Linux on Chromebooks is Finally Coming Out of Beta (androidcentral.com) 32
Linux on Chromebooks is finally coming out of beta with the release of Chrome OS 91, Google said at its developer I/O conference. From a report: The company had offered Linux apps on Chrome OS alongside Android apps, hoping to reach an audience of developers with IDEs and so on. However, the Linux Development Environment, as Google had dubbed it, had been in beta ever since while first launched. The company had added new features at a steady cadence, enabling things like GPU acceleration, better support for USB drives, and so on so people could be more productive while using Linux apps. Alongside Linux, Google also announced that it would be bringing Android 11 to Chromebooks. Technically, the update has already started with Chrome OS 90 for select Chromebooks, and it'll come with a host of new features including increased optimization of Android apps and a new dark theme. Google's increased support of Android is no coincidence. The company says that the operating system sees 3x increased usage of Android apps, and the new Android 11 update will see Android move to a virtual machine rather than the current container based method, making it easier to update in the future.
Linux on Chromebooks is Finally Coming Out? (Score:2)
Surprisingly useful (Score:5, Insightful)
I've had a higher-end Chromebook as my daily driver for several years now, and I will say that I was surprised that I wound up using all three operating systems -- ChromeOS (the Chrome browser, really), Android, and Linux -- on a fairly routine basis. A lot of applications are released on multiple platforms now, and sometimes the ports are better on one than the other. In a few cases, an application is only available on one of the platforms.
However, clearly the future is the browser as the universal client. There are still a few annoying things about apps running on browsers, but in terms of functionality, there's not a lot of gaps left. Surprisingly useful.
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Surprisingly backwards is more like it. The definition of malware is software not under the control of the owner of the machine and that typically works against the wishes of the owner. By that definition, android, chrome OS, and iOS are all malware right from the get go and should be the OS that are sandboxed and run within linux, not the other way around. And using windows to run virtual machines is akin to an operating room built on top of a septic tank.
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Well, actually you have just described how ChromeOS works right now. Under the hood, it's Debian. However, you are also correct that Google corporate does, indeed, hold the keys to the boot process and the updates. In that respect, it's a "retail" OS, like all the others.
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However, clearly the future is the browser as the universal client. There are still a few annoying things about apps running on browsers, but in terms of functionality, there's not a lot of gaps left. Surprisingly useful.
Not "the" future, but for sure a large part of the end-user future. WASM is pretty impressive and finally a true cross-platform sandbox with good performance. Of course, all the previous problems will just repeat itself on that platform. WASM even has buffer overflows. Not on the call/return stack, but for the heap and within data-structures on the data-stack.
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WASM even has buffer overflows.
As it should.
The purpose of a sandbox is to protect the rest of the system, not to protect you from yourself.
If you generate WASM from C++, you are vulnerable to buffer overflows if you are a sloppy coder.
So learn how to code properly or use a safer language like Rust, which can also compile to WASM.
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I am not arguing that this should have been prevented. You can either kill memory management efficiency or have buffer overflows. They did what was sensible, namely separating call-stack and variable-stack, so a buffer overflow that overwrites a return address should be impossible. Since those are the cheap-to-do ones, that provides a significant security benefit.
So if you compile C to WASM (C++? Why would I use that crap?), you are vulnerable to a variable-overwrite buffer overflow, but not to a return-add
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WASM even has buffer overflows. Not on the call/return stack, but for the heap and within data-structures on the data-stack.
So that's why you need to be coding in Rust, and compile to wasm. Just need to learn it. No sweat, it's only as hard as nuclear physics.
Something from Google actually comes out of beta? (Score:5, Funny)
I guess this means it is time for the entire project to be cancelled.
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It's sad. They just killed off all the chrome apps this year too. There actually were a few useful ones.
This is as close as you can get (Score:4, Interesting)
'Linux' as in some curated version?? (Score:1)
So this is just some 'curated version' of linux, or worse, just the runtime ability to run linux apps? Why not open up the hardware so Chrome OS can be wiped and replaced with a linux?
Thats a common thing to do with older Windows laptops.
Especially since Google has baked in a 'use by' expiration date for updates in each chromebook model, it should be possible at that time to just replace the ChromeOS with whatever distro will work for you.
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Wipe and replace Googlized UEFI with actually serious UEFI: https://mrchromebox.tech/ [mrchromebox.tech]. Then should be able to install at least some distros. Do check "Supported Devices" for UEFI first, though.
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When my old chromebook went out of support, I did this, and installed a nice distro with XFCE and it runs pretty well. I mostly use it for video chat with Hangouts or meet.jit.si, occasional web browsing, and remoting in.
The biggest annoyance are the function keys only have multimedia and other shortcut images on them. That and only 2gb of RAM.
Does this mean (Score:2)
That I'll finally be able to get a decent Android tablet?
I'd love a 10 inch detachable that I can also use as an Android tablet when detached. Being able to use Linux apps is an extra bonus even.
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Indeed. 8 years support direct from Google with a Chrome OS tablet vs, what, 2 feature releases and 4 years if you're lucky on a vendor-forked Android device - it's a no-brainer.
When and if I get a tablet, Lenovo's Chromebook Duet would tick a lot of those boxes for me. A pity that I heard they wrecked the USB-C implementation so that it can only display 1080p at 30Hz on an external screen, making it unsuitable for plugging in a random desktop monitor that typically only works at 60Hz.
If they fix those prob
What is a Linux "app"? (Score:2)
I have used Linux since 1994, but I never saw anything "app" there.
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"App" == "Application" == GUI program
Gave Up (Score:1)
Don't sell that C302A! (Score:2)
Crostini is here now in the beta channel for C302A/Cave. I have it on mine. No joke.
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While this is no guarantee that Linux will run well on the machine (drivers/hardware issues), it is likely possible to completely replace ChromeOS and turn your Chromebook into a "standard PC" with a firmware update:
https://mrchromebox.tech/#devi... [mrchromebox.tech]
You'd have to open it up and remove a write-protect screw and put it in developer mode.
And according to GalliumOS (a light version of Linux), there might be issues with getting the audio to work:
https://wiki.galliumos.org/Har... [galliumos.org]
Obligatory: make backups of everyth
Press Space then Enter to lose all data (Score:3)
You'd have to open it up and remove a write-protect screw and put it in developer mode.
Last I checked, a Chromebook in developer mode prompted whoever turns it on to press Space then Enter to destroy all data on the device. Can this be suppressed? Or is it better to keep a developer mode Chromebook under physical lock and key so that an unwitting yet well-meaning person doesn't follow the prompts and thereby cause loss of data that hasn't yet been backed up?
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I don't know - my goal once I got my Chromeboxes was to delete ChromeOS and install Linux.
What I did notice was that when you put it in developer mode (whether you remove the write-protect for the flash memory), the OS will wipe the device of any personal files and settings.
But I don't know what the behavior is when you leave it in developer mode and continue using the machine.
What I can say is that the old Asus CN60's can be flashed with the firmware I linked above and then they install Linux really nicely
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It is an awesome Chromebook - maybe the top of the heap.
All the more awesome now that there's Crostini Linux support in the Beta channel. Yes. I have it loaded on mine.
Crostini on Cave in Beta (Score:2)
https://www.reddit.com/r/Crost... [reddit.com]
Been running straight xubuntu for years now (Score:3)
My Samsung chromebook 3 (DO NOT get this model, btw, unless you just LOOVE issues) has been running straight up XUbuntu for several years now.
You can get these things to run windows if you really want to.
That Google has enabled a "blessed" chroot is nice and all, but that is still all it is. You do not get to control what kernel you are using, etc. Choice is still very much hobbled with Google's offer.
Instead, go straight up for the "blessed" "Chrome OS on x86" fork, and MrChromebox's UEFI.
https://mrchromebox.tech/ [mrchromebox.tech]
https://www.engadget.com/googl... [engadget.com]
Then you can still dual boot with chromeos, AND have a **REAL** Linux.
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I highly highly recommend MrChromebox.
Too late. (Score:2)
Linux part starts at 10:30 in the video (Score:2)
MIsleading headline (Score:2)
Thought we were getting an official Linux distro to replace the mess that is ChromeOS.