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Advice for migrating from Windows 11 to Linux

jak_2456

jak_2456

Joined
Jul 30, 2024
Messages
259 (2.04/day)
Location
Mitten State, USA
System Specs
System Name Sim Racing PC/Dell XPS 15 7590
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5800x/Intel Core i7-9750h
Motherboard ASUS TUF B450-Plus II/Dell Laptop MB
Cooling Arctic Freezer A35 CO/laptop cooling
Memory 2*8 GB G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4-3200/2*8 GB Crucial DDR4-2666 SO-DIMM
Video Card(s) XFX SWFT309 RX 6700 XT/Laptop GTX 1650
Storage 1 TB Crucial 3400 PCIe Gen 4 SSD/Ediloca EN605 512 GB PCIe Gen 3 SSD
Display(s) 77" LG OLED TV (4K@120Hz)/15" Dell integrated panel (1080p@60Hz) and 30" Dell U3011 (1600p@60 Hz)
Case Cougar MX330-G Air / XPS 15 7590 chassis
Audio Device(s) Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro via Yamaha HT receiver/Integrated speakers or Creative Pebble Plus
Power Supply EVGA 600 BA / Dell 130W laptop brick
Mouse Logitech K400+ / Cherry MW 4500
Keyboard Logitech K400+ / Drop ENTR or E-YOOSO Z-686 or integrated keyboard
VR HMD Meta Quest 2
Software Windows 11 Home/Windows 11 Pro (meaning to try Linux)
Hey everyone! I've been considering migrating my Dell XPS 15 7590 from Windows 11 to Linux (probably Mint but I'll look around to see if anything else looks appealing to me). What are some things I should consider while doing this? I have some decent experience with Linux in general since I've installed it on numerous devices in the past and I have two devices running it already. However, I have never migrated one of my main use devices to Linux before, so I was wondering what to expect.

What I use the laptop for:
  • Web browsing
  • 3D modeling and slicing (using FreeCAD and Creality Print)
  • Gaming (although the games I want to play are verified to work under Linux
Some things I'm unsure about:
  • NVIDIA drivers (my laptop has a GTX 1650)
  • Docking station compatibility (I have a Dell WD15)
  • Battery usage vs. Windows
  • USB monitor support (I have a ViewSonic VA1655 portable monitor)
 
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yfn_ratchet

yfn_ratchet

Joined
Jul 31, 2024
Messages
160 (1.26/day)
System Specs
Processor AMD Ryzen 7 5700X
Motherboard ASUS ROG Strix B550-F Gaming Wifi II
Cooling Noctua NH-U12S Redux
Memory 4x8G Teamgroup Vulcan Z DDR4; 3600MHz @ CL18
Video Card(s) MSI Ventus 2X GeForce RTX 3060 12GB
Storage WD_Black SN770, Leven JPS600, Toshiba DT01ACA
Display(s) Samsung ViewFinity S6
Case Fractal Design Pop Air TG
Power Supply Corsair CX750M
Mouse Corsair Harpoon RGB
Keyboard Keychron C2 Pro
VR HMD Valve Index
I can at least speak for Mint, as I daily the Cinnamon edition for my rig and haven't really looked back (though I do have a spare install of Win10 for anything that just doesn't work).
  • Mint's Driver Manager offers multiple versions of Nvidia drivers, the latest being version 550.120. Old drivers, but they work just fine. There's also the Nouveau drivers from Xorg, which are experimental but should work for anything you do on the desktop.
  • Docking compatibility is not something I've looked into specifically, but it looks to be a standard USB/Thunderbolt implementation. Should work OOTB, but specific fancy features might not be available (if applicable).
  • Battery usage is WAY better. Mostly because the CPU stays in lower power states most of the time. There's also power management tools for laptops, I use one with a Cinnamon applet so I can switch between Power Saving, Optimus, and Max Performance presets.
  • Your USB monitor uses DP Alt-Mode for its connection, so no worries! Should work fine.
There's also forums for various popular distros that would have all the answers for specific problems that may crop up. Linux usually needs a fair good deal of tweaking to get it to behave exactly the way you want, but it's not as hard as it seems! You'll need to get used to typing 'man [command]' or '[command] --help' a lot, though.
 
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