I Wanted Full Linux Desktop, Not Crostini Apps Building the custom image does take a while, and you’ll need plenty of disk space to do it as the resulting IMG it generates is ~12GB in size. The Breath docs walks through the whole thing step-by-step.

Run build script to create a custom IMG file.

On a different machine, get Breath via git.

Enable USB booting via ChromeOS Shell prompt.

You then run the distro off of a USB (ideally a relatively fast one) or install it to the internal storage, wiping ChromeOS. You do need to put your Chromebook into developer mode but you do not need to flash any alternative firmware to get Linux to boot.īreath is not a distro itself but a script that you run to build a Linux distro image (based on Ubuntu or Arch) you flash to a USB and boot from. It doesn’t rely on ChromeOS or custom firmware and supports all drivers on modern (post 2018) Chromebooks,” reads the website. “Breath bootstraps Linux the way Chromebooks like it. Sure, you can flash some custom firmware and get a regular distro to boot on most Chromebooks regardless of age, but not without some major sacrifice: some hardware features.īreath takes a different approach to the likes of Crouton, GalliumOS, and Crostini, and it’s why it’s so effective. The more recent a Chromebook is the less likely it is to have full mainline Linux kernel support or support from third-party projects like Crouton or GalliumOS (itself largely undeveloped these days). Now, the ‘modern’ qualifier I used a few lines back is important here. In short, it lets you run a full Linux distro on a modern Intel Chromebook without needing to flash custom firmware, replace the boot loader, or even wipe ChromeOS.īetter yet: it’s the only current solution that delivers a Linux experience that supports all drivers (touchscreen, stylus, touchpad, audio, etc) out of the box. In some ways it’s a “hack”, but one that’s firmly within the technical boundaries of how Google makes ChromeOS run.

Run Linux on Modern Intel Chromebooksīreath is a bit different to other “run Linux on a Chromebook” efforts. So, a bit like when I resurrected an ancient Chromebook, I want to tell someone about it - but this time without any weird spooky gifs 😅. I’ve scratched an itch I’ve had for the longest time and it’s so satisfying. I’ve just spent a few hours playing with something very cool on my over-powered and under-used Acer Chromebook Spin 13. This post is not a tutorial or a walkthrough or comprehensive introduction or anything else that would probably be beneficial or helpful to those you reading it.

Crouton chromebook