Linux on ACer 4315

[CallFaheem2]

Just want to know can we install Linux on new ACER 4315 laptop

[coopstah13]

i think the best person to answer that question is you, download a livecd of something and see if it runs it and detects most of your hardware, if it does installation and updating it should enable the rest most likely

[CallFaheem2]

I totally agree with you but problem is I have to buy this laptop as I am starting my linux certification program and its knd of affordable for me...so thats the story... so I was thinking to get an opinion of some expert before doing little investment...

[Manchunian]

I tried installing Linux on an Acer once and couldn't - the BIOS were protected by a manufacturer set password! This can usually be resolved by taking out the little lithium battery in the computer and leaving it out for a while - but in this case it wasn't possible (I can't remember why - I think it wasn't easily accessible or something like that). So, before you buy, make sure you can enter the BIOS and change the booting order!

[Jonathan183]

I have put Linux on two Acer laptops (TravelMate 2413 & TravelMate 7514) ... the BIOS password protection was not an issue since the password protection is off when shipped by the manufacturer. Password protection of BIOS settings is certainly not unique to Acer.

Current Acre laptop has OpenSUSE 10.3, Ubuntu 7.10, Gentoo 2007.0, Linuxmint and Freespire all running without problems (well no more than I usually cause )... having said that I have not had time or need to setup the webcam yet and use wired ethernet for web access.

[Manchunian]

Yes, generally the password is inactive, but nevertheless this was an issue with this particular computer. Googling around revealed other people with the same problem with the model I was trying to put Linux on. It was probably an oversight on the part of the manufacturer, rather than a deliberate attempt to stop people from using anything other than Windows (now why would we want to do such a thing ), but I think it's worthwhile checking, just in case. BTW - this was quite an old computer, bought around three years ago, if I remember correctly.

[Jonathan183]

It was probably an oversight on the part of the manufacturer, rather than a deliberate attempt to stop people from using anything other than Windows (now why would we want to do such a thing ), but I think it's worthwhile checking, just in case.

I agree ... it's worth a check ... especially if it's new (but not from the manufacturer). You need to either know the BIOS password ... the one that lets you make changes (not just the supervised boot password) or at least confirm the password is disabled.

[Flymo]

Greetings,

We've just bought an Acer 4315-100508Ci with Ubuntu 7.10 pre-installed,
and it works pretty well, apart from a couple of bugs. <sigh>

There's a special offer on at a local discount store called 'The Good Guys' and we bought it for AU$491 after cashback.

Now, the installation isn't 100&#37; clean - there is a bug in the reboot procedure on ours and on two others we examined at the store - the workaround is to shut down and then start up again rather than rebooting.

Not implicated in this is that they all try to do a PXE boot first (takes forever), so the boot order in the BIOS needed tweaking. But that didn't help the reboot problem.

Our guess is that a flag is improperly set during reboot, or that something else is amiss that prevents it happening correctly. Can't spot it in the config, though. Any ideas, folks?

The other buglet is that TV out is dead, we tend to blame the intel X3100 driver which is labeled 'experimental'. That can doubtless be changed....

Apart from all that, it rocks. A lot of computer for very little money, well made, more than fast enough, and strong enough OpenGL 3D for some of the games to work well. Probably the *only* benefit from Vista is that integrated graphics chipsets have suddenly improved their game....

If any one is trying to get Ubuntu 7.10 running cleanly on a 4315, we'd be happy to share configuration info with them insofar as we've worked it out.

All the best, Ben

Dual-boot Sabayon3.4f + WinXP on Acer 5684 WLMi
Dual-boot Xubuntu + XP on old Tosh Centrino
...and the Acer 4315

[Flymo]

Well the TV-Out now works - all you have to do is connect the S-Video to the TV before powering-up the laptop. <sigh>

The reboot problem is 'somewhere' in the Ubuntu configuration - we've proved this with a fresh install of Ubuntu GG from CD on another partition - this reboots just fine. But not the original ACER installation.

Plan is to work out where the shutdown scripts live and compare them between installations, then try modifying the faulty ones....

You'd think Acer could do that, wouldn't you? Nobody that I've found at Acer shows any sign of human intelligence. What a pity.

We'll be back on the forum when we find out what's what....

All the best, Ben