You are not logged in.

#1 2016-04-09 07:08:09

mikkelbue
Member
Registered: 2014-10-23
Posts: 15

Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

I have recently (successfully) installed Arch on my Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), also known as "Candy". Be advised that I made a single-boot install on the NON-touch-screen version of the machine. Only significant difference from the other models should be the touch-screen.

There is no guarantee that this guide will work on your machine, all I know is that it worked on MINE. I will not recommend using this guide if you don't know what you are doing smile

The Arch wiki gives a nice overview of some important elements of installing Arch on a Chromebook, and I would recommend reading that before venturing into putting Arch on your Candy. This post is meant as basic guide in how to install the base system on the particular model and get hardware working.

1. Using this post I found a relatively simple way of unlocking the Chromebook, flashing the BIOS (with John Lewis' script) and prepare the machine for installing Linux. It is, to my knowledge, not possible to install any flavour of Linux on the Candy unless you flash SeaBIOS.

- Whilst powered down, remove the back cover, find the screw labelled "WP" (bottom left corner of motherboard) and remove it.
- Replace back cover, power up, then from within ChromeOS, hold ESC-"Refresh" & press "Power"
- At the recovery screen press Ctrl-D
- At the 'turn OS verification OFF' screen press Enter, system will reboot.
- At the 'OS verification is OFF screen' press Ctrl-D or wait 30 seconds.
- The system will initialize developer mode (taking several minutes) and reboot.

Backup /var/lib/alsa/asound.state from ChromeOS (i.e. using crosh and shell from withon ChromeOS). This is the ChromeOS ALSA (audio) configuration file, which you will need later. It might be possible to download it from here or here, but then again it might not.

- Within ChromeOS (now in developer mode) press Ctrl-Alt-"Next" (What would be F2) to open a shell on VT2.
- Execute the following shell commands:

cd; rm -f flash_chromebook_rom.sh; curl -O https://johnlewis.ie/flash_chromebook_rom.sh; sudo -E bash flash_chromebook_rom.sh

- The script from johnlewis.ie will detect the model (Candy) and prompt you to confirm before flashing the BOOT_STUB.
- Once complete your next reboot will be using SeaBIOS.

2. Install Arch using a USB flash drive (Beginners guide). I did a single-boot install on the device "mmcblk0". Please do not ask question about dual boot, etc.

Most of the hardware works out of the box, except audio and video. I have not yet tested HDMI output though.

4. For video support with X11: Install xf86-video-intel:

pacman -S xf86-video-intel

5. The audio is a bit more tricky (moreover there seems to be issues with linux-4.5.0-1, see post below). I got it working using the method described here. Moreover, I am using Pulseaudio to control levels and routing.

1) Make sure alsa IS NOT RUNNING. `sudo killall alsactl` 'alsactl kill quit' did it for me.
2) Overwrite the contents of `/var/lib/alsa/asound.state` with the ChromeOS version using your favourite text editor (vim, nano, gedit). You will need to edit as root.
3) Again, as root, edit the `[Element Speaker]` section of `/usr/share/pulseaudio/alsa-mixer/paths/analog-output-headphones.conf`, making `switch = mute` and `volume = zero`. This enable the speaker muting when a pair of headphones is plugged in.
4) Reboot.


There, that should hopefully get you going with Arch. The rest is up to you smile

Last edited by mikkelbue (2016-04-14 11:54:25)

Offline

#2 2016-04-09 07:09:55

jasonwryan
Anarchist
From: .nz
Registered: 2009-05-09
Posts: 30,424
Website

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

Moving to Laptop Issues...


Arch + dwm   •   Mercurial repos  •   Surfraw

Registered Linux User #482438

Offline

#3 2016-04-14 11:52:51

mikkelbue
Member
Registered: 2014-10-23
Posts: 15

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

It seems like the newest kernel (linux-4.5.0-1) is incompatible with the bytmax98090 sound card (https://bugs.archlinux.org/task/48936). The card is not initialized at boot after latest upgrade.

Use the former kernel linux-4.4.5-1 if you want to use the bytmax98090, which drives speakers and headphone jack.

Last edited by mikkelbue (2016-04-14 11:54:54)

Offline

#4 2016-05-02 21:05:56

rsreeraj
Member
Registered: 2011-03-05
Posts: 5

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

@mikkelbue Thanks for this nice tutorial. My dell chromebook 11 works fine with 4.4.5-1 (except the dell activity light wink).

Offline

#5 2016-05-03 09:04:03

mikkelbue
Member
Registered: 2014-10-23
Posts: 15

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

rsreeraj wrote:

@mikkelbue Thanks for this nice tutorial. My dell chromebook 11 works fine with 4.4.5-1 (except the dell activity light wink).

I'm glad you could use it smile Tell me if you get the activity light to work, it might be useful for a disco party.

Offline

#6 2016-05-03 19:33:19

rsreeraj
Member
Registered: 2011-03-05
Posts: 5

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

Ok let's start a disco party then

 pacaur -S python2-pyusb-git 

and then use this sample code. Once again thanks for the tutorial smile.

Offline

#7 2016-05-03 20:27:05

ewaller
Administrator
From: Pasadena, CA
Registered: 2009-07-13
Posts: 19,739

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

rsreeraj wrote:

and then use this sample code. Once again thanks for the tutorial smile.

Note that is not Python3 code, and there is no Shebang telling the shell to use Python2


Nothing is too wonderful to be true, if it be consistent with the laws of nature -- Michael Faraday
Sometimes it is the people no one can imagine anything of who do the things no one can imagine. -- Alan Turing
---
How to Ask Questions the Smart Way

Offline

#8 2016-05-23 04:46:08

bryfry
Member
Registered: 2016-05-23
Posts: 1

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

What partition table did you use and how did you set it up?

I have everything done except SeaBIOS does not find/boot the installed Arch partition (in my case MBR + GRUB all in one partition (mmcblk0p1) marked as bootable).

Thanks for any help!

Offline

#9 2016-05-23 16:56:50

rsreeraj
Member
Registered: 2011-03-05
Posts: 5

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

I also used MBR+GRUB all in one partition (ext4 not GPT) and the standard installation instructions worked fine for me.

Last edited by rsreeraj (2016-05-23 16:57:01)

Offline

#10 2016-05-23 20:48:13

theailer
Member
Registered: 2016-01-06
Posts: 19

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

Hi.
I can't get the sound to work with my dell chromebook.
Would anyone be so nice to tell me how I install the latest kernel that worked, 4.4.5-1?
Tried the linux-lts but it only detects the bytmax card but it fails to play any sound:
byt-max98090 byt-max98090: ASoC: CPU DAI baytrail-pcm-audio not registered
[byt-max98090 byt-max98090: snd_soc_register_card failed -517
Thanks in advance

Offline

#11 2016-05-24 17:47:06

rsreeraj
Member
Registered: 2011-03-05
Posts: 5

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

Easiest way to downgrade your kernel (to 4.4.5-1) is to use  downgrader from AUR . Then restore asound.state as mikkelbue mentioned before.

Offline

#12 2016-05-24 19:29:48

theailer
Member
Registered: 2016-01-06
Posts: 19

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

rsreeraj wrote:

Easiest way to downgrade your kernel (to 4.4.5-1) is to use  downgrader from AUR . Then restore asound.state as mikkelbue mentioned before.

Thank you very much! Now it works as it's supposed to.
How can one know if it works in a future kernel version again ?

Offline

#13 2016-06-16 06:43:51

theailer
Member
Registered: 2016-01-06
Posts: 19

Re: Installing Arch on the Dell Chromebook 11 2015 (3120), non-touchscreen

Anyone know how the fix the garbled text after grub has done it's thing ?

Offline

Board footer

Powered by FluxBB