Scribbles for my bad memory

This guide helps you install PostmarketOS on your C100P's internal storage (emmc hard disk).

Step 1: Install pmbootstrap

First, install the latest version of pmbootstrap on Debian 12 via git:

git clone https://gitlab.postmarketos.org/postmarketOS/pmbootstrap.git
cd pmbootstrap
mkdir -p ~/.local/bin
ln -s "$PWD/pmbootstrap.py" ~/.local/bin/pmbootstrap
pmbootstrap --version

Make sure to add ~/.local/bin to your PATH environment variable.

Step 2: Initialize pmbootstrap

Run pmbootstrap --init, and if any dependencies are missing, install them using sudo apt install <package> as instructed. For the vendor, select google instead of asus, and for the codename, choose veyron.

Step 3: Prepare a USB Drive

Prepare a USB drive and plug it into your computer. Use sudo fdisk -l to check the device name of the USB drive (usually /dev/sdb or something else). Be very careful, as choosing the wrong device can lead to data loss. Then, use the following command to begin the installation:

pmbootstrap install --sdcard /dev/sdx

Remember to replace /dev/sdx with the correct device name of your USB drive.

Step 4: If You Encounter Mounting Errors

If you run into errors when trying to mount, try using a different USB drive. I had an issue with a 128GB Sandisk drive, but it worked fine with a 32GB SD card.

Step 5: Boot Into Asus C100P

Boot your Asus C100P using the prepared USB drive, and connect to a Wi-Fi network.

Step 6: Install pmbootstrap on C100P

On the C100P, install pmbootstrap using the same steps from Step 1, then run "sudo apk add openssl".

Step 7: Initialize pmbootstrap

Run pmbootstrap init on the C100P, following the same instructions from Step 2.

Step 8: Install to eMMC

Use the following command to install postmarketOS to the eMMC:

pmbootstrap install --sdcard /dev/mmcblk0 # on my c100p it is mmcblk0, please check yours before press enter!

Step 9: Done! Remove the USB Drive

Once the installation is complete, remove the USB drive. postmarketOS should now be installed on your Asus C100P!

这篇blog教你如何将 postmarketOS 安装到 C100P 的内置emmc硬盘上。我装了最新的 edge 系统和 Mate桌面，还余 10G空间可用。

步骤 1: 安装 pmbootstrap

首先，在 Debian 12 上通过 git 安装最新版 pmbootstrap：

git clone https://gitlab.postmarketos.org/postmarketOS/pmbootstrap.git
cd pmbootstrap
mkdir -p ~/.local/bin
ln -s "$PWD/pmbootstrap.py" ~/.local/bin/pmbootstrap
pmbootstrap --version

确保把 ~/.local/bin 添加到你的 PATH 环境变量中。

步骤 2: 初始化 pmbootstrap

运行 pmbootstrap --init，如果有缺少的依赖包，按提示使用 sudo apt install <package> 安装。对于厂商，选择 google 而不是 asus，对于 codename，选择 veyron。

步骤 3: 准备优盘

准备一个优盘并接入电脑，运行 sudo fdisk -l 来确认优盘的设备名（通常是 /dev/sdb 或其他）。一定要小心，不要选错设备名，否则可能会导致数据丢失。然后使用以下命令开始安装：

pmbootstrap install --sdcard /dev/sdx

注意，将 /dev/sdx 替换为你自己的优盘设备名。

步骤 4: 如果出现挂载错误

如果出现挂载错误，尝试换一块优盘。我遇到的问题是，128GB 的 Sandisk 优盘无法正常工作，但换成了一块 32GB 的 SD 卡后就顺利安装了。

步骤 5: 启动到 Asus C100P 上

用准备好的优盘启动 Asus C100P，连接 Wi-Fi 网络。

步骤 6: 安装 pmbootstrap 到 C100P

在 C100P 上安装 pmbootstrap，按照步骤 1 中的方式安装。

步骤 7: 初始化 pmbootstrap

在 C100P 上运行 pmbootstrap init，按照步骤 2 中的说明完成初始化。

步骤 8: 安装到 eMMC

运行以下命令将 postmarketOS 安装到 eMMC：

pmbootstrap install --sdcard /dev/mmcblk0

步骤 9: 完成并移除优盘

安装完成后，拔掉优盘，你的 Asus C100P 上就安装好了 postmarketOS！

我前两天在Facebook Market上又捡了一台电子垃圾：$50买了一台 Dell Chromebook 11 3120，配置是 2GB 内存，16GB硬盘。卖家之前已刷了Sea BIOS，安装了CloudReady系统，但没有搞定声卡驱动，所以没有声音，也因此他才愿意便宜出售。

我喜欢ChromeOS的流畅，但讨厌不能自由安装软件。那有没有可能在Chromebook上安装Linux并让它跑得几乎与ChromeOS一样快呢？我没有把握，也知道可能性并不大，但我还是想试试。

我在这台Chromebook 上安装了Debian 11系统，目前没有遇到大的问题，声音，蓝牙，wifi，hdmi都能正常工作，除了觉得有点慢，以及从suspend状态复原时系统变得极度缓慢，几乎没有响应。

我在这台Chromebook上目前已经做了以下尝试：

1. 禁用Wayland
2. 删除SWAP分区
3. 升级到最新内核

今天打算再设置下 ZRAM内存压缩。没想到极其简单，有ZRAM Tools加持，一分钟就设置好了。照抄的例子，给ZRAM分配了60%的物理内存。Reference 那就看后续使用效果了，我会过两天再更新这个文章。

「25-05-2023更新」 我卸掉了gnome3，装上了xfce4。这是我在移情gnome之前最喜欢的桌面环境。2G内存毕竟太少了，而gnome太贪心，它吃掉了太多的内存。为了更好的性能，我转向了xfce4，而它也确实没有让我失望。这台小机器现在能做很多事，并且跑得很流畅。我很开心啦！

English Version (Thanks ChatGPT)

I picked up another piece of electronic junk on Facebook Marketplace a couple of days ago: a Dell Chromebook 11 3120 for $50. It came with 2GB of RAM and a 16GB hard drive. The seller had previously flashed Sea BIOS and installed CloudReady, but couldn't get the sound card driver working, so there was no audio. That's why he was willing to sell it cheap.

I like the smoothness of ChromeOS but dislike the limitations when it comes to installing software. So, I wondered if it would be possible to install Linux on the Chromebook and have it run almost as fast as ChromeOS. I wasn't sure and knew it was unlikely, but I wanted to give it a try anyway.

I installed Debian 11 on this Chromebook, and so far, I haven't encountered any major issues. The sound, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and HDMI all work fine. The only drawbacks are that it feels a bit slow, and the system becomes extremely sluggish when resuming from suspend, almost unresponsive.

Here are the things I've tried on this Chromebook so far:

• Disable Wayland in /etc/gdm3/daemon.conf
• Removing the SWAP partition
• Upgrading to the latest kernel

Today, I'm planning to set up ZRAM memory compression. Surprisingly, it was incredibly simple with the help of ZRAM Tools. I allocated 60% of the physical memory to ZRAM, following an example I found at Debian Wiki. We'll see how it performs in practice, and I'll update this article in a couple of days.

Update on 25-05-2023: I have uninstalled GNOME 3 and installed XFCE4. This is my favorite desktop environment before switching to GNOME. With only 2GB of memory, it was just too little, and GNOME was too resource-intensive, consuming a significant amount of memory. In order to improve performance, I turned to XFCE4, and it has not let me down. This little machine can now handle many tasks and runs smoothly. I am very happy!"

I managed to set up debian 11 on a Toshiba Chromebook2, model CB35-B3340 and a Dell Chromebook 11 3120 P22T00 WIFI/Sound/HDMI all work well, which satisfies me.

• Firstly, switch Chromebook into developer mode

  • Visit Debian and use dd command to create a bootable usb stick with a minimal iso

• Visit MrChromebox

  • Install/Update UEFI (Full ROM) firmware (the Sea bios)

• Boot from the usb stick and setup the minimal system

  • Allow debian use all 15G space with LVM, no separate partitions
  • Skip wifi setup as we don't have the firmware at that moment

• Boot from the chromebook into debian without GUI, without network

• Plug a usb realteck 8139 ethernet card and so I get internet connection:

  • add non-free and main contrib source line to /etc/apt/sources.list file：

deb http://mirror.fsmg.org.nz/debian bullseye main contrib non-free

• apt install firmware-iwlwifi, firmware-intel-sound

• apt install gnome-core (wifi works from now)

• plug off the usb ethernet card and reboot

  • wifi works

• Other settings

  • Remove old kernels to save space, Help Reference
  • Settings => Power => Disable auto suspend when plug in
  • Run sudo apt clean
  • Restrict journal log max size by vim /etc/systemd/journald.conf and uncomment the SystemMaxUser=50M line， and then systemctl restart systemd-journald