System76 Darter Pro (darp8) [Merged #1]

[adw]

---
layout:
  'hcl'
type:
  'laptop'
hvm:
  'yes'
iommu:
  'yes'
slat:
  'yes'
tpm:
  'unknown'
remap:
  'yes'
brand: |
  System76
model: |
  Darter Pro
bios: |
  2022-11-21_b337ac6
cpu: |
  12th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-1260P
cpu-short: |
  i7-1260P
chipset: |
  Intel Corporation Device [8086:4621] (rev 02)
chipset-short: |
  Alder Lake
gpu: |
  Intel Corporation Device [8086:46a6] (rev 0c) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
  
gpu-short: |
  Integrated Graphics (Iris Xe)
network: |
  Realtek Semiconductor Co., Ltd. RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller (rev 15)
memory: |
  65380
scsi: |

usb: |
  3
versions:

- works:
    'yes'
  qubes: |
    R4.1
  xen: |
    4.14.5
  kernel: |
    5.15.52-1
  remark: |
    <a class='ext-link' href='https://forum.qubes-os.org/t/16466'>read more</a>
  credit: |
    Andrew David Wong
  link: |
    https://andrewdavidwong.com/

---

Remarks

System76 provides detailed instructions for physically removing or replacing certain components, so I:

• Removed the Wi-Fi/Bluetooth module before powering on.
• Disconnected the webcam/microphone connector before powering on.
• Installed extra RAM (2 x 32 GB DDR4 SO-DIMMs @ 3200 MHz).
• Installed an extra NVMe Gen4 SSD.

Qubes OS installation was a breeze.

In addition:

• When I looked at the coreboot settings, I was surprised to see that Intel ME was enabled by default, so I installed coreboot-configurator in Pop!_OS to “disable” it (insofar as it can) with a simple toggle. This change was reflected in the coreboot settings afterward.
• Suspend does not work on Qubes (presumably due to S0ix, but possibly compounded by disabling ME).
• The HDMI 2.1 port doesn’t work with external monitors in Qubes, but it works in Pop!_OS. (Update: works with kernel-latest-6.0.12-1.)
• The DisplayPort (via USB-C) port also doesn’t work with external monitors in Qubes. (Update: probably also works with kernel-latest-6.0.12-1.)
• The MicroSD card reader doesn’t work.
• Although coreboot states that the TPM is active, qubes-hcl-report does not recognize it.
• The easiest way to update the firmware on System76 laptops seems to be via Pop!_OS, where there’s a built-in one-button update tool, so keeping the default SSD with Pop!_OS preinstalled seems useful. Since this laptop has two NVMe slots, I simply moved the default (slower) SSD to the slower Gen3 slot and used the faster Gen4 slot for my Samsung 990 PRO. This way, I won’t have to reopen the case the next time I need to use Pop!_OS to update the laptop’s firmware. Both OSes are independently LUKS-encrypted.

On the positive side, compared to my old ThinkPad T450s, this setup is noticeably faster, runs open-source firmware, and is not vulnerable to QSB-081.

Note: This is the second darp8 HCL report to be posted. The first one is here.

Attachments

• Qubes-HCL-System76-Darter_Pro-20230123-130200.yml (893 Bytes)