Linux on M1 Mac?

[nmPicard]

Hey all! I've been looking into using a Linux build on my laptop, but I don't want to pay for Parallels. Is there a way I can dual boot (idk if that's the right term) both MacOS and Linux on the same machine, or am I delusional? Many thanks for your assistance!

[Kilrah]

No need to buy Parallels for a VM, VmWare Fusion / UTM are free.

 

Dual boot... no unless you're really adventurous (Asahi Linux)

[Eigenvektor]

There's also VirtualBox, free as well

[Alexeygridnev1993]

I tested installing Asahi Linux on M2 Mac Mini, that worked fine, and M1 macs should be supported even better. The install script for Asahi Linux (yes, it's a script you run from macos, not a traditional installer on a USB drive), will guide you through the process and allow you to specify how much of the disk space you want to allocate to Linux. Then you can dual-boot.

 

Keep in mind that, sadly, the main developer of Asahi Linux recently quit the project with a big scandal so don't expect a lot of further development.

 

If you want to make your life easier though, set up a VM using UTM, super straightforward.

[Idolize]

How difficult is it to remove Asahi Linux if you want to try it out?

[Alexeygridnev1993]

1 hour ago, Idolize said:

How difficult is it to remove Asahi Linux if you want to try it out?

I used an "asahi linux wipe script" and it went fine for me but developers themselves do not recommend to use it as it may be dangerous so they suggest a manual way to do it. Some details here (together with the link to the script):

 

https://leo3418.github.io/asahi-wiki-build/partitioning-cheatsheet/