's Boot-132 code, there are numerous branches including MacMan's Chimera. Because of the widespread adoption of UEFI on modern motherboards, alternate bootloaders such as Clover have shown wider appeal, having the capability of booting directly from the UEFI.
There are pros and cons to any bootloader. We recommend Chameleon/Chimera because it's the most stable and universal for modern desktop systems. It's also relatively simple for non-techies to set up and configure. For those interested in experimenting with alternates to Chimera, we've created a new subforum called Alternate Bootloaders. Feel free to create your own guides and share your experiences in these areas. We've already added a few sticky posts with some general information.
NOTE: Experimentation can lead to irretrievable data loss. Please be careful!
There are pros and cons to any bootloader. We recommend Chameleon/Chimera because it's the most stable and universal for modern desktop systems. It's also relatively simple for non-techies to set up and configure. For those interested in experimenting with alternates to Chimera, we've created a new subforum called Alternate Bootloaders. Feel free to create your own guides and share your experiences in these areas. We've already added a few sticky posts with some general information.
NOTE: Experimentation can lead to irretrievable data loss. Please be careful!
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