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A number of users have reported that running "rm --no-preserve-root -rf /" not only deletes all their files (as expected), but also permanently bricks their computers (which is not). Tracing the issue revealed that the ultimate cause was that SystemD mounted the EFI pseudo-fs as read-write even when this FS was not listed in fstab, and deleting certain files in this pseudo-fs causes certain buggy, but very common, firmware not to POST anymore. A user reported this bug on SystemD's GitHub issue tracker, asking that the FS be mounted read-only instead of read-write, and said bug was immediately closed as invalid. The comment thread for the bug was locked shortly after. Discuss.
Links:
https://github.com/systemd/systemd/issues/2402
http://thenextweb.com/insider/2016/02/01/running-a-single-delete-command-can-permanently-brick-laptops-from-inside-linux/
(Score: 2) by bornagainpenguin on Wednesday February 10 2016, @01:17AM
Look, it's not about whether or not Windows can be made to brick due to bad firmware. I'm sure that it's quite doable, this isn't the point.
The point is manufacturers are going to be able to claim that their hardware works fine in Windows, so this is the result of running an unsupported operating system on their hardware. Just like Secureboot this is about eliminating the after market use of hardware by way of installing new operating systems. It's about planned obsolescence. It's about passing the buck.
Also, let's be real here. It's not unusual to do a command wipe of the system with "rm --no-preserve-root -rf /" in *nix. It's quite a bit more unusual for some one to craft a bat file of the nature you're describing.
This is callus disregard for the hardware of others by the systemd people and their handling of this situation makes me wonder what other surprises lurk inside.