Chromebook Pixel Linux HOWTO
With this instructions you get a Ubuntu 15.04 on Chromebook Pixel, installed on the SSD without removing Chrome OS. This means dual boot from development mode prompt to either Chrome OS or Ubuntu. All relevant components work on Ubuntu as you would expect it, including Bluetooth, touch and Wifi.
This guide is for the Chromebook Pixel from 2013. Most of the things here will work for the Pixel 2015 as well. You will have issues with the Kernel as it is lacking some drivers required for the newer Pixel. If anyone wants to send me a Pixel 2015 get in touch by email (simon AT longsleep DOT org) and I will see what I can do.
So just get this repository and extract it into ~/Downloads. You need to be able to run the various scripts shipped in this repository.
This repository provides all the gear to install Ubuntu along side with Chrome OS. During this process Chrome OS will be shrunk and will reset all its data. You have been warned!
sudo bash shrink-chromeos
The Chrome Book Pixel hardware works out of the box with Ubuntu 15.04. No extra equipment is required.
sudo bash install-minimal
i915.modeset=1
into /etc/modules.tpm_tis.force=1 tpm_tis.interrupts=0
to GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT insudo update-grub
afterwards.Edit /etc/rc.local and add rfkill block bluetooth
before the exit 0
.
The Pixel's screen is very bright and boots up at full intensity. So I find
it a good idea to dim it on startup. Edit /etc/rc.local and add
echo 2800 > /sys/class/backlight/intel_backlight/brightness
.
pixel-keyboard-brightness
from my bin-scripts repository.xdotool
.xdotool
with apt-get and bind xdotool key --clearmodifies XF86MonBrightnessUp
xdotool key --clearmodifies XF86MonBrightnessDown
to the designatedSo now we have Ubuntu. Chrome OS is still there and functional. You can boot it from the boot screen with CTRL+D.
Chromebrew is a package manager for Chrome OS which allows to easily install various tools into your Chrome OS environment. It installs directly into Chrome OS, no chroot what so ever.
wget -q -O - https://raw.github.com/skycocker/chromebrew/master/install.sh | bash
This gives you a decent start for working with Chrome OS on the command line, including Git support.
Then try it out and install vim.
crew install vim
Yay!
Chrome Dev Editor is a Chrome App which works offline and provides you a Graphical Text editor. It supports Git directly (but do no use that) as it works great together with commandline Git. I use the Monokai color theme there as this is the theme I usually have in Sublime Text too.
I recommend running the Pixel with Linux Kernel 4.1 as it brings lots of changes and improvements for the Intel Platform. I have a Kernel patches tree and configuration for the Chromebook Pixel in my Kernel patches repository.
I also have a ppa for the Pixel on Ubuntu. This adds some extra functionality and tools i use of the time. Most of it requires Kernel 4.1 though.
For me the Chromebook Pixel is working great with Linux. I am using it as main laptop for development when i am at home and travelling. Below you find a list of the best and worst items which are relevant to me.
pcie_aspm=force i915.enable_fbc=1 i915.enable_rc6=7
i915.enable_psr=1
parameter.To sum this up, the Chromebook Pixel is the platform of choice and can only be recommended if you are willing to work around the issues to get Linux on it and all. Usually in other similar 13" Ultrabooks the list of problems is a lot longer. The Pixel is almost flawless, now if it had a 512GB SSD and a customizeable EFI BIOS .. well dreams.
-- Simon Eisenmann