Ian Santopietro of System76 has a Python-based tool called kernelstub, which boots Linux using the Linux Stub bootloader instead of an external bootloader.

Kernelstub is a basic program enabling booting from the kernel’s built-in EFI Stub bootloader. It keeps the ESP and NVRAM up to date automatically when the kernel updates and allows for modifying and setting the boot parameters/kernel options stored in NVRAM. Kernelstub is a basic program enabling booting from the kernel’s built-in EFI Stub bootloader. It keeps the ESP and NVRAM up to date automatically when the kernel updates and allows for modifying and setting the boot parameters/kernel options stored in NVRAM. It works by detecting certain information about the running OS, kernel, storage devices, and options, then combines all of that together into a unified entity, then calls efibootmgr to register the kernel with the NVRAM. It also copies the latest kernel, initrd.img to the EFI System Partition so that UEFI can find it. It will also store a copy of the kernel’s command line (/proc/cmdline) on the ESP in case of necessary recovery from an EFI shell.

https://launchpad.net/kernelstub

He just gave a talk/demo of it at SeaGL:

https://osem.seagl.org/conferences/seagl2017/program/proposals/326

His presentation mentioned this blog in the ‘more info’ slide! 🙂