No more linux on new mac mini

[ghostlines]

I understand the context in which you wrote this, but having been a Linux user on both the desktop and at work for nearly 13 years, Linux is most certainly not pointless. I would agree it can be aggravating on the desktop, which is precisely why I switched to a Mac, but in the server world, Linux rules the roost.

My sentiments exactly, Mac for Desktop, *nix for servers.

Heard some people advising to use VM's, I know the new Mini's are powerful but just running a Linux server natively is the best way to go. The GUI overhead is just wasting precious resources.

The Mini has a simple design and very compact I'm getting one for Xmas and going to dual boot it with FreeBSD.

 

[spacesamurai]

Saw this thread and just had to reply. I have tried a duel boot on my mac mini, but messing with the EFI can drive you crazy. I would recommend using the virtual box. You could also build a linux box and run OSX on the virtual server if you feel adventurous

I also have to agree with the many other users, keep your client Mac and your server Linux. I have used Linux desktop for many years, but just help but use Mac's Aqua env. The two work so great together, with Mac's slick user interface and Linux's reliable servers, I have finally found balance in the force

 

[jimreynold2nd]

Saw this thread and just had to reply. I have tried a duel boot on my mac mini, but messing with the EFI can drive you crazy. I would recommend using the virtual box. You could also build a linux box and run OSX on the virtual server if you feel adventurous

I also have to agree with the many other users, keep your client Mac and your server Linux. I have used Linux desktop for many years, but just help but use Mac's Aqua env. The two work so great together, with Mac's slick user interface and Linux's reliable servers, I have finally found balance in the force

I have to humbly disagree. Installing rEFIt can't be any simpler than any other .dmg, and EFI's way of managing multiple bootloaders is much cleaner than MBR scheme, and much simpler than, say, dual booting with a Windows 7 machine on MBR. I have GrUB2 live alongside with Apple's bootloader on the EFI partition, and everything "just works". GrUB2 works with its grub.cfg just like on any other computer, and Apple's loader boots Lion just as well, and they don't conflict without any intervention by me. I would say make a dual-booting configuration is still the best option, much better than VirtualBox, especially if you want to make the Mini a headless server. The only issue right now is no wifi driver in mainline kernel, but you can always use backport, or wait for 3.2, which dues in a month or so.

 

[hruvulum]

Jim: thank you for your two comments. I have been googling for an hour to confirm that I can install Linux on a 2011 Mac mini, and your two comments are what persuaded me I can.

For those of you who do not understand why someone would want to "boot straight into" linux rather than run linux virtualized under OS X, well, let me give you an example (from my life)

I am currently paying $63 a month to Comcast for internet service, which I think is too much, but my only other choice is the old-fashioned 56Kbps modem. Unless I am very much mistaken, I would not be able to keep OS X "properly patched" via a 56Kbps modem because the size of the files downloaded by OS X's Software Update app are too big and because there is no way to tell Apple that I do not need updates to iTunes because I never use it. ("Properly patched" means, when a security hole is found in the OS, I download the "patch" or fix for the hole in a timely manner.) In contrast, certain Linux distros (not the Archlinux that Jim uses, though) allow you to "subscribe" only to security updates, which tend to be small enough and infrequent enough that you can download them via a 56Kbps modem. (I know that because I did that for years.)

Note that were I to run Linux in a VM, I would still be vulnerable to security holes in the host OS (namely OS X) and I hate to break it to you, but OS X has tended to have _more_ security holes than either Windows 7 or Linux does. (Although OS X has up to now not been the target of an many _untargeted_ attacks as Windows has been, if someone is _targeting_ you, they're more likely to succeed if you are running OS X Lion than if you are running Windows 7 or recent Linux.

I do not recommend learning Linux just so you can save $40 a month on your internet service (in exchange for having to wait longer for web pages to download and for never being able to view any video), but if you have some other compelling reason to learn it (or had some compelling reason to have learned it) then there is an example of how flexible it can be.

 

[DustinT]

I think USB Linux booting can be achieved, but it requires a fair bit of mucking around with additional bootloaders and EFI screwiness. By far the easiest way however is to get any one of the numerous cheap external DVD drives and use it to boot whatever you want.

Ya, this.. do this...

 

[ghostlines]

I have to humbly disagree. Installing rEFIt can't be any simpler than any other .dmg, and EFI's way of managing multiple bootloaders is much cleaner than MBR scheme, and much simpler than, say, dual booting with a Windows 7 machine on MBR. I have GrUB2 live alongside with Apple's bootloader on the EFI partition, and everything "just works". GrUB2 works with its grub.cfg just like on any other computer, and Apple's loader boots Lion just as well, and they don't conflict without any intervention by me. I would say make a dual-booting configuration is still the best option, much better than VirtualBox, especially if you want to make the Mini a headless server. The only issue right now is no wifi driver in mainline kernel, but you can always use backport, or wait for 3.2, which dues in a month or so.

How did you do this? Did you install Grub on the MBR, or on a separate Linux partition and let Refit boot into it?

 

[johngwheeler]

Booting from USB & with dual disks - my experiences.

You should be able to boot from a USB thumb drive. I booted a Ubuntu 11.10 image following the instructions at: http://www.ubuntu.com/download/ubuntu/download

You just need to convert the Linux .iso file to a .img with hdiutil, and then copy it to USB with the "dd" command. It's all documented.

In the end I abandoned rEFIt for my Mac Mini Server dual boot, because I don't believe it plays well trying to dual boot across two physical disks (the Mini server has two disks, and I wanted Linux on one, and Mac OS on the other). I had so much trouble with GUID formatted disks, EFI and various flavours of GRUB, that I gave in and just used the bog-standard MBR boot partition for my Linux disk. It has worked fine ever since. Before that I had multiple boot failures that drove me mad trying to fix things with GRUB recovery disk, gdisk utility etc.

I used the Mac OS X utility to "bless" the Linux disk, so it automatically boots into Linux, and if I want to boot into Mac OS, I just press the option key during boot up.

I fixed the broken wi-fi by following some kernel patching instructions, but I still can't get sound to work.

 

[ghostlines]

rEFIt dualboot works =) but...

I installed OS X first then manually installed rEFIt then installed Debian. Works fine now for server use. Just needed to sync GPT with the rEFIt tool and then it could boot Debian too.

What I don't fully understand is during the Debian install I had to select install GRUB on the MBR, I was afraid it would wipe rEFIt but it survived it.
But now I fear that if I update my firmware for some required reason in the future it will wipe my rEFIt and my GRUB.

I could live with just reinstalling rEFIt in that case, but GRUB would be a headache. Wasn't it possible to install GRUB on another partition instead of the MBR and let rEFIt boot it from there?
I tried this at first but to no avail I had GPT syncing issues.

 

[durija]

Hardware matters

I've had no problems installing several distros on a separate partition on my 4 year old iMac. I never use usb, always a CD/DVD.
But on my late 2011 MBP, it is a different story. The only ubuntu I could install was 10.10 Maverick. Then I could auto upgrade to Natty and Oneric. (Can't upgrade... easily... with Mint, my preference.) But if I tried to fresh install either directly, I'd get a blinking cursor and nothing at reboot. I use refit btw. Just saying, Linux is tricky and not the same from model to model.

 

[hruvulum]

on my late 2011 MBP, it is a different story. The only ubuntu I could install was 10.10 Maverick.

Thanks for this report. Are you "dual booting" the MBP? In other words, in addition to a Linux partition, is there a working OS X partition on the MBP?

 

[durija]

Thanks for this report. Are you "dual booting" the MBP? In other words, in addition to a Linux partition, is there a working OS X partition on the MBP?

Yes, both my iMac and MBP are split into 3 partitions, 1 each for Snow Leopard, Windows and whatever Linux I happen to be running. Although due to so many problems, I usually virtualize several flavors of Linux with Fusion. So much easier.

 

[timtunbridge]

OSX + Debian on New Mac mini

Can I ask anyone who has both Lion and Debian installed on a new Mac mini, how this is achieved.

I have yet to attempt this myself but understand that the Debian installer reformats/partitions the HDD, and hence I will lose both Lion and the Lion Recovery partition. Is this true? And if so how is Lion reinstalled?

(I should add that my Mac mini came with Lion installed, I have no install software).

Thanks for your time.

 

[mistamidget]

Yeah, I guess I could get an external DVD drive. Still sucks though. I like dual booting instead of VM. I've never been able to get a USB thumb drive to boot linux and from what I've read it's not possible.

Still disagree with taking away optical drive and leaving a blank space though.

My 2010 Mac Mini optical drive is stuffed already so I'm using a cheap USB DVD drive with no problems at all.
So the new Mini having no optical drive is the right way to go IMO.

 

[Chippy99]

I installed Archlinux on my Mac Mini 5,1 (June 2011 model). I also tried to boot my custom GrUB usb, it just works. Here's how:
- Install rEFIt AND enable it. (from within OSX). This allows more boot options on EFI. <-- rEFIt is the key to booting liveUSBs as well as GrUB2 you will install later

Sorry for the late post - just found this.

I can create bootable linux USB's or CD's no problem (using Penguintosh or whatever). But no matter what I do, they will not boot my 2011 Mac Mini. It is always the same problem: The usb stick (or cd) will start up, copy stuff to ram etc, then you get the purple Ubuntu screen (for example) and then the same error:

"(initramfs)
Could not find the ISO /efi/boot/boot.iso
This could also happen if the file system is not clean because of an operating
system crash, an interrupted boot process, an improper shutdown, or unplugging
of a removable device without first unmounting or ejecting it. To fix this, simply reboot into Windows, let it fully start. log in, run ‘chkdsk /r’, then
gracefully shut down and reboot back into Windows. After this you should be able to reboot again and resume the installation."

Are you saying rEFIt will solve this problem and allow the install disk to boot? I cannot see how it can, surely it's just a way of selecting which device to load from?

Reading further, I am 99% sure rEFIt will not fix this problem with the latest Mac Minis and MB Airs. Does *anyone* know a way of booting linux on such machines (so I can do an SSD firmware upgrade)?

 

[CausticPuppy]

Yes, I like dual booting my mac OS X and Linux. I'm a computer geek. I like screwing around with Linux distros. I want to get the new Mac Mini but being as Macs can't boot linux off of a USB drive and the new mini doesn't contain an optical drive, that pretty much kills linux on a mac mini. Kind of a bummer if you ask me.

If all you want to do is "screw around" with linux, why not just get virtualbox (free) and install it in a VM?

 

[Chippy99]

The problem is how to upgrade firmware and do other low-level stuff to SSD's which are increasingly commonly installed inside our Macs?

I know of no OS X based SSD utilities to do this. All of the SSD manufacturers either produce native Windows utilities - or more commonly linux-based boot images and you are supposed to run it from there.

But I cannot find any way to do this on a 2011 Mini. Surely it is not going to come down to stripping the Mini apart to remove the drive, simply to do a firmware update???

 

[hruvulum]

Regarding the linux-based boot images distributed by some SSD manufacturers for upgrading the SSD's firmware, Chippy99 writes:

But I cannot find any way to do this on a 2011 Mini. Surely it is not going to come down to stripping the Mini apart to remove the drive, simply to do a firmware update?

It can be done by burning the boot image onto a CD and then booting from an external CD drive; can't it?

I am asking out of ignorance; I am not defending any position.

I am a Mac mini 2011 owner who will try to install Linux but has not done so yet.

 

[hruvulum]

I can create bootable linux USB's or CD's no problem (using Penguintosh or whatever). But no matter what I do, they will not boot my 2011 Mac Mini.

I have never done it, but it is possible. At least 2 people in this thread report success. Moreover, a small publisher has an article in which benchmarking of the latest Ubuntu release was done on a 2011 Mac mini:

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=macosx_lion_precise

 

[ghostlines]

The problem is how to upgrade firmware and do other low-level stuff to SSD's which are increasingly commonly installed inside our Macs?

I know of no OS X based SSD utilities to do this. All of the SSD manufacturers either produce native Windows utilities - or more commonly linux-based boot images and you are supposed to run it from there.

But I cannot find any way to do this on a 2011 Mini. Surely it is not going to come down to stripping the Mini apart to remove the drive, simply to do a firmware update???

Hey dude, what SSD do you own? OCZ does have a tool to do this. I used a CD version, and it should be possible to use Unetbootin to make a bootable USB of this to upgrade your SSD firmware.

I used Unetbootin to install (Debian) Linux on my Mac Mini 2011.

 

[Chippy99]

Hey dude, what SSD do you own? OCZ does have a tool to do this. I used a CD version, and it should be possible to use Unetbootin to make a bootable USB of this to upgrade your SSD firmware.

I used Unetbootin to install (Debian) Linux on my Mac Mini 2011.

Can I ask how you did this please?

If I create a bootable USB image using Unetbootin, it will not boot. It's a while since I tried it, but I am pretty sure it falls over with the usual "Could not find the ISO /efi/boot/boot.iso" error, straight after the purple Ubuntu loading screen.

----------

I have never done it, but it is possible. At least 2 people in this thread report success. Moreover, a small publisher has an article in which benchmarking of the latest Ubuntu release was done on a 2011 Mac mini:

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=macosx_lion_precise

The pictures are of earlier Minis. Are you sure they tested the 2011 model?

----------

It can be done by burning the boot image onto a CD and then booting from an external CD drive; can't it?

Nope.

 

[iPhil]

The pictures are of earlier Minis. Are you sure they tested the 2011 model

The OS X 10.7.4 vs. Ubuntu 12.04 LTS vs. Ubuntu 12.10 2012-06-21 benchmarking was done from a mid-2011 Mac Mini. This Apple Mac Mini from last year is based on Intel's Sandy Bridge micro-architecture with the Core i5 2415M. The Intel i5-2415M is a quad-core part with Hyper Threading (though under OS X 10.7.4 it still advertises itself as just having two logical cores) that has a base frequency of 2.3GHz and a maximum Turbo Frequency of 2.9GHz. Intel HD 3000 graphics are integrated and used by this low-end Apple device. The system has 2GB of RAM and a 500GB Hitachi hard drive.

I have never done it, but it is possible. At least 2 people in this thread report success. Moreover, a small publisher has an article in which benchmarking of the latest Ubuntu release was done on a 2011 Mac mini:

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=macosx_lion_precise

 

[hruvulum]

The pictures are of earlier Minis. Are you sure they tested the 2011 model?

There is a 2011 Mac mini in the first picture on the page.

(Again, the page is at http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=macosx_lion_precise)

 

[ivnj]

Get the external super drive from apple. And some linuxes run from usb.

 

[mwhities]

I'm a FeeBSD junkie (open/net too) and I get the best of both world (GUI/CLI) with Mac OS X. I really don't need anything else. Minus my Win7Ultimate VMWare Fusion box for work related needs.

 

[maximini]

Though I was not able to run Ubuntu from a USB key on a Mini 5,2, I have been able to run Fedora or BSD flavors from one. The latest version of Fedora appears competitive with that of Ubuntu feature-wise. The latter appears to be hard to install and is reviewed as being buggy. Also some of my USB keys did not work, others did. The one that worked best (and fastest) is a Patriot Xporter XT Rage 8 GB USB 2.0.

I have not purchased the Apple-branded external USB DVD writer, neither the old one nor that introduced with the latest MacBook Pro Retina. Reason is my concern it scratches disks not to mention the high price. I instead went with a much cheaper "Samsung SE-208AB/TSWS External DVD-Writer (White)" (don't think the color changes anything). I have been able to write bootable CDs or DVDs of various Linux or BSD flavors though I recall Ubuntu still does not boot that way. In my experience, the easiest "Unix" flavors to install on the Mini 5,2 have been PC-BSD and Fedora. FreeBSD is easy to boot too (in fact I would assume all BSD flavors would).

I understand Apple has an EFI that is customized, version 1.1 I believe and most Linux distributions assume either traditional partitioning with an MBR or UEFI, which I believe is version 2.0 of the non-customized EFI (version 1.0) (<-- All this is of possibly faulty memory!) So they tend to work haphazardly on Apple's "customized" implementation especially when the USB key is of doubtful quality... Still a lot to learn to master this decidedly very specific booting environment.

Maximini