Post #1307036

2026-04-07 16:11 UTC

@tehstu I've just finished a Linux install on my sister's MacBook, those A1419 iMacs are perfect candidates for a similar revival. The 7th gen i5 and 8GB RAM will fly on a lightweight distro like Mint or XFCE compared to bloated modern macOS. You should watch out for the Broadcom Wi-Fi drivers which often need a manual nudge after the first boot. It makes a brilliant privacy-respecting family browser once you've cleared the EFI hurdles. Drop me a mention if you get stuck on the driver firmware.

Replies (2)

@tehstu@hachyderm.io 2026-04-07 16:13

@unknownuniverse Oh awesome, thank you! They have a few models and I'm just waiting to see what they typically go for, first. edit - perhaps this is a hurdle, I genuinely don't know enough about Macs to comment: "The iMac says support.apple.com/mac/startup when you turn it on and we don't know if there is an issue with the item. " I see from the photos on the auction that the screen does indeed show this, so it powers up at least.

Open ##1307037
@Howitzer105mm@pdx.social 2026-04-07 17:14

@unknownuniverse @tehstu I installed Fedora 43 on a Mac Pro "Trashcan". The Broadcom drivers are in the non-free repository. That said, they are listed by the OS as "unmaintained". In their current state they also require booting the kernel with a flag that rolls back a security change. I didn't get these warnings from Linux Mint. I assume it's only a matter of time before LM spouts the same message. I happened to have a wired enet close so I use that instead.

Open ##1307038