ASUS TUF506IU and linux functionality testing accross many Distros.

Cr4ck3r101

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Hello all. I am Cr4ck34101, I am new to the forum, in fact new to forum life in general, Im rather private and generally don't share my knowledge with many. However, I recently purchased the ASUS TUF506IU because of the AMD Ryzen processor and the Nvidia GPU option that it offered. Like many here on this forum, I am pre-wired to go against the grain i guess and prefer not to use windows for various security and privacy reasons. Not to mentions the pure pleasure of successfully operating outside the box from the rest of the sheople.<< haha:>
Ill cut to the chase.
I have now tried this laptop on the following Linux Distros, some with success and some without. I do need Bios mod to continue my pursuit for true freedom:
Ubunu 19.4 stable and functional oob and the easiest to get going, usb uefi boot, still need to address GPU functionality, nomodeset to start to prevent nouveau failure.,,<< same accross the board with flavors as well.

Parrot OS will boot to live, will install but fails to function after install. stuck in text mode and graphical will not run for anything, and i tried everything i could find .
Kali Linux same as parrot almost to the T which i expected because theyre practically the same distro both in MATE.
Blackarch won't boot past usb periphs, need CSM mod to check legacy mode options. likely an nvidia drivers thing and i didn't try any patches to see if i could jump it into playing nice.
Qubes OS I need to be able to boot in legacy. needs CSM mod or ISO needs adjusted before usb creation.

Pop Os needs legacy mode or proper patch, same as most tbh cannot get to any part of the OS other than the boot verbose then it just stops and hangs

Fedora 31 I am finally stable ish here, Kernel 5.5.17 custom patched, original kernel is unstable with nvidia. has many more things to be worked out. however i can get full funtion from GPU ( dedicated not onboard). plugging or unplugging power will lock it up, no keyboard lighting control yet ( havent tried bc im dual boot with windows and that works for me) everything works so far tho. you do need usb mouse and keyboard to start because before you update you will have no trackpad function. the keys to work. Cuda for nvidia, Nvidia graphical control panel works, this is the only distro that it does in fact, ubuntu doesn't want to mess with Nvidia lol bc the graphical just blanks. with kernel patch i now have my full resolution, my hot keys work mostly, still need sleep bkey, fan speed key and airplane mode key. it does see my virtual wifi hotspot array but forces it back out thru wifi card so you have to use ethernet to use it. windows i can bridge wifi in to wifi out so i know its possible. Bluetooth works. HDMI works A/V9 thats right audio and video) i have successfully used a few hacking tools to hack my own network with this system as well. but don't ask for info on that please, you can go to school for said things.

I will keep the world posted on any other distros i try, im going to focus on fedora for now and try and work out the kinks for fully stable distro because i need one thatll work with this notebook.

Cr4ck3r101- out
 


As you pointed out, the Nvidia graphics can be a problem, but nomodeset is a temporary fix anyway, until you get an *buntu or Mint installed, and can then set up a proper Nvidia driver.

Is it your goal to find a permanent Linux solution, or are you just shopping around?
 
I prefer Linux over any other OS. So definitely this has become a shopping endeavor. I have some updated to bring to the table regarding this computer.
yes nomodeset is a good optionbut only if it is needed. I think it will mask other non gpu issues and can lead you down a dead end quickly. i have successful used other kernel perams to boot up with that ultimately reveal non gpu related bugs that cause crashes, data corruption, etc. nomodeset kills my and driver and that chipset actually performs well under normal use. I’m not a gamer but I am a drafter so I do heavy computations and rendering loads regular. Naturally windows works out of box better but I hate how Microsoft allocates my cpu and memory as well as how the file systems are easily compromised. Literally have my windows pc running through multiple VMs and few protection to prevent hacking and data leaks. And still with the right tools, suck away on the data.
Fedora has functioned the best on this specific laptop, ultimately took a copy of the security labs iso and stripped all the hacking software out that I’ll never utilize. But for whatever reason it likes my system the best over a vast group of distributions. Nvidia was straigh fed and from repo so no kernel patching and updates are flawless and brainless. I’m using both, dedicated and onboard GPUs. I’m now even doing some work with TensorRT and really putting this thing to the test. Works like a horse. I have overcome many many MANY nuances with this machine and my only thing left is keyboard backlighting and I set the color to what I like from windows and my bios has maintained it ever since so I have no real desire to write anymore code regarding asus and Nvidia. Backlighting is run from Nvidia_i2c_gpu and it’s likely to be a pain in the..ya.. so it’s blue and will be till I decide I want to hack my bios and over clock.
FYI I have zero kernel perams set in fedora, the system functions 95% of factory options from asus. Kbd lights, a couple hot keys no worky. Even my fan speed fn button works so it may very well be clicking the cpu as that’s how it functions in windows 10 with ARMOURY create.
Anyone wanting Linux on this laptop.
fedora ( probably any but I’m on security labs)
Dnf install gnome
Set gNome to default desktop
Delete alll the crap you don’t want with “dnf remove”
Dnf update ( will give you kernel 5.6.6.300)
Dnf install Akmod-Nvidia.86_64 ( 449.82-1.fc32) ( accept all dependencies)
Dnf update.
Rock and roll
You might get screen flickering with you amdgpu running. Just change refresh rate in display settings and that’ll usually fix it. I just changed it then changed it right back. Buffering issue I assume.
suspend may not kick screen back on coming back from suspension mode. Turn off and backonfrom per button. Once drivers are on problem goes away.
Do not blacklist you nouveau driver or the last two problems will persist. Nomodeset will also cause this. The only thing I did was vga= hybrid and idk if it did anything tbh so I pulled it back out. Nomodeset is really designed to get u you as a last resort imo. Read the verbose and watch for failures at boot up if you want to uncover any boot issues or even general issues post boot. Things like acpi apci i2c those small things kill Linux operations and send errors that echo across the system. So something no gfx related can appear to be gfx related because the system wants to find the solution and begins throwing gas in the fire.

If you have trackpad issue. Still does this to me one and a while keyboard works fine tho

shortcut to terminal
Root privilege
Rmmod i2c_hid
Elan=i2c_hid
Modprobe i2c_hid
Fixed it! This can be added to a number of config files that boot with the system.
If “Linux , no_boot”;$init
Use_brain_be_smarter, “no_mo_nomodeset”
Fi
 
Lots of distros to try!
What's your primary goal -- stability, cutting-edge, high performance, gaming? Or just learning? IOW, 'shopping around' for what?
So far, redhat and ubuntu, two specialty debian distros, a specialty arch and Pop. Are you looking for further suggestions? Hence, primary goal comes into play.
Best wishes!
 
Stability, performance, I am always open for suggestions m, Lear night how things interact is fun to me. This laptop, primarily this hybrid set up is a challenge with Linux kernels but now that I understand it my goal will be to make life easier for there who want the path of least resistance and functionality of a computer like this that will give you both work and play. So far I think I have it running better than windows was and plan to do some rendering and computing that will make or break the current state. Which is updating properly, almost all features working flawlessly, boot up time is phenomenal customizable from head to toe. Likely to begin focus on bios and clocking soon just to squeeze performance out until she pukes up a couple cores.
 

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