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    What notebook for Linux-win dual boot?

    Discussion in 'Linux Compatibility and Software' started by Acard87, Jul 30, 2012.

  1. Acard87

    Acard87 Newbie

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    Hello everyone, I'm looking for a notebook for a dual boot Linux-Windows, that performs well under Linux and is powerful enough to ensure good gaming performances.
    My first choice would be the Sony Vaio S15 with a Nvidia card, but I don't know how well the Nvidia drivers would perform under linux and if there are any issues with the Optimus technology, I would even settle for the possibility of turning off the integrated card to use only the Nvidia card in spite of battery time.
    Is there anyone that tried Ubuntu on the Vaio S? Are there any major problems?

    In alernative, I was considering the Asus N56, but I have the same doubts.

    In any case I'd like to hear some advices abbout a laptop with similar configurations (13 to 15" monitor, dedicated graphic card for gaming) for about 1000 Euros and that performs good with Linux, too.

    Also if anyone has first hand experiences with Linux on similar laptops that would be really appreciated.
    Thank you! :D
     
  2. Penguissimo

    Penguissimo Notebook Enthusiast

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    I'll hopefully have better answers for you once my Clevo P170EM comes in this week (it'll have a 7970M, and I plan to dual-boot on it), but I can tell you that unless your system gives you the ability to select between the integrated and discrete graphics cards in the BIOS (and thus disable Optimus), you WILL have problems with Nvidia in Linux. Have you heard about the recent spat between Linus Torvalds and Nvidia? This was caused solely by Nvidia's refusal (not failure, refusal) to support Optimus on Linux.

    The Bumblebee project is working on a solution to this issue, but I'm not sure how far along they are or how well that works (hopefully someone else here knows!).
     
  3. Acard87

    Acard87 Newbie

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    Thank you for your answer! I'm aware about the problems between linux and nvidia, but from what I know drivers for ATI/AMD cards have big problems, too; that's a shame, I'll never understand how a company can be so narrow minded to boycott a system with a growing fanbase like, for example, Ubuntu.

    I'll probably go for the Vaio S in the end, hoping that Bumblebee will work, or in alternative that I'll be able to choose what card to use.
     
  4. LiHai

    LiHai Notebook Enthusiast

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    Any further word about this? I am also looking at a similar config.
     
  5. Penguissimo

    Penguissimo Notebook Enthusiast

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    Got the system in on Monday, and Ubuntu installs with no hassle—everything I've tested works fine (wifi, external display, Intel graphics, ethernet, audio). I haven't gotten a chance to test the eSATA port, the fingerprint reader (which I hear is unsupported), or the card reader yet. If there's anything in particular you'd like to have me look at, let me know!

    The only issue is that it now seems like my 7970M is defective (Windows freezes on startup as soon as I install the AMD drivers), so I obviously haven't been able to do much testing of that under Ubuntu. I'll let you know how it goes when I get a replacement card!

    edit: Forgot to mention, the webcam also works fine on a vanilla Ubuntu install. No driver trickery necessary.
     
  6. TuxDude

    TuxDude Notebook Deity

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    Linux should run on almost all the laptops pretty easily if you run a distro and a version with a recent kernel. Having said that, dedicated graphics cards have better support in Linux. nvidia proprietary drivers are pretty good in Linux if you have a dedicated graphics card. ATI drivers are usually more crappy compared to nvidia as far as my experience goes.

    I'm right now typing this message from my UX32VD (Ivy Bridge - nvidia optimus hybrid graphics) - and I've been able to get most of the functions working in my Linux setup. In fact I merely use Linux for almost all my work ;)

    Communities like Ubuntu have hardware compatibility per model list as far as I remember. They even mention which devices wont work, partially work, and for which you need to change some config files to get it working ;) Though I dont use Ubuntu, I find that information really useful and most of the time it applies across many distros.
     
  7. JOSEA

    JOSEA NONE

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  8. Penguissimo

    Penguissimo Notebook Enthusiast

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    Another short update...

    So I've been getting random system freezes that required a hard reboot. After a bit of Googling, it seems that the default kernel that comes with Ubuntu 12.04 (the 3.2 branch) has some issues with Intel HD 4000 graphics (Ivy Bridge). The issue was fixed in the 3.3 branch, so anyone wanting to run Ubuntu on the P170EM is advised to grab a newer kernel from here:

    Index of /~kernel-ppa/mainline

    On a brighter note, it turns out that suspend/resume on lid close/open works perfectly!
     
  9. XE1UFO

    XE1UFO Newbie

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    Hi. I have a Sony Vaio VPCSA, with 1 terrabyte hard drive and 8 gigs RAM. I have it dual-booting 64-bit Winows 7 and 64-bit Ubuntu 12.04. In my opinion, it works very well. This is the first time I have ever been satisfied with installing a bunch of Windows programs in Wine within Linux, and I have been using Linux since Mandrake 7.3 days. Wine on this machine makes Windows programs work at very acceptable speeds.

    My two pesos' worth.

    Dr. Steve, central Mexico