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Ask Slashdot: What's the Fastest Linux Distro for an Old Macbook 7,1?

Posted by EditorDavid on from the thinking-really-different dept.

Long-time Slashdot reader gr8gatzby writes: I have an old beautiful mint condition white Macbook 7,1 with a 2.4Ghz Core 2 Duo and 5GB RAM. Apple cut off the upgrade path of this model at 10.6.8, while a modern-day version of any browser requires at least 10.9 these days, and as a result my browsing is limited to Chrome version 49.0.2623.112.

So this leaves me with Linux. What is the fastest, most efficient and powerful distro for a Mac of this vintage?
It's been nearly eight years since its release, so leave your best thoughts in the comments. What's the best Linux distro for an old Macbook 7,1?

11 of 248 comments (clear)

  1. More the desktop environment than the distro. by serviscope_minor · · Score: 3, Informative

    I found arch worked well on very old machines, but even so the main thing is to use a lightweight desktop environment or not. I use FVWM which isn't to everyone's tastes, but I like it on machines of all sizes including fast ones.

    But you won't like unity on that machine I expect.

    Oh also, replace any spining disks with flash.

    --
    SJW n. One who posts facts.
  2. Re:LUBUNTU by hazardPPP · · Score: 4, Informative

    Lubuntu it is. I find that this distro runs just fine od 10+ year old PCs (once-upon-a-time Windows laptops), no reason why it shouldn't run just fine on an old Macbook.

  3. Your Macbook model can run El Capitan 10.11 by carlhaagen · · Score: 5, Informative

    I'm not sure why you think it's "capped" to 10.6 - that's just the version that was current at the release of your Macbook model. It will happily install and run El Capitan (10.11), and that's bound to be a more compatible and pleasant desktop experience than putting anything Linux on it.

  4. Re:Same issue by Carewolf · · Score: 3, Informative

    I have a similar issue with an '06-'08 iMac (I can't look now). AppStore won't let me install the latest High Sierra. It says my hardware is incompatible.

    I'm stuck on Lion.

    You can update the firmware manually, and then the newst versions will install and run just fine. It is entirely artificial.

  5. There are many... by wap3com · · Score: 3, Informative

    I use distrowatch.com see what is hot.

    MX-Linux [https://mxlinux.org/]

    Dedoimedo [dedimedo.com] ranked it #1 XFCE for 2017.

    Up to date with Firefox ESR, Thunderbird, LibreOffice
    1.2g ISO

    Requires CD/DVD [or system that boots USB]
    i486 or AMD and above
    512 MB Ram
    5GB free disk space
    UEFI or BIOS

  6. Slackware by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Slackware is generally the fastest Linux distro, since it is a 'cut the crap' kind of distro. It only has what is necessary. It feels orders of magnitude faster than Ubuntu for example.

  7. macOS High Sierra by DontBeAMoran · · Score: 4, Informative

    https://everymac.com/systems/a...

    Apple officially supports a maximum of 4 GB of RAM, but third-parties have determined that it actually supports 8 GB of RAM running Mac OS X 10.6 "Snow Leopard" and 16 GB of RAM running OS X 10.7.5 "Lion" or higher and the latest EFI update.

    Pre-Installed MacOS: X 10.6.3
    Maximum MacOS: Current

    So update EFI, upgrade RAM to 16GB, swap HDD for SSD and install the latest macOS.

    Problem solved.

    --
    #DeleteFacebook
  8. Re:Uh why not just run OS X 10.11? by mfnickster · · Score: 3, Informative

    Unfortunately it isnâ(TM)t possible to upgrade directly from 10.6.8 to 10.8+ without first installing 10.7

    Yep, it is – I upgraded directly from Snow Leopard to Mavericks. You just need an update to the App Store certificate.

    https://support.apple.com/en-ca/HT205702

    --
    "Slow down, Cowboy! It has been 3 years, 7 months and 26 days since you last successfully posted a comment."
  9. Windows 10 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Kinda funny how a Microsoft os would work and be supported on a Mac that Apple no longer supports.

  10. elementary OS by discowriter · · Score: 3, Informative

    I think you should look for a replacement, not the fastest distro. elementary OS is Linux and looks like macOS. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

  11. Try MacOS High Sierra by wayward_son · · Score: 3, Informative

    The MacBook 7,1 WILL run High Sierra. This is probably your best bet.

    https://everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook/specs/macbook-core-2-duo-2.4-white-13-polycarbonate-unibody-mid-2010-specs.html

    If you really want to run Linux, you've got enough power to run whatever you want. Kubuntu or KDE Neon would give you a nice balance of functionality and performance. I'm running Kubuntu on a MacBook 3,1 which has the garbage GMA x3100 video and it is running just fine.

    The big issue with the MacBook 7,1 is trying to get the proprietary nvidia drivers to work with EFI boot. Otherwise, you are stuck with nouveau, and nouveau sucks.