Chimera

Free
Open Source
Mac
Online

Chimera Alternatives

22
Options
Considered
2022-04-06
Last
Updated

#1 EasyBCD

Freemium
Proprietary
Windows
FreeBSD
Linux
Mac
Online

EasyBCD is a multi-boot control program for Microsoft Windows and its versions via operating systems compatibility and configurations. It integrates with different modes according to the adjustment of the dashboard by stating that it is a super user-friendly version of the utility. EasyBCD is a bootloader for computers running Microsoft Windows XP and later versions of Windows. It is used to add entries into the boot menu of the computer’s BIOS, and it was created to provide simple functionality for an older version of the system.

The name of the tool derives from the purpose of the controlling program, which is to make the computer a powerful interconnecting through boots and system menu. The primary purpose of the program is to enable users of older PCs to enjoy the benefits of the newer versions of NTLDR, such as the ability to boot multi-boot configurations and use newer versions of Windows.

#2 Visual BCD Editor

Free
Proprietary
Windows
Online

Visual BCD Editor is a lightweight yet effective utility that provides automatic boot loaders for Windows via the BCD store. The module has also been released as a standalone installer application where users can edit or complete given tasks by clicking for simple integration. One of the prominent aspects of the module is the editor specification which is a feature of full-featured BCD.

This new design gives clients ease of mind with a simple installation process that includes native antivirus protection and all of the features that come with using the full BCD Editor. It is built the tool to scale where users can purchase the number of configuring commands that would establish a connection in a list of editable tasks. This new editor will replace our current drag-and-drop experience, providing you with a faster and more intuitive way to manage your BDC metadata.

#3 Yaboot

Freemium
Proprietary
Linux
Online
Github

Yaboot was developed to enhance the PC booting system that provides commands for Linux-based users to integrate effective assistance. It allows you to complete various operations when your PC boots, such as adjusting the volume, controlling your DVD drive, launching a web browser, and more. If your computer enters a state where it cannot boot normally, you can use YoBoot to boot it from CD and repair the system. It allows the user to easily install operating systems and software that do not fit according to the recommended version.

Once you have done that, you can then use the Yaboot USB drive to boot any computer. Once booted, you have full control of the computer where you can run programs, create and delete files, etc. You typically do this for supportive purposes to rescue a computer that the owner cannot boot or normally use due to malware or some other issue. Yaboot is designed for users who are comfortable with the command line, users who aren’t comfortable with this method can still use a simple procedure to execute files.

Good
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#4 Coreboot

Free
Open Source
Linux
Online
Github

Coreboot is a special firmware that can replace the proprietary BIOS (firmware) found in most computers with the integration of boot as a secure functionality. It is a combination of software, documentation, and tools that when assembled allow a client to create and distribute computer hardware that defaults to more open and capable behaviour. It provides a friendly, inclusive, open mode that relates developers or projects users to get fast connections.

Coreboot is a free software project that replaces proprietary BIOS firmware on your computer. It enables you to install and run a free software operating system on your computers, like GNU+Linux, libreboot, or Tails. It can be configured to detect attached hard drives and network cards and then provide an appropriate interface to the user.

#5 rEFInd – Boot Manager

Free
Proprietary
Linux
Mac
Windows
Online

rEFInd – Boot Manager is a boot manager for UEFI-based computers that runs on Macs as well as PCs as a lightweight and automated command. It is derived from rEFIt and aims to provide a simplified interface for the user while maintaining flexibility for the developer.

The release also updates rEFInd to use a more complete version of the refind-install script included with recent versions of Syslinux. Some of the major features are the following: auto operating systems detection, customizable launch, booting process for video chipsets on specific Mac, EFI stub loader, the configuration file for boot, and support for graphical text mode.

#6 Linux Loader

Free
Open Source
Linux
Online

Linux Loader is a free and open-source program that allows you to boot Linux directly from the operating system directly to the GRUB a powerful integration. The program also includes a boot manager that lets users choose between Linux operating systems at system startup, as well as tools to mount and manage partitions.

It is a piece of software that runs on Linux operating system. Its goal with this service is to provide the most usable and compatible solution for using industry-standard hard drives on your computer system according to the complete compatibility with different system repositories.

#7 Grub Customizer

Free
Open Source
Linux
Online

Grub Customizer is a tool that allows you to quickly add a splash of the interface to your home screen through boots. The idea for the module came out of the search for interesting ways to give users the ability to customize their devices. Because it’s a new way to express system. It is a dynamic tool that allows you to customize your boot and harness combinations on your Grub.

By pairing different boots and harnesses together, you can create a Grub that’s designed for you. Module designed this tool to provide an even deeper level of customization for the community so that no two Grubs are alike. The program depicts some valuable features, such as reinstallation of the bootloader to MBR, kernel params, GRUB2 & BURG support, etc.

#8 XTIDE Universal BIOS

Free
Open Source
Linux
Windows
Online

XTIDE Universal BIOS lets you boot anything from a floppy disk and compact disks that can be run via programs in protected mode. It is free software, free hardware, available free under an Open Source license as GPLv2, and you can download it for free from the website.

The XTIDE is a BIOS replacement that can be used to boot operating systems stored on floppy disks. It has been developed as a result of demand for a free replacement for commercial BIOS systems. XTIDE is a UEFI BIOS replacement for computers, which allows running any OS (Linux, Windows, DOS or FreeDOS) from any legacy hardware (compatible or not).

#9 Grub2Win

Free
Open Source
Windows

Grub2Win is an open-source program that aids you to safely dual boot Windows or Linux, enabling you to use software of another operating system without downloading the whole operating system on your device. The key characteristics of this platform include it efficiently works with the file system like Mac hfs and Btrfs, create your own customize background themes, set your EFI firmware boot order from within Windows, easily impart all the configuration files for all Linux distributions, and many others.

Grub2Win has the ability to automatically generate the configuration files for Windows, PhoenixOS, Android, Ubuntu, Debian, Suse, Fedora, Manjaro, Mint, Clover, and more. Another adorable function of this platform includes you can enter your own custom commands for each menu entry which is not present in any other traditional software.

#10 AIO Boot

Free
Proprietary
Windows

AIO Boot is rich-featured software that offers you a chance to install more than one operating system from a single USB drive. You can easily install Linux, Windows, and other famous operating systems from a single drive. The key feature of this platform includes full compatibility with boots in both UEFI and Legacy BIOS modes.

You can easily choose between Grub2 and Grub4Dos as the default boot loader, supports hard drive, external drive, USB, and SSD, utilize FAT32 partitions to support booting in UEFI mode, store larger files such as VHD files as a backup, and many others. For integrating packages, it is fully supported for removing and renaming menus and create window VHD in no time. Another interesting function of this platform includes you can change the language for AIO Boot Extractor, AIOCreator, and Grub2 menu.

#11 EasyUEFI

Freemium
Proprietary
Windows

EasyUEFI is rich-featured software that provides you an opportunity to manage all the EFI/UEFI boot options and the EFI system partitions, enabling you to create, edit or delete the boot entries in no time. It is specially designed for controlling the boot option of UEFI or EFI-based system, helping you to load the boot entries and their important properties in a specific order so that you can easily configure the boot according to your computer.

The main attractive function of this platform is that it has the ability to view the boot information when you are running the operating system and can easily change the boot device or new boot entry in real-time. With the help of its modern dashboard, it easily detects the entries and creates a difference between new or permanent entries in seconds. Another important function of this software is that you can get additional details about the partition number and location, which is displayed on the side panel.

#12 Bootit Bare Metal

Paid
Proprietary
Windows

Bootit Bare Metal is one of the advanced software that aids you to manage your partitions, install and boot multiple operating systems with a single USD device and create a backup or restore all the entries in no time. The stunning function of this platform is that you can edit small text files on any supported partition no matter they are visible or hidden from windows, offers complete control over the drive geometry, convert between MBR, EMBR, and GPT type disks, you can move, copy, delete and undelete partitions with the single click and many others.

With the help of its smart boot manager, it provides a complete set of options for each boot item and giving the user flexibility to configure multiple-boot systems without using any third-party hardware or software. Another function of this platform is that you can customize and secure the computer with user IDs and passwords.

#13 Serva 32/64

Free
Windows

Serva 32/64 is one of the lightweight software that offers effective server & PEX management and is fully integrated with important executable protocols for performing PEX network boots and installations. The highlighted function of this platform includes that it offers reliable client solutions for access all the resources of the server and booting a device, lets unequaled flexibility and accessibility when you decide to remotely control your resources for working on complex tasks and many others.

With the help of its pre-boot execution environment, it persuades you to describe a client-server ecosystem, helping you to retrieve the minor pieces of data from the server through the local network or server-hosted resources. Another hot function of this platform is that it has the ability to perform single & multiple protocol configurations and is fully supported by HTTP, FTP, TFTP, DHCP, DNS, SNTP, and SYSLOG server connections.

#14 Knoppix

Free
Open Source
Linux
Github

Knoppix is an operating system based on the Debian, which is specially designed for professionals from all over the world is making them run directly from a CD, DVD, or USB drive. It is utilized to easily copy files from hard drives with inaccessible operating systems and use Linux software easily without installing the whole operating system.

The main characteristics of this platform include it contains a huge collection of GNU & Linux software, ability to automatically detect any faulty hardware, compatible with modern graphic cards, sound cards, SCSI, and many USB devices. Knoppix facilitates you to recover the data from an unbootable operating system; just you need to perform multiple steps like boot the live CD, locate the target files, choose the files which you want to recover, upload all the respective files to a server or copy files to an external drive in no time.

#15 Rescatux

Free
Open Source
Linux
Windows
Self-Hosted

Rescatux is one of the powerful Debian-based GNU & Linux live distributions that lets graphical wizard for preventing the broken GNU & Linux installations. It gives multiple rescue options such as restoring the GRUB bootloader after the installation of Window, reset the password that is present on the system files, and check the life of the Linux system in real-time.

There are special boot options like update the UEFI order, check the UEFI boot, hide the Microsoft Windows UEFI, and partition status. With the help of its GRUB functions, it facilitates you to fix GNU & Linux boot, restore the settings of GRUB and GRUB2, updates Debian & Ubuntu grub menus, and many others. Other classical function of this platform includes you can check the fix file system, clear all the window password, regenerate the sudoers file, and easily update the Grub menus with the single click.

#16 Tuxboot

Free
Open Source
Linux
Windows
Github

Tuxboot is one of the smart software that offers you a chance to easily create bootable USB drive Clonezilla, DRBL, Gparted, or tux2live by utilizing the downloaded or locally hosted ISO files on a single interface. The core features of this platform include you can download the ISO file from any location and make it bootable on the fly, auto-detect the latest file version, notifies you as an alert if any of the problems occur with ISO file, along with the reason, making you eliminate it in no time without any disturbance.

It works in multiple progressive steps; first, you need to launch the software, select the external drive which you want to make a bootable, special option to choose the ISO file, present on the start button, in another minute your disk will be ready to use.

#17 Libreboot

Free
Open Source
Linux
Github

Libreboot is one of the reliable software that lets you initialize the hardware like memory controller, CPU, peripherals and starts a bootloader for your operating system. The main advantage of this platform is that it lets you replace your BIOS or UEFI with a strong focus on boot speed, security, and flexibility. Basically, it is designed to boot your operating system without any compromising on the security

With the help of its debug console, it displays the boot log over serial ports, USB, SPI bus and has the ability to retrieve the boot log once your operating system is up and running. Another function of this platform includes other languages like Ada for formal verification of special properties, and the use of platform features like IOMMU, flash protections, and deactivated SMM mode increases the security as well.

#18 VMLite VBoot

Free
Open Source
Windows
Linux
Github

VMLite VBoot is a multi-function software that lets you an opportunity to boot a physical computer from a single virtual disk file in VHD, VMDK, VDI, and Raw format. It allows you to run more than one operating system at the same time on a single physical computer without any modification.

It works in multiple progressive steps like you need to select the external hard drive, choose the ISO file from your device and click on the boot section; in other instances, the bootable drive is ready to use, enabling you to use any software of another operating system. Another hot function of this platform is that it has the ability to perform single & multiple protocol configurations and is fully supported by HTTP, FTP, TFTP, DHCP, DNS, SNTP, and SYSLOG server connections.

#19 Ikki Boot

Free
Open Source
Linux
Windows

Ikki Boot is one of the professional software that lets multiboot live DVD & USB enabling you to perform multiple functions like disk portioning, backup, troubleshooting, and data recovery.The key feature of this platform includes full compatibility with boots in both UEFI and Legacy BIOS modes; you can easily choose between Grub2 and Grub4Dos as the default boot loader, supports hard drive, external drive, USB, and SSD, utilize FAT32 partitions to support booting in UEFI mode, store larger files such as VHD files as a backup and many others.

It is specially designed for controlling the boot option of UEFI or EFI-based system, helping you to load the boot entries and their important properties in a specific order so that you can easily configure the boot according to your computer. Another function of this platform is that you can customize and secure the computer with user IDs and passwords.

#20 Bootice

Free
Proprietary
Windows

Bootice is one of the smart software that is specially designed to modify, restore and create a backup the partition boot record and master boot record of local & USB drives. The highlighted function of this platform includes it offers reliable client solutions for access all the resources of the server and booting a device, lets unequaled flexibility and accessibility when you decide to remotely control your resources for working on complex tasks and many others.

It is utilized to easily copy files from hard drives with inaccessible operating systems and use Linux software easily without installing the whole operating system. There are special boot options like update the UEFI order, check the UEFI boot, hide the Microsoft Windows UEFI, and partition status. Bootice has the ability to automatically generate the configuration files for Windows, PhoenixOS, Android, Ubuntu, Debian, Suse, Fedora, Manjaro, Mint, Clover, and more.

#21 PLoP Boot Manager

Free

PLoP Boot Manager is a smart and elegant boot manager to boot plenty of operating systems right using a single platform. PLoP Boot Manager App enables you to boot the operating system from floppy, CD or DVDs, hard disks, USB, or more without paying for anything.

You can instantly start the boot manager from the network, CD, floppy, and having plenty of other ways to start the boot manager. PLoP Boot Manager app enables you to install the boot manager over your hard disk and does not require any extra partition for the boot manager as well.

#22 Clover EFI bootloader

Free
Open Source
Linux
Mac
Windows
Online

Clover EFI bootloader is a multi-platform and open source UEFI bootloader that is based on the default repositories and designed to simplify the process of UEFI booting, particularly for Mac, Windows, and Linux systems. It simplifies the UEFI booting process by removing the need to create and manage custom NVRAM variables or use a modified environment, such as rEFInd.

The bootloader does not rely on additional files in the partition, it creates its own configurations by parsing filesystems, which leads to more reliable configuration and more easy installation. Full-text search support is also provided, allowing users to search for specific entries. The module supports several specifications and integrations, such as customizable GUI, resolutions and graphics, and boot.