Installing a Linux distribution onto a PowerSpec pre-built?

Supermath101

Has anyone had any luck installing a Linux distribution (such as Fedora, Linux Mint, Arch, etc.) onto a PowerSpec pre-built? Specifically either the PowerSpec B750 or B751. I am especially concerned about any driver issues, and whether you can turn off the RGB using something like OpenRGB.

PowerSpec_MikeW

@Supermath101

Looking online with that board, main issue seems to be with the Bluetooth driver on the board. We're swamped right now, but when I have time I'll install Mint on it and see what it looks like.

Vladdy

https://community.microcenter.com/discussion/14245/installing-a-linux-distribution-onto-a-powerspec-pre-built

Hello, you can also unplug the ARGB connectors if you do not want the lights on.

-V

Shoan041

https://community.microcenter.com/discussion/14245/installing-a-linux-distribution-onto-a-powerspec-pre-built

I'm not sure if you decided to give it a try or not, but one thing of note is that there is a custom bios on the Powerspec machines. It may work, but if not you might also want to consider flashing the original bios for the motherboard if it works better with Linux. Also, if I'm not mistaken sometimes the parts a little different for each individual Powerspec. It's worth looking into which motherboard specifically is in the one your buying at the time.

PowerSpec_MikeW

@Shoan041

Custom BIOS is a splash and custom defaults so the customer can restore to our factory settings. Mainly its features that enhance security or performance that the stock BIOS may not enable as a default.

Performance:

Above 4G Decoding

Resizable Bar

C.A.M

Security:

Virtualization. SVM on AMD, or VT-d on Intel. Required for enhanced security features.

DMA Protection.

Secure Boot. Enabled with keys loaded in deployed mode.

Those are the general features that we enable that may be disabled on the stock BIOS, but most of these features are becoming normal defaults now, so it can vary by board manufacturer. The only other thing we'll change is cooling related. If the board doesn't have a designated AIO/W_PUMP header, we may set a header to full speed as a default and use that header for the pump. We also may optimize fan curves or adjust fan settings by the mode in our systems with fan controllers for better noise levels.

Nothing is locked out in our custom BIOS, if there's any setting that's potentially going to cause a compatibility issue with Linux it can simply be turned off.

Shoan041

https://community.microcenter.com/discussion/comment/54372#Comment_54372

Good to know, I'll keep that in mind!