====== Chromebooks ======

Chromebooks are lightweight laptops built around ChromeOS, a fast, secure, cloud-centric OS from Google. They’re popular because they’re cheap, have long battery life, and boot quickly. Under the hood many Chromebooks use standard Intel/ARM hardware and can run full Linux or other OSes once you remove the restrictions ChromeOS places on the machine.

  * Enable **Developer Mode**  to run a chroot (e.g., Crostini / Crouton) or a full Linux install.
  * Replace stock firmware with **Coreboot**  or **Libreboot**  (or use MrChromebox firmware) to remove Google’s verified-boot restrictions.
  * Boot a normal Linux distro (Ubuntu, Arch, Debian) from USB or internal storage.
  * Reuse Chromebooks as lightweight servers, kiosks, or simple homelab nodes.


===== Chromebook hacking =====

A set of techniques people use to reclaim control of the device: install a full Linux distro, replace the firmware with coreboot/libreboot, unlock advanced debugging, or repurpose cheap hardware as a tiny desktop, server, or embedded device. It’s attractive because many older Chromebooks are inexpensive surplus and have decent durability.

**Libreboot resources**

   * [[https://libreboot.org/docs/hardware/|Libreboot Hardware List]] – which Chromebooks can be flashed.
  * [[https://mrchromebox.tech/|MrChromebox.tech]] – custom firmware for Chromebooks, good for prepping.
  * [[https://www.coreboot.org/Chromebooks|Coreboot wiki: Chromebook devices]]

**Hardware **

  * Models often used: ThinkPad X131e Chromebook, C201, older Dell/HP units.
  * Good intro: [[https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Chromebook|Arch Wiki: Chromebook]]