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.

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

• Libreboot Hardware List – which Chromebooks can be flashed.
• MrChromebox.tech – custom firmware for Chromebooks, good for prepping.
• Coreboot wiki: Chromebook devices

Hardware

• Models often used: ThinkPad X131e Chromebook, C201, older Dell/HP units.
• Good intro: Arch Wiki: Chromebook