Minifree now offering Quadcore modded laptops

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Lef
Lef
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Beigetreten: 11/20/2021

Those familiar with the world of libreboot laptops know that the most powerful laptops are the t400/w500 modded to have a quad core processor, which minifree now sells.

Also of note is that minifree is switching the default install of libreboot/trisquel to osboot/debian, but you can still ask for libreboot/trisquel just as previously you could ask for any distribution instead of trisquel. osboot is like libreboot except that it allows binary blobs for boards that require it.

http://twitter.com/n4of7/status/1466490108035706892

SkedarKing
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Beigetreten: 11/01/2021

I wondered if she is still developing osboot...

good to hear, I will ponder this just in case.

libreleah
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Beigetreten: 04/03/2017

I'm planning a major update to osboot soon. Today is Friday, December 3rd, 2021.

osboot only differs on these machines in that microcode updates are included by default. I regard them as beneficial, and a non-issue because the CPU already has burned-in microcode that's merely older, and there's only so much these microcode updates are able to do anyway without introducing basically a non-standard x86 processor. That's why Intel Errata is so conservative[1]. These fix CPU bugs, making the machines more secure/reliable. However, Libreboot is still a fine choice and if a customer asks for Libreboot, I will give it to them.

The meat of the pie is the build system. Board configs don't take that long to do.

Osboot is currently using coreboot 4.13 from November 2020, which I originally planned to use for a stable Libreboot release in early 2021, but I ended up doing a testing release of Libreboot on 4.14 and then another testing release in November based on 4.15.

Not much actual code changes in coreboot have occured, for these machines, since coreboot 4.13. However, I now have coreboot *4.15* stable in Libreboot. I'm updating osboot (in osbmk.git) during the weekend, to use the latest coreboot 4.15 on all boards, just like Libreboot. I'm also planning an overhaul of the website.

The differences between Libreboot and Osboot are actually very minor. Osboot has a few extra utils in the build system (script for me_cleaner, script for mrc.bin extraction on t440p thinkpads, coreboot submodules are downloaded with --checkout --init instead of just --init like in Libreboot... minor changes. And of course, no blobs.list is provided on any boards in osboot, so blobs are not deleted).

Crucially, ich9gen (part of ich9utils) is used on both osboot and Libreboot, when building ROM images for the GM45 laptops (x200, t400 and so on). They both nuke and disable the ME on those platforms. Like I said, CPU microcode is the only difference between the two projects. Libreboot gives you a CPU with only the burned-in microcode from 2008. Whereas osboot gives you newer microcode with bug fixes.

Most of the work on Libreboot this year has been board configs and user testing, patching bugs. Build system changes are very minor. I'm planning on the weekend starting December 4th to import all the build system improvements from Libreboot back into Osboot, and update all the boards in osboot. Won't take me long.

The website is another story, it needs to be totally ripped out and done again, but I can use Libreboot as a base. All I need to do there basically is rip the current Libreboot website and put it on osboot.org, but then add a few missing bits that osboot needs.

[1] Intel Errata: https://download.intel.com/design/processor/specupdt/318733.pdf

SkedarKing
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Beigetreten: 11/01/2021

Looking forward to this! :)

GNUbahn
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Beigetreten: 02/18/2016

On the minifree website it says that: [The] quad-core CPUs offer roughly twice the performance on multi-threaded applications (e.g. compiling large software from source).

Does this mean that, compared with an ordinary Core 2 Duo cpu, there will be little or no difference in performance for e.g. webbrowsing, watching a video, working with Writer, Draw, Okular etc?

libreleah
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Beigetreten: 04/03/2017

single-threaded performance will be roughly identical, yes

GNUbahn
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Beigetreten: 02/18/2016

Thanks.

(Unfortunately I have no idea of what apps/tasks make use of single, double or multiple-threaded processes...)

libreleah
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Beigetreten: 04/03/2017

if you're transcoding stuff with ffmpeg or compiling large programs, multi-threaded performance what you want

most tasks that people do are largely single threaded, but i'd always say more cores is better

PublicLewdness
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Beigetreten: 03/15/2020

4GB of RAM to 8GB. HDD to an SSD. Upgraded flash chip. Now dual core CPU to quad core. I have officialy run out of reasons not to make a Libre Boot laptop my next big purchase. Got a bonus coming in a week so here's hoping life throws me no curve balls for 7 days and I can use that to get me a laptop.