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Linux running natively on M1?

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padams35

macrumors 6502
Nov 10, 2016
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Xiao_Xi said:
Out of curiosity, if the Asahi developers eventually succeed in creating drivers for hardware accelerators in Mx SoCs, how would they be programmed? Vulkan? SYCL?
Click to expand...

asahilinux said:
This release features work-in-progress OpenGL 2.1 and OpenGL ES 2.0 support for all current Apple M-series systems. That’s enough for hardware acceleration with desktop environments, like GNOME and KDE. It’s also enough for older 3D games, like Quake3 and Neverball.
...
Of course, we couldn’t build an OpenGL driver in under two years just ourselves. Thanks to the power of free and open source software, we stand on the shoulders of FOSS giants. The compiler implements a “NIR” backend, where NIR is a powerful intermediate representation, including GLSL to NIR translation. The kernel driver users the “Direct Rendering Manager” (DRM) subsystem of the Linux kernel to minimize boilerplate. Finally, the OpenGL driver implements the “Gallium3D” API inside of Mesa
Click to expand...

Eventually someday Vulkan might be an option, but near-term anyone writing new Linux software who wants Apple Silicon compatibility will need to go old-school.
 
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padams35

macrumors 6502
Nov 10, 2016
468
302
Xiao_Xi said:
Isn't Vulkan a GPU API? Can Vulkan Compute be used to program hardware accelerators?
Click to expand...
Oh! I misread hardware acceleration as asking about either graphic acceleration or using the gpu for compute (OpenCL).

If you are asking about CPU-based acceleration... then I don't even know how H.265 encode/decode works currently on 7th gen+ intel CPUs, much less if the same approach would or could apply to Apple's Media Engine.

Regardless, I suspect that is a long time away.
 
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jdb8167

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Nov 17, 2008
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bogdanw

bogdanw

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Mar 10, 2009
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The above story made me curios and I decided to install AsahiLinux on my MBA M1 with Sonoma 14.1. As suggested, I just run in Terminal
Code: 
curl https://alx.sh | sh
and the installer guided me through the installation.
One of the most uneventful Linux installations I have ever performed :)
When Sonoma 14.1.1 was released, I was concerned about errors, but the update from 14.1 to 14.1.1 went smoothly.
 
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bogdanw

bogdanw

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Mar 10, 2009
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Xiao_Xi said:
Out of curiosity, which Asahi Linux did you install, the Arch-based one or the Fedora-based one?

Your command suggests that you have installed Arch-based Asahi Linux, but the developers recommend installing Fedora-based Asahi Linux.
Click to expand...
I know #73 :)
I've installed the Arch version. I don't intend to keep it, I'll probably make a clean Sonoma 14.2 install.
 
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bogdanw

bogdanw

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Mar 10, 2009
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As I didn’t have time to wipe my MBA, I decided to install Fedora too. Triple boot now :)
tripleboot.jpg

I ran the same command (curl https://alx.sh | sh), now the options are:
1: Fedora Asahi Remix 39 with KDE Plasma
Minimum required space for this OS: 17.19 GB
2: Fedora Asahi Remix 39 with GNOME
Minimum required space for this OS: 14.94 GB
3: Fedora Asahi Remix 39 Server
Minimum required space for this OS: 8.18 GB
4: Fedora Asahi Remix 39 Minimal
Minimum required space for this OS: 7.70 GB

I also updated the previous installation Asahi Linux m1n1 v1.4.6 to Asahi Linux m1n1 v1.4.11
 
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MrGunny94

MrGunny94

macrumors 65816
Dec 3, 2016
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Malaga, Spain
Spaceboi Scaphandre said:
No one posted this yet so I will: A keynote from Hector Martin the team lead at Asahi on how Asahi Linux came to be.

Click to expand...
Great post! I have tried Asashi and now Fedora, it's going great! Only real issue for real world usage in production definitely is the GPU.

I cannot wait to see the Qualcomm chip on Arch in the upcoming years.
 
bousozoku

bousozoku

Moderator emeritus
Jun 25, 2002
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dgdosen said:
In the 90s, people criticized Microsoft for stifling competition. MS could make a case for the benefits of having the same OS used on 90+% of the word's computers - and there's some truth in that. Upon reflection, Linux success in say, the server space, sure seems to have ushered in loads of innovation at a MUCH faster pace than MS ever could have.

Today, people criticize Apple for stifling competition (sherlocking, un-upgradeable devices, planned obsolescence, etc). Apple can make a case for security! and safety, and there's truth in that. In a few years, we'll look back and realize "Apple had our backs the whole time!" - or maybe - "These Linux devices are great! This kind of innovation would never have come about from a company like Apple".

Yes, Apple makes products that helps make lives better, but would more doors and a better future be opened another way?
Click to expand...
I believe that there is a difference where Microsoft was putting code into Windows 3.0 and 3.1 to scare people from using DR-DOS to what Apple does with their own hardware and OS.
 
bogdanw

bogdanw

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Mar 10, 2009
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Ubuntu Summit 2023 Day 3 (05 November 2023): From Asahi Linux to Ubuntu: Running Linux on Apple Silicon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ8hdpXkkMI
 
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Spaceboi Scaphandre

Spaceboi Scaphandre

macrumors 68040
Jun 8, 2022
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bogdanw said:
Ubuntu Summit 2023 Day 3 (05 November 2023): From Asahi Linux to Ubuntu: Running Linux on Apple Silicon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJ8hdpXkkMI
Click to expand...

Yes this is a fantastic idea. The Apple Silicon Macs have been blazing fast since their inception in late 2020. So let's slow them down by running Ubuntu 😂

Jokes aside it's great to see other distromakers working on the ARM Macs ever since Asahi started. I just wish Apple would extend an olive branch to the distromakers and maybe help them bring the Linux distros to Mac. They could even offer Boot Camp for Linux since it's obvious Windows ain't coming back anytime soon. Instead the Linux community is left to figure all this stuff out on their own.

Now back to me hating Canonical. (Seriously what the hell happened to you Ubuntu? You were the flagship distro. Now using you is just a joke now. If it's not Snaps, it's how bloated and slow it's gotten.)
 
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