Dell Latitude E6400
The Dell Latitude E6400 is an alternative to the X200/T400 laptop, because it is is possible to install Canoeboot on it. Unlike X200/T400 etc, the Dell Latitude E6400 can be flashed from software, from vendor BIOS to Canoeboot. Of course it is possible to install Trisquel GNU/Linux on it, too.
Hardware
The Dell Latitude E6400 has the same hardware gen as X200/T400 (GM45), so it's reasonably fast for many types of users. The Latitude E6400 has a similar screen/keyboard quality like the X200/T400 and also comes with a track point. It is more popular than ThinkPads, so the chances are good to get one.
- There are variants with Nvidia or Intel graphics. If you plan to flash the BIOS, it is a good advice to choose the variant with Intel graphics, due to issues with the Nvidia GPU on E6400!
- The WLAN adapter will not work with free software. Get a better replacement if you want to use one!
Read the hardware info page from the Canoeboot project here: https://canoeboot.org/docs/hardware/e6400.html
Flashing the BIOS for the E6400
The board can boot entirely free software in the flash. The hardware is similar to that of ThinkPad X200, T400 etc where no-ME setup is possible.
Read the installation page about flashing here: https://canoeboot.org/docs/install/latitude.html#latitude-e6400
Note: Software flashing is possible! (no disassembly needed)
Troubleshooting
Long boot time of most linux-libre kernels
Symptoms
- The delay of boot time is about 1 minute
- The corresponding output is clocksource: long readout interval
Workaround
Setting the boot parameter tsc=hpet
- open the file /etc/default/grub as root
# nano /etc/default/grub
- add the boot parameter tsc=hpet to GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT
- save changes and quit
- update grub
# update-grub
