Linux installation
Nearly perfectly functioning TCM Linux
Following a substantial break, I returned to tinkering with the TCM.
Pre-requisites
Boot the TCM into BIOS setup by pressing FN+F12, then Enter Setup, when first turned on.
- Disable Secure Boot. (I also disable TPM)
Only needed if you intend to install Linux to the internal emmc storage of the TCM..
Using Windows,
- Disable hibernation and Windows 10 (if installed) Fast Startup
- Remove non-required software bloat
- Disable System Restore and remove any System Restore Points.
- Run Disc Cleanup, using the advanced options to clean out as much junk as possible
- Change to a fixed size Virtual Memory (swap) of, say, 200MB
- Use a third party defragger, such as defraggler to consolidate (shrink) the amount of space used by Windows. Normally you would NEVER do this to solid-state storage, as it can cause premature wear. This is a on-off operation, to allow the next step to work better.
- Shrink the C: drive to allow space for Linux - I suggest 12GB is a good amount to have available.
Create a bootable ISO pendrive
Refer to the Distros section on either MXLinux (easiest), Mint (recommended) or Lubuntu
Boot Linux on the TCM
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Pop your newly created pendrive into the TCM keyboard slot Remove any other card from the tablet and keyboard
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Press FN+F12 during power on and select the USB option, to boot from. A flash of the Toshiba logo (that tricked me!) and the TCM should present a grub boot menu
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Manually select the first boot entry or let it go there by default. If displayed, do NOT use the compatibility mode; the touchpad won't work, for example. After a bit of text scrolling the system should boot up to a tiny looking typical Linux screen.
- Use the buttons on the tablet or the FN+9 keys to reduce the speaker volume. It's 100% by default!
- Resize the desktop - see Tweaks
- Disable hibernation and hybrid sleep - see Tweaks
- Connect to the internet via Wifi
- (Optional) if your chosen distro includes gparted, then you may be able to shrink your Windows partition further. Fedora for example, requires
sudo dnf install gparted, whereas debian-based distros tend to have it pre-installed on the Live USB.
You can now install Linux to the free space on your (mmcblk1) storage, likely partition 4 or 5
Grub boot loader should be installed to mmcblk1 though some distros (Mint MATE) require the Windows Boot Loader partition to be explicitly highlighted first.
Once installed, reboot, then reapply the three steps above.
Supplementary
Boot time in Linux Mint MATE, with auto-login, is under 30 seconds including connection to Wi-Fi - very acceptable. :-) The dmesg display seems to be 'clean' on a quick glance. Writing to SD-card works fine. Bluetooth sync'd with my mobile 'phone fine.
If you appreciate the information/files provided on this site, then please...
Testing of a Live ISO
This is legacy information that I've left here, primarily as a warning.
NOT FOR INSTALLATION PURPOSES
I attempted to install a distro to emmc storage and "borked" grub :'(
(Best done on an alternative PC/laptop)
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Download the latest Linux Mint 20 version - Linux Mint (The later versions of Mint are 64bit only; the TCM can only boot from a 32bit loader, so..)
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Download a 32bit loader 32bit EFI loader
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Use Rufus to create a pendrive to boot from.
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Copy the 32-bit loader to /BOOT/EFI/ on the pendrive