Frequently Asked Questions

Minimum system requirements for running EdUBudgie Linux are as follows:

• A 64-bit capable (x86_64) Intel processor with at least 2 cores running at least 1.0Ghz base frequency with or without HyperThreading or SMT

• 4Gb of at least DDR3 1333Mhz memory

• 32GB of solid state disk space for the Lite version, 64GB of space for the full version

• Integrated graphics are normally adequate

• This system CAN be installed alongside Windows or another version of GNU/Linux easily with the standard installation but can NOT be installed alongside an existing ChromeOS installation

Recommended system for running EdUBudgie Linux smoothly with several programs and apps open at one time:

• A 64-bit capable (x86_64) Intel processor with at least 4 cores running at least 2.4Ghz with HyperThreading or SMT enabled

• 8Gb of DDR4 2400Mhz or faster memory

• 128GB of solid state disk space

• A dedicated graphics processor from AMD or Nvidia with at least 2GB of video memory

These minimums make this an ideal replacement for ChromeOS on older Chromebooks that are no longer supported by Google but which are still running well, such as the Acer C720(P) series among many others*.  Of course, if the system being used is more powerful than this then it will run faster and be able to do more work while offering the user a buttery smooth user experience.  Furthermore, solid state disks are strongly recommended over traditional hard disk drives.  These are normally included with Chromebooks but are highly recommended for other computers as well.  Using a hard disk rather than a solid state disk for the boot drive will cause general system sluggishness, with programs opening far slower than intended, and with a drastically shorter available runtime when operating on batteries.  Generally speaking, hard disk drives are still fantstic for use for inexpensive mass data storage, but not for operating system and program installation.  Multiple disks may be used and Linux supports a variety of RAID schemes and drive formats including ZFS which can be configured at the time of installation.  

Many resources are available online for help with this exact topic and you MUST research your specific model for additional information before attempting this, but in general here is what you will need to do:

1. Figure out what firmware write-enable method will work for your model

2. Disable the firmware protection so that you can install either the legacy bootloader or a full EFI bootloader environment

   • This will likely require opening the Chromebook but you might get lucky and not need to

   • Oftentimes this requires removing a specific write-protect screw

   • On newer models this may require unplugging the battery and running the device off of wall power which is ESPECIALLY dangerous because losing power during the firmware installation WILL brick your device

3. BACKUP YOUR EXISTING FIRMWARE.  READ THAT AGAIN. BACKUP YOUR EXISTING FIRMWARE!

4. Install either the Legacy BIOS (SeaBIOS) or a UEFI boot environment

5. Make the Chromebook bootable with a USB key (sometimes a separate step is needed when using the SeaBIOS bootloader)

6. Install EdUBudgie Linux using a USB key.  

   • We recommend writing the USB key with Rufus on Windows as it is easy to use with options for UEFI or MBR booting

   • Choose the GPT option in Rufus if you have a full UEFI environment on your Chromebook

   • Choose the legacy bootloader by creating the USB key with Rufus and choosing the MBR option if you are using the Legacy (also called SeaBIOS) bootloader

7. Re-enable the firmware protection by either screwing the write-protect screw back into the device or by plugging the battery back in (or whatever other method is required)

You can find a TON of incredibly valuable information and tools on the Mr. Chromebox Tech webpage including tools to add a full UEFI bot environment and information on how to unlock the bootloader on many different Chromebook variants.  I STRONGLY recommend looking all through his page and others as well as watching videos on how to install alternative OSes on your SPECIFIC Chromebook model

If you would like to go back to using this as a Chromebook you MAY be able to (if you BACKED UP your firmware) or may not be able to.  Familiarize yourself with your specific model's peculiarities BEFORE undergoing any modification!

Note: WE TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITIY FOR BRICKED OR FAILED OR BROKEN OR OTHERWISE MESSED UP DEVICES.  Do this at your own risk.  If, for instance, you choose to use one of Mr. Chromebook Tech's bootloaders but happen to lose power during the firmware flash, you will likely end up with an expensive doorstop.  If you install the incorrect firmware somehow, you will likely end up with an expensive doorstop.  If you decide to NOT backup your existing firmware (which you should ABSOLUTELY do), you will likely end up with an expensive doorstop.  If the universe aligns and you're amazing and it all works out then you still may end up with an expensive doorstop.  However, IF you get an alternative bootloader installed and working, you will have a fantastic experience running EdUBudgie Linux (or any other Linux distro for that matter) on your full-blown laptop!

Nothing.  But donations are highly appreciated - feel free to email us if interested in helping out the project financially :)

With that said, the EdUBudgie team cannot offer the tailored and in-depth support that some school IT teams need, and in those cases we highly recommend that you contact Canonical (the makers of Ubuntu and Ubuntu Budgie) to ask about support pricing.  That is something which would be between the school and Canonical and is NOT something that the EdUBudgie Linux team has the capacity to be involved in.  Any support offered by the Ubuntu team would be subject to their terms and conditions entirely.  The EdUBudgie Linux team will accept no liability nor responsibility for any problems that may occur whatsoever regardless of whether or not a support plan has been purchased from Canonical.  

Yes.  In fact as of June of 2022 we have released the 22.04 LTS version of EdUBudgie Linux to replace the 20.04 LTS version.  LTS stands for "Long Term Support" meaning that Ubuntu will continue to support the software for at least 5 years.  

EdUBudgie Linux itself will see a major overhaul every two years in line with Ubuntu LTS releases as well.  As this is intended to be stable software, there are no plans to offer a non-LTS version for download and everyday usage, though occassionally beta software may be offered for download in order to elicit feedback to improve an upcoming LTS release.

The next official production release of EdUBudgie Linux will be the 24.04 LTS version and should come out around June of 2024.  

In the meantime, you may update to the newest version of each software package included in EdUBudgie Linux by updating your system using the graphical updater program or by using the terminal.  

Sadly, no, not at this point in time.  However, feel free to email us if you are interested in helping out the team financially so that we can invest in things such as suitable ARM-based development machines, ARM-based Chromebooks, and Raspberry Pi SBC's, so that in the future this can be developed and offered.  

Because you didn't tell me that you needed it!  But please use the Contact page to let me know what you would like to see in future version of EdUBudgie and it will be considered for future releases.  Note that this OS is targeted at high school and university students and will NOT contain all of the packages that EdUbuntu contained as they are different projects with a different audience and with different educational needs overall, though some packages will likely be the same between the two.

Since EdUbuntu was mothballed back around 2015 some of these projects have fallen by the wayside it seems, with the package maintainers in many cases choosing to focus their energy elsewhere.  Perhaps with enough new users they will pick these projects back up in the future but that is outside of the scope and ability of the EdUBudgie Linux project itself to address at the present time.  We will do what we can to ensure compatibility and security but admittedly, some of these packages are a bit long-in-the-tooth.

Furthermore, as needs in education change, and as better packages and programs become available, we will update the packages in EdUBudgie Linux.  You may find that some package was included in a previous version which is no longer included, such as LibreOffice.  Feel free to contact us with your views on these types of changes as feedback is always appreciated and is incredibly helpful.  

Yes.  Simply put, the EdUBudgie Linux team cannot offer the support that Canonical can which is a big part of the reason that a clone is a more suitable offering than a new bespoke distribution.  What we can offer is a ready-to-go operating system with Linux's legendary hardware support and reliability and with Ubuntu's packages and package management.  Once installed, the user logs in, enters their info into the Online Accounts section of settings and into Google Chrome, and that is it.  At that point the user is ready to explore, learn, create, and innovate.  

Your IT administrator who installs EdUBudgie Linux should update it initially to ensure that it has the most up-to-date versions of the included software.  Updating is a simple task which can be done at any time remotely using Cockpit, so long as the student, teacher, or administrator's computer is on the same network as the IT administrator, and as long as the IT admin has root access to the machine, something which should be setup at installation.  Furthermore, any root user can update the machine at any time if they have an active internet connection and direct physical access to the machine.

The Canonical support team can offer support for a fee and we strongly suggest having your IT team leader contact them for a contract for support if needed.  We, the EdUBudgie Linux team, can offer an out-of-the-box Linux experience which has been engineered to be suitable for 95% of high school and university students, and can offer limited support through the Contact page.  EdUBudgie Linux team support, however, is informal, free-of-charge, and comes with no guarantees or warranties whatsoever.  Please contact us if you would like to support the EdUBudgie team financially so that in the future we can in turn support you more thoroughly, formally, and directly!

Yes.  But then again you could install Arch and create an even MORE targeted system for your students and educators.  You could also use Linux From Scratch to make your own unique OS based on Linux.  Or, for that matter, you could completely build your own Unix-like operating system truly done from scratch like Linus Torvalds did in 1991 when he created the first Linux release ever.  This is a touch of sarcasm, of course.  

The advantage here is that none of that work needs to be done after installation to have a complete working operating system with the programs that a typical student would need, as that work has already been done for you.  THAT is the advantage of EdUBudgie over a raw Ubuntu install or another clone or distribution or flavor - that is the value-add.  That value-add becomes exponentially more significant when considering that a typical IT team at a school has hundreds to thousands of machines to install EdUBudgie Linux on, and normally has a fairly small, overworked, and underappreciated IT team!

If there is a package that your school or school district needs, or if your school would like something else customized such as the default backgrounds that are included with EdUBudgie Linux, then please contact us for pricing on our customization service.  The EdUBudgie Linux team can build a district or school-specific version for you (with some limitations) if that is something that you are interested in for a small fee.  

We don't know, actually.  Well, the "Linux" part is easy, but the "EdUBudgie" is not as clear cut.  This was questioned on a podcast and we realized that although we came up with the name, we were probably saying it wrong the entire time.  The "edu" prefix often sounds like "eh-joo" as in the word "education" but we have been pronouncing it as "eh-do" because otherwise (we thought) it might sound weird with so many soft "J" sounds, even though that way seems like it actually makes more sense.  So, in short - it is pronounced however you manage to pronounce it - whatever you think sounds good, THAT is the best way to say it. 

P.S. - Sorry about that. On the other hand, if the name is the biggest criticism that we receive then that's A-O-K  ;)