FreeBSD and Qualcom Snapdragon - ?

[ezedzi]

Getting the Lenova Yoga 7X with the Snapdragon Elite - Aarm 64 architecture - would like to install FreeBSD as a dual boot - possible? Do not wish to do virtual, but a metal install using the same hard-drive. What version should I use - wish to have a KDE Wayland DT. Have Ubuntu on all my other PCs, but have no experience with FreeBSD - will it work?

 

[tingo]

Hard to say, but reports of working laptops with a different architecture than amd64 are almost non existent.
As you might now, it is much more than the processor that needs to fit: chipset, buses, drivers, I/O for peripherals (examples: touchpad, screen, special keys, USB controllers, etc). And the way it all fits together tends to vary on noen-amd64 architectures.

 

[richardtoohey2]

OpenBSD have made progress so that might help any FreeBSD development:

OpenBSD added initial support for Qualcomm Snapdragon Elite X after 1 day

I think anything this new is very likely to have issues and trying to dual boot - probably possible but not likely to be fun.

 

[ezedzi]

This is a positive start - I'll see about collecting an image and see if it reflects - when my laptop gets here in a few days.

 

[ezedzi]

Will the install recognize the other operating system and allow installing besides it as a dual-boot - as Ubunto would do installing on the partition after windows - splitting HD 50/50 with adjustability to either before finalizing and installing?

 

[wb7odyfred]

I am interested in working with you oñ this issue. I do have experience building Freebsd kernel for Raspberry Pi 4B hardware.

I do not have Snap Dragon x Elite hardware. Can you pick a Linux O/S that supports a Virtual Machine, on that has good support from a Linux porting Company.

I will make a telegram group specific to Snapdragon at ARM Open-Source telegram channel.

https://t.me/+ST6N61pnu3Di8zgk Arm Open-Source

Welcome to chat there about ARM and ARM64 and share software experiences.

It is true that OpenBSD supports Snapdragon X Elite.

https://github.com/edk2-porting/linux-snapdragon
Get this running first.

https://x.com/openbsdjournal/status/1803744583932625325?lang=en Snapdragon X-Elite running Snapdragon

Fred

 

[iclis]

Just testing it myself.
Unfortunately 15-CURRENT snapshots don't boot at all. Meanwhile managed to install OpenBSD. No keyboard, no network card works as for first boot.

EDIT: in case anyone interested to dig more: https://bsd-hardware.info/?probe=cb9978d493

 

[Hiroo Ono]

Qualcomm's firmware requires efi application tobe 4kb aligned. I once tried with Yoga C630 which has Snapdragon 850. Now, FreeBSD's boot loader is 4kb aligned and runs on Yoga C630, but the kernel does not seem to be so, and does not boot. About three years ago, I compared FreeBSD's boot sequence with that of OpenBSD, but could not make FreeBSD's kernel to boot. It may be the same with Snapdragon X Elite.