Hey, all. I’ve been trying to make use of an old MacBook pro (2,2), because it still works. Due to its age, the version of macos is unsupported by basically everything nowadays. I need to find a linux distro to put on it, but it needs to have 32-bit EFI support, but still be a 64-bit OS (This is due to the MacBook’s firmware). I’ve tried appending several different bootia32 files to multiple different install isos, but to no avail. While they get to the grub shell, I cannot boot the live ISO. I’ve been trying for weeks, and I’m not even good at grub command-line usage. If someone could please help, that would be much appreciated. Thanks!
Have you tried AntiX?
I’ll look at it. As a clarification, I don’t mind if I have to edit a pre-existing install iso, I just need to find something that will work.
I had a similar issue with a Mac mini 2006 a few years back and seems Debian and Gentoo just worked for me ootb
I’ve never tried on a Mac, but rEFInd works great for both 32 and 64-bit EFI : The rEFInd Boot Manager: Getting rEFInd
I’ve used it on all my machines for years, it’s so much more simple than grub (OS doesn’t even need to know about it existing in the ESP).
you might have to build your own efistub kernel. many major distros are dropping support for old i386 efi.
I just finally got rid of the same MBP (too many computers and it finally fell off the back end of the acceptable stack). I used this to convert ISO files for several recent 64 bit distro (lubuntu was a favorite though I bet manjaro xfce would run pretty well too) - Linux DVD images (and how-to) for 32-bit EFI Macs (late 2006 models) | mattgadient.com
@F1N, Gentoo is an immediate no, as the laptop has a core 2 duo.
@xzpfzxds, I have rEFInd installed, and working. I can’t use it to boot with 64-bit efi, as the reason I can’t do 64-bit efi is that the MacBook does not support 64-bit efi at all. Legacy boot through rEFInd is also a no.
@mathew2214, That’s exactly why I’m asking.
@exee, I tried that article, but it didn’t work for me. I’ve tried several different guides, but to no avail.
I’m trying antiX linux, as it still has support. So far, it loads the bootloader and it’s trying to boot.
Did you boot from burned DVD? I always had trouble booting from a USB with that computer.
So the 32-bit rEFInd loads, but cannot load a 64-bit Linux kernel?
Have you considered cross- compiling the EFI bootloader as a 32-bit binary? As long as you can get a bootloader on there, it is possible to get a Linux distro on there. I also believe the old boot camp software could help here.
However, since things are bound to just get worse from here on out, it might be time to put the old thing to pasture and buy something newer. Either pay the Apple tax, or go with a System 76 laptop. I know this is not the answer you would like to hear, but sometimes it is easier to just do a modest upgrade.
If you have a top of the line Mac is from 2012 or so, a $500 PC laptop should be able to match most of it’s specs today, though perhaps a 6 core instead of an 8 core. A $800-$1200 is the sweet spot for an upgrade though, high end starts at 32GB RAM and 8c16t+ CPU is a good baseline. AMD APUs have insane battery life and can play many older titles effortlessly.
Of course, money is always an issue and I assume you’re not exactly bathing in hundred dollar bills at the moment. Still, if you can find the money, do upgrade. At some point you just gotta let go.
Never give up!
But seriously It still works and I was running Lubuntu 22.04 last week on a 2,2 MBP a week ago. If you don’t want to hack .iso images then take a look at Q4OS. I also had that running on said laptop before I put it out to pasture. Q4OS has a debian based i386 flavor and running the trinity desktop it was medium responsive though not really zippy.
Hi, All! I’m glad to provide you guys with a good update. The MacBook is officially brought back to modern life. I ended up using MX Linux instead of antiX Linux. Not sure what antiX didn’t like about the laptop, but it would always lock up when trying to populate /dev/. I popped in an MX Linux usb, and it worked fine. Thanks for all your help!
@exee, I didn’t have a disk to burn to at the time, and the dvd drive in that laptop is dead. I do have a usb disc burner, but it doesn’t interface well with the bios of a mac. I’ve tried. I wonder if what you’re talking about could be the absence of a bootia32.efi? If it doesn’t have one, it won’t show when you hold option at bootup. I am glad I found a 64 bit OS that still had support for 32 bit EFI. Thanks to @regulareel for suggesting antiX, or I would never have thought of MX linux.
@xzpfzxds, The behaviour described above is what I was talking about. It could load the bootloader, then it locked up after loading the kernel and the initramfs while trying to detech block devices and TTYs.
@wertigon, That’s a perfectly acceptable answer. I don’t really care about if the laptop has the processing power for what I need, beccause I have several newer laptops that I use all the time, as well as my own version of the MEGADESK pc. The laptop was meant for a friend of mine who just needs it for schoolwork, and it’s definitely powerful enough to run firefox. Even the gpu handles hardware acceleration in XFCE. On another note, I am kind of known in my area for being the guy who somehow gets older laptops to work fine, and in some cases better then modern ones. Either way, though, I try not to buy a new laptop ever. I just find it wasteful.
I am glad to say that the laptop will, realistically, be used for years to come, knowing the friend it’s going to.
I was supposed to suggest MX Linux but I was unsure if it had enough power to drive the interface without lag/choppiness. I suggested AntiX because it was purpose built for older systems. Im glad that at least my suggestion drive you to the right direction.
Yeah. Thanks! I still don’t know what antiX’s problem was, but I think it was that the internal drive had three different bootloaders and was an unreadable fs, at least to debian. Not sure why MX handled it fine, though.