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Ubuntu 16.04 on ThinkPad T470s

This is a document describing how to install Ubuntu 16.04 LTS on ThinkPad T470s.

My Hardware

  • CPU: Intel Core i7-7600U (2.80GHz, 4MB cache)
  • Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 620
  • Display: 14” WQHD (2560 X 1440) IPS Non-Touch Anti-Glare
  • Memory: 24GB DDR4 2133 MHz (8GB Onboard + 16GB)
  • SSD: PCIe-NVMe 256G OPAL 2.0
  • Wireless: Intel Dual Band Wireless AC (2x2) 8265 Bluetooth 4.1
  • Fingerprint Reader
  • No Smartcard Reader

Certification

Canonical says the pre-installed version of Ubuntu 16.04 works on T470s.

Kernel issues

I recommend using Ubuntu 16.04.3 or later to avoid most of the following issues.

If you try using 16.04.1 or earlier, you should use the following command to install the HWE kernel after installation (see this document for more details):

sudo apt-get install --install-recommends linux-generic-hwe-16.04 xserver-xorg-hwe-16.04

下記の問題が起きる可能性があるので、基本的には公式の 16.04.3 を使ったほうがよい。Ubuntu Japanese Team が提供する日本語 Remix リリースは無印の 16.04 であることに注意。特にイーサネットが使えない問題が面倒だが、このページを参考に4.4 より新しいバージョンのカーネルを USB メモリなどで用意しておくことでも対処できる。

Wifi and Eithernet problem

Ubuntu 16.04 with Linux kernel 4.4 can't recognize wifi and ethernet device on T470s. We can manually install a more recent kernel (such as 4.8) after installation (via USB drive) to solve the issue.

sudo dpkg -i linux-headers-4.8*.deb linux-image-4.8*.deb

NVMe support

The Linux kernel earlier than 4.11 can't handle power saving of NVMe devices properly. Andy Lutomirski's patch to solve the issue is mereged in 4.10.0-14.16 in Ubuntu and available in the latest HWE Stack for 16.04.

Bluetooth

It is also resolved in the latest HWE kernel.

Fan controll

https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Lenovo_ThinkPad_X1_Carbon_(Gen_5)#Bug:_Fans_blowing_at_max_speed_after_resuming

thinkfan can mitigate the problem.

Issues during installation

Disable Secure Boot

Install third-party software for graphics and Wi-Fi hardware, Flash, MP3 and other media

Summary: The following message displayed at startup is unavoidable if you want to use third-party driver, such as NVIDIA graphics driver and VirtualBox driver, and NOT a major issue in most cases.

Booting in insecure mode

Can't unlock LUKS encrypted drive

Encrypt the new Ubuntu installation for security

Summary: Configure the kernel parameter to change from splash to nosplash when starting the kernel.

Battery Life

TODO

Add a custom screen resolution

touch $HOME/.xprofile
chmod +x $HOME/.xprofile

Example:

#!/bin/sh

xrandr --newmode "1440x900_60.00"  106.50  1440 1528 1672 1904  900 903 909 934 -hsync +vsync
xrandr --addmode VGA1 1440x900_60.00
xrandr --output VGA1 --mode 1440x900_60.00

Thunderbolt 3 Dock

BIOS setting

If ThinkPad doesn't recognize your mouse and keyboard connected to the dock when reconnect the Thunderbolt 3 cable, changing Security Level of the Thunderbolt 3 setting to No Security would help.

Suspending

Unplug USB-C cable before suspending ThinkPad is recommended because it, unfortunatelly, sometimes crash in resuming.

Ethernet on the dock

4.10 kernel doesn't support ethernet on the dock. You must use 4.13 instead.

@fullmetalchem15t
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Thanks for the help. I'm trying to figure out how to extend my battery life. Do you think you will have details on that anytime soon?

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