Michael: The big advantage with ChromeOS (and running Linux inside ChromeOS) is that you can use Android apps.
How come you are not using the Android version of Wireguard or OpenVPN? > On Sep 15, 2022, at 00:58, Michael Galea via talk <[email protected]> wrote: > > On 2022-09-01 21:00, Michael Galea via talk wrote: >>> On 2022-08-26 18:40, Michael Galea via talk wrote: >>> I am hoping to tap the wisdom of the list. I'm going traveling and I >>> don't want to lug around my 5.2 pound T420. Not on this trip. >>> >>> If I buy a cheap refurb Chromebook from Best Buy or Canada Computers: >>> - Will I have luck wiping ChromeOS and installing Debian? Can I still >>> encrypt the disk? >>> - If instead I just run Linux on Chromebook, can I run a wireguard VPN? >>> - Can anyone recommend a minimum spec level for the machine? >>> >> Thanks to Colin, Hugh and others for their advice. >> I went with the Lenovo Ideapad 3 11", mainly because of the weight. >> Setup was straightforward, and performance was surprisingly good. >> I installed the latest Debian on it but found that ChromeOS would not use >> Debian's kernel. This breaks wireguard VPN as debian builds a kernel module >> that matches the resident kernel. >> There is a voodoo approach to flashing the chromebook with debian directly >> but this version is new enough to not be supported by the tool chains that >> are out there, and I am cowardly. >> So for now I'll use Linux to ssh and mutt while away. In retrospect, I >> should have taken Colin's advice and blown away the Windows laptop with >> debian. > > The final point I have arrived at with running Linux on Chromebook is: > 1) I'm running Debian Bullseye in the Linux container on the chromebook. > 2) I can ssh home through a hole in the firewall opened by knockd. > 3) I can vnc home through a hole opened by knockd. > 4) I can raise a VPN home using the StrongVPN wireguard android app. > 5) I have ran gimp, calibre and thunderbird on chromebook from the Linux > container. > > Its #4 that is giving me pause. I have to have real trust in the StrongVPN > app which I can't audit. The company, which offers commercial access for > their own VPN, seems to get rave reviews. Does anyone on the list have any > experience with strongVPN? > > -- > Michael Galea > > --- > Post to this mailing list [email protected] > Unsubscribe from this mailing list https://gtalug.org/mailman/listinfo/talk --- Post to this mailing list [email protected] Unsubscribe from this mailing list https://gtalug.org/mailman/listinfo/talk
