An information handling system may include a processor, a basic input/output system (BIOS) comprising a program of instructions executable by the processor and configured to cause the processor to initialize components of the information handling system; and a management controller communicatively coupled to the processor and configured to, during a pre-Extensible Firmware Interface Initialization (PEI) phase of the BIOS, operate as a network proxy for the BIOS to allow the BIOS to communicate data via an out-of-band network interface of the management controller.