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submitted 1 year ago by cyclohexane@lemmy.ml to c/linux@lemmy.ml

Rasbperry Pi is a popular choice as a SoC / SBC Linux board. But you have to use their custom linux kernel. Are there Linux boards with decent mainline Linux kernel support?

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[-] woelkchen@lemmy.world 21 points 1 year ago

Just google x86 SBCs and skip ARM. There are a bunch of options using AMD and Intel SoCs such as ODROID-H3.

[-] TCB13@lemmy.world 16 points 1 year ago

You most likely do not want to run a mainline kernel / system. Run Armbian instead, it is Debian optimized for SBCs, it has a very good track record and sometimes is the only option after manufacturers stop creating images for their old boards.

Generic images / mainline kernel might underperform in your board, the GPIO and other low level components will, most likely, not work and you might burn your storage as logging and other I/O intensive operations aren’t tweaked for SD/eMMC. Armbian aims to fix all those issues and provides continuous system and kernel updates long after the manufacturer stops doing so.

[-] rah@feddit.uk 9 points 1 year ago

run a mainline kernel

Having a board which is supported by mainline doesn't imply running a mainline kernel. Having mainline support is a huge advantage regardless of which kernel is run on a board.

[-] AProfessional@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Anything less than mainline support is ewaste imo. Look how terrible the pi graphics support used to be but now thanks to excellent upstream kernel/Mesa drivers it’s great and will continue to work/improve for the foreseeable future.

[-] Pantherina@feddit.de 2 points 1 year ago

I sold my Odroid C2 or something, as there was no support anymore... didnt know much of Linux, I guess armbian woul have been fine?

[-] TCB13@lemmy.world 3 points 1 year ago

Yes https://www.armbian.com/odroid-c2/ a friend has a couple of those all running Armbian just fine. With all SBCs the trick is to get something that is supported by Armbian.

[-] agressivelyPassive@feddit.de 12 points 1 year ago

Are you married to SBCs? There are dirt cheap, pretty powerful and small thin clients floating around in ebay. HP G3 mini for example.

[-] SapphironZA@lemmings.world 2 points 1 year ago

Agree on this. Servethehome on YouTube has a series on different 1 litre PCs they review in detail.

[-] rmuk@feddit.uk 1 points 1 year ago

Can't even being to agree enough on this. Unless you specifically need something that an SBC - ARM or X86 - offers, a second hand thin client or USFF computer will be a better fit, plus they come with high-quality power supplies and solid cases.

[-] cyclohexane@lemmy.ml 0 points 1 year ago

They seem to be the only product that occupies negligible space and is relatively affordable.

The other options are either more expensive or significantly larger.

[-] agressivelyPassive@feddit.de 3 points 1 year ago

Well, not really. The HP g3 mini is roughly the size of a paperback book and costs around 100€, depending on the specs. Similar devices of slightly older makes are even cheaper.

So, yes, they are physically larger, but still pretty small. Chances are, you don't actually need a tiny device like a Pi, so you should at least consider SFF PCs.

[-] deadcatbounce@reddthat.com 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Who said that (you have to use their custom mainline kernel)?

Fedora have an IoT distribution that fits the Raspberry Pi for example. There's workstation and a ostree versions.

Armbian I've used in preference to Raspbian or whatever they call it today. I like the cleanest distributions as much as possible.

That's all I have personal experience with, but there are others.

Meanwhile, others have suggested other boards. However, don't think that Raspbian is it (pun intended).

[-] minnix@lemux.minnix.dev 7 points 1 year ago

OP I crossposted your question here https://lemux.minnix.dev/post/123971

[-] rah@feddit.uk 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)
[-] cyclohexane@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 year ago

Thanks a lot! What does DTS mean?

[-] rah@feddit.uk 1 points 1 year ago

Device Tree Source. It's a text description of the hardware. The kernel uses it to load and configure drivers. It's the most critical set of information for supporting any particular board.

[-] Lemmchen@feddit.de 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)
[-] waitmarks@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

my info could be out of date on this, but the last time i looked into it, the khadas vim3 was the most powerful arm sbc with mainline linux support.

[-] GustavoM@lemmy.world -1 points 1 year ago
[-] woelkchen@lemmy.world 12 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Armbian or DietPi.

OP asked for hardware, not a new distribution.

[-] briongloid@aussie.zone -2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Have you tried DietPi

this post was submitted on 12 Nov 2023
69 points (96.0% liked)

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