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All hardware is not supported. There is no working Linux driver for the latest generation of fingerprint readers, for instance. All they promise is "most of th

by dTal 7y ago

All hardware is not supported. There is no working Linux driver for the latest generation of fingerprint readers, for instance. All they promise is "most of the basic functions work". https://support.lenovo.com/gb/en/solutions/ht082374 https://support.lenovo.com/gb/en/solutions/ht082374

BonesJustice 7y ago
That was my first question: "do the latest fingerprint readers work?" Because I definitely have not found a driver that supports the reader on my ThinkPad X1 Extreme.
- om3n 7y ago
  I have an X1 Extreme, and have been really wrestling with moving over to Ubuntu. Other than the fingerprint reader have you had any other problems? Do you think Ubuntu is safe/stable/performant on this machine, or would you recommend others avoid it?
  - isodude 7y ago
    We use X1 Extreme with a mixed bag of Ubuntu/Fedora/Arch. There are problems sometimes, like the thunderbolt works after updating to the latest BIOS. All in all people are pretty pleased with the experience. My coworker is running Arch with Sway/Wayland and is pretty pleased :) There are some problems with adding a second screens but I think it's related to i3/Sway and our monitors.
  - BonesJustice 7y ago
    Should be okay now. There were several BIOS updates early on that made it possible to brick your machine by toggling seemingly innocuous settings, like discrete/hybrid graphics or thunderbolt support. As far as the Linux experience goes, I’m not aware of any issues apart from the fingerprint reader. I have never attempted to use thunderbolt connectivity or charge anything over USB.
nixgeek 7y ago
Wow this document is dated 2018 but references technologies that were commonly used in 2008 or earlier as the criteria for certification testing?
vortico 7y ago
Haha, in the case of fingerprint drivers, this really tells how 1) useless and 2) locked-down that hardware is, given how little has been done by free/open-source software developers.
- squarefoot 7y ago
  I recall about 15 years ago the Veridicom/Fujitsu MBF200/FPS200 (same device) fingerprint sensors being supported by a guy in Brazil who wrote OSS Linux device drivers for them, thanks to the open data sheets. Looks like some hardware companies didn't learn much since.
isodude 7y ago
Fingerprint reader support is in progress: https://github.com/nmikhailov/Validity90 https://github.com/nmikhailov/Validity90 Here is a list from Arch Linux about current support: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Laptop/Lenovo https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Laptop/Lenovo
- snaky 7y ago
  ThinkWiki fingerprint readers page is slightly more informative http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Integrated_Fingerprint_Reader http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Integrated_Fingerprint_Reader
- dTal 7y ago
  That repo hasn't committed code in over a year. I would class that as "stalled", not in progress.

by dTal 7y ago

BonesJustice 7y ago

That was my first question: "do the latest fingerprint readers work?" Because I definitely have not found a driver that supports the reader on my ThinkPad X1 Extreme.

om3n 7y ago
I have an X1 Extreme, and have been really wrestling with moving over to Ubuntu. Other than the fingerprint reader have you had any other problems? Do you think Ubuntu is safe/stable/performant on this machine, or would you recommend others avoid it?
- isodude 7y ago
  We use X1 Extreme with a mixed bag of Ubuntu/Fedora/Arch. There are problems sometimes, like the thunderbolt works after updating to the latest BIOS. All in all people are pretty pleased with the experience. My coworker is running Arch with Sway/Wayland and is pretty pleased :) There are some problems with adding a second screens but I think it's related to i3/Sway and our monitors.
- BonesJustice 7y ago
  Should be okay now. There were several BIOS updates early on that made it possible to brick your machine by toggling seemingly innocuous settings, like discrete/hybrid graphics or thunderbolt support. As far as the Linux experience goes, I’m not aware of any issues apart from the fingerprint reader. I have never attempted to use thunderbolt connectivity or charge anything over USB.

nixgeek 7y ago

Wow this document is dated 2018 but references technologies that were commonly used in 2008 or earlier as the criteria for certification testing?

vortico 7y ago

Haha, in the case of fingerprint drivers, this really tells how 1) useless and 2) locked-down that hardware is, given how little has been done by free/open-source software developers.

squarefoot 7y ago
I recall about 15 years ago the Veridicom/Fujitsu MBF200/FPS200 (same device) fingerprint sensors being supported by a guy in Brazil who wrote OSS Linux device drivers for them, thanks to the open data sheets. Looks like some hardware companies didn't learn much since.

isodude 7y ago

Fingerprint reader support is in progress: https://github.com/nmikhailov/Validity90 https://github.com/nmikhailov/Validity90 Here is a list from Arch Linux about current support: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Laptop/Lenovo https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Laptop/Lenovo

snaky 7y ago
ThinkWiki fingerprint readers page is slightly more informative http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Integrated_Fingerprint_Reader http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Integrated_Fingerprint_Reader
dTal 7y ago
That repo hasn't committed code in over a year. I would class that as "stalled", not in progress.