mbp-ubuntu-kernel VS mbp2018-bridge-drv

Download the .deb files from here (try the “alt” ones first) https://github.com/marcosfad/mbp-ubuntu-kernel/releases/tag/v5.7.19 and use sudo apt install FILENAMEHERE.deb.

You can use the mbp-ubuntu kernel, although it has not yet been updated with newer patches that are in mbp-arch, but you can build a kernel with those parches as described here. That keyboard/trackpad driver, apple-bce, is not in the main kernel yet. There are instructions for installing it as a dkms module here. In general, the t2linux wiki and the t2 linux discord server (linked to in the wiki a lot) are where the most up to date info on running linux on t2 macs is.

You’ll need to install an efi bootloader, i.e. grub, on a fat32 partition. If there’s an efi system partition on your external drive, then use that You probably will also want this patched kernel and keyboard trackpad audio and touchbar drivers, as described here.

If I remember correctly on my 2019 13” everything was working quite well except for the audio which would only output to the speakers and the wifi/Bluetooth not working. Battery was fine for me I can’t remember having to charge it more often than usual. Ubuntu on Touchbar Mac

Does anyone happen to have info on how I might get things up and running? I have tried googling, but not finding much specific to Debian. What I have found points to MacBook Bridge/T2 Linux Driver, but my undersanding this is in the kernel from 5.7. Also found linux-mbp-arch but that is specific to arch, and wouldn't work on Debian yeah? Or could I run those patches against something to get a Debian compatible kernel?

It's the other way around: Linux has some extra support for these laptops. And of course the place where extra support is required is the input devices. Despite Microsoft kinda pushing the industry to standardize on HID over I2C, they themselves now do HID over… uh… a custom protocol that runs over UART of all things.

https://www.kernel.org/doc/html/latest/driver-api/surface_ag...

https://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/hid/hid.git/...

Well at least it is HID inside I guess.

Meanwhile Apple used a custom simple protocol over SPI for the Broadwell-Kaby Lake generations (and now Apple Silicon), but the few "T2" generations went back to USB… over some truly cursed custom T2 USB host controller https://github.com/MCMrARM/mbp2018-bridge-drv (WTF)

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Also many Surface devices used awful Marvell Wi-Fi :/ At least the "Laptop 3" generation switched to Intel on Intel models and Qualcomm (seems like ath10k) on AMD ones.