Hi David.
Thanx for your input. Yes these are from Browns River Middle School.
I figure you can't miss for $20, right? I'll take "not horrible" for $20 (or
more accurately, my kids will!). But I would like to do the Pure and Right Thing and
toast the Chrome.
Arch mentions a write protect screw for the bios:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/HP_Chromebook_14, see Locating the
Write-Protect Screw at bottom of page. Doesn't seem to tricky if it needs to
be done.
Seems like the Debian or Arch route may be the way to go.
Spread the Linux, Spread the Love ;-)
On Thu, Feb 17, 2022 at 12:59:47PM -0500, David McClellan wrote:
Hey Joe,
I mean... they're running the Linux kernel so they're already running
Linux, right? So you're all set?
;)
Regarding running an actual FOSS OS you should be able to put the device
into developer mode, enable usb booting, and go to town. I don't think you
need to remove the write-protect screw on these models, although it's quite
trivial to do so. (Pop the keyboard off by removing all of the screws on
the bottom of the device, be mindful of the keyboard and trackpad cable and
look for a philips head screw with a large, flat head on it. Take it out
and you'll be forever greeted with a lovely beep every time you turn the
device on)
This link may be of use:
https://wiki.debian.org/InstallingDebianOn/HP/Chromebook%2014
While it's not for your specific model, it should help regarding enabling
developer mode and enabling USB booting for legacy operating systems.
As Tony mentioned, Crostini is a viable option as well, but you'll still
have the outdated underlying ChromeOS installed, so may not be the best
option, depending on your use case.
Just out of curiosity, did you get these from the MMUUSD (CESU) school
district by chance? I set up many a Chromebook 14 G4 there for a while and
they were selling them for $20 last I heard, haha!
Good luck, they're not horrible little machines.
~David
On Thu, Feb 17, 2022 at 12:12 PM Joe Golden <[email protected]> wrote:
Hi All.
Hope all you penguin lovers are enjoying the cold and snow this winter.
We're building a killer bobsled run in the front yard!
I picked up a couple of chromebooks for $20 each for the kids: search "hp
chromebook 14 g4 t4m32ut#aba" for specs. School is getting rid of these
older models partly because they no longer receive updates from Google I
think.
Anyone have experience installing Linux on these bad boys?
I see https://wiki.debian.org/InstallingDebianOn/HP/Chromebook%2014 and
https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/HP_Chromebook_14.
Any guidance from the Gurus? Heckling from the yahoos?
Thanx.
--
Joe Golden /_\ 802 793 2323 /_\ Coding, Drupalism, Open Sourcery
--
*David McClellan*
Software Engineer
Web: about.me/hacdan
--
Joe Golden /_\ 802 793 2323 /_\ Coding, Drupalism, Open Sourcery
