Explore the Google Chromebook under Linux system to create a more efficient and comfortable working environment

As a lightweight laptop, Google Chromebook has attracted much attention in the market. It uses the Chrome OS operating system based on Linux system, which can be said to be a portable device specially designed for Internet work. So, have you ever thought about running an operating system similar to Chromebook on your laptop and applying it to actual work? Today, we will introduce how to install and configure Chrome OS on Linux systems to create a more efficient and comfortable working environment.

What is a Chromebook?

Chromebooks are laptops created specifically for Chrome OS, which are themselves designed for a specific laptop model. Rather than being a general-purpose operating system like Linux or Windows, Chrome OS has more in common with Android or iOS. If you decide to buy a Chromebook, you'll find models from many different manufacturers, including HP, Asus, Lenovo, and more. Some are designed for students, while others are designed for home or business users. The main differences usually focus on battery power or processing power, respectively.

No matter which one you decide to buy, a Chromebook will run Chrome OS and provide you with the basic features you expect from a modern computer. There is a network manager to connect to the internet, Bluetooth, volume control, file manager, desktop and more.

Chrome OS desktop screenshot

However, to get more from this simple and easy-to-use operating system, you just need to activate Linux.

Enable developer mode on Chromebook

If I make you think enabling Linux seems simple, that's because it is, but it's deceptive. It's deceptive because you must back up your data before enabling Linux.

Although this process is simple, it does reset your computer back to its factory default state. You'll have to log back into your laptop, and if you have data stored on a Google Drive account, you'll have to resync it back to your computer. Enabling Linux also requires setting aside hard drive space for Linux, so whatever size your Chromebook's hard drive is will be reduced by half or a quarter (your choice).

Accessing Linux on a Chromebook is still considered a beta feature by Google, so you must choose to use developer mode. The purpose of Developer Mode is to allow software developers to test new features, install new versions of the operating system, and more, but it can unlock special features for you that are still in development.

To enable developer mode, first shut down your Chromebook. It is assumed that you have backed up all important information on your device.

Next, press ESC and ⟳ on your keyboard, then press the power key to start your Chromebook.

ESC key and ⟳ key

When prompted to start recovery, press Ctrl D on your keyboard.

After the restore is complete, your Chromebook has been reset to factory settings with no default usage restrictions.

Boot into developer mode

Running in developer mode means that every time you start your Chromebook, you will be reminded that you are in developer mode. You can press Ctrl D to skip the startup delay. Some Chromebooks will beep after a few seconds to alert you that you're in developer mode, making the Ctrl D action almost mandatory. In theory, this operation is annoying, but in practice, I don't boot my Chromebook that often because I just wake it up, so when I need to do it, Ctrl D is nothing more than a small step in the overall boot process .

The first time you launch after enabling developer mode, you must reset your device as if it were brand new. You only need to do this once (unless you disable developer mode at some point in the future).

Enable Linux on Chromebook

Now that you are running in developer mode, you can activate the Linux Beta feature in Chrome OS. To do this, open Settings and click Linux Beta in the list on the left.

Activate Linux Beta and allocate some hard drive space for your Linux system and applications. At its worst, Linux is pretty lightweight, so you really don't need to allocate much hard drive space, but it obviously depends on how much you plan to do with Linux. 4 GB of space is enough for Linux and a few hundred terminal commands and more than twenty graphical applications. My Chromebook has a 64 GB memory card and I gave the Linux system 30 GB, that's because most of what I do on the Chromebook is done within Linux.

Once your Linux Beta environment is ready, you can launch the terminal by pressing the Search button on your keyboard and typing terminal. If you are still new to Linux, you may not know what you can use to install the terminal you are currently in. Of course, this depends on what you want to use Linux for. If you're interested in Linux programming, you'll probably start with Bash (which is already installed and running in the terminal) and Python. If you are interested in the fascinating open source applications available in Linux, you can try applications such as GIMP, MyPaint, LibreOffice or Inkscape.

The Linux Beta mode of Chrome OS does not include a graphical software installer, but apps can be installed from the terminal. Applications can be installed using the sudo apt install command.

• The sudo command allows you to execute certain commands with super administrator privileges (i.e. root in Linux).
• The apt command is an application installation tool.
• install is a command option, which tells the apt command what to do.

You must also write the name of the software package you want to install with the apt command. Take installing LibreOffice as an example:

sudo apt install libreoffice

When prompted whether to continue, enter y (representing "confirm"), and then press Enter.

Once the app is installed, you can launch it like you would launch any app on Chrome OS: just enter its name in the app launcher.

It takes some time to learn the name of a Linux application and its package name, but you can also search for it with the apt search command. For example, you can use the following method to find apps about photos:

apt search photo

Because there are many applications in Linux, you can find something that interests you and try it out!

Sharing files and devices with Linux

Linux Beta environments run in containers, so Chrome OS needs permission to access Linux files. To give Chrome OS permission to interact with files you create on Linux, right-click the folder you want to share and select Manage Linux Shares .

Linux Management Sharing Interface for Chrome OS

You can manage sharing settings and other settings through the Chrome OS Settings program.

Chrome OS Settings Menu

Learn Linux

Through reading this article, we have learned in detail how to install and configure Chrome OS on Linux systems, and explored its application in actual work. With its stability, security and efficiency, Chrome OS may become the choice of more and more people in the future. If you want to improve efficiency and comfort at work, you might as well try a Chromebook!

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