I want to move to Linux, but I need to be able to use the VPN service my work uses and I’m just not sure how to get it working on Linux. I should just dual boot.
Without prodding too much into what VPN you work uses
Most VPN solutions run on linux just fine, even Microsoft PPTP VPN solution works fine. I would probably check with your IT department what protocol they use and any connection caveats (like machine certificates used for authentication) and look into the different VPN solutions (some examples; WireGuard and OpenVPN are very well supported, IPSec (libreswan or strongswan are options here) depends on setup, PPTP/L2TP should work with most setups (I have to admin I havn’t touched those enough), vpnc works with Cisco base IPsec setups and openconnect works with most SSL VPN connection)
It’s Watchguard. Though looking at their site, it seems like there might be support that I wasn’t able to find last time I looked into this. Definitely want to dual boot at some point. I’ve got a Surface Book 3 though, and I know it needs special kernel stuff to get working properly, so I’d almost rather just wait until my boss retires and everyone’s out of a job to dive into Linux. Easier than finding spare time in my life. Living the dream
I have not any experience with WatchGuard, but it from some quick searching around it seems to not be far from the easiest to set up for linux. dual-booting is probably the easier solution.
I hope you find a solution to what sounds like not the best life situation, and may you have an otherwise have a nice Linux journey.
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Most problems people have with Linux, I think, come from trying to be Linux power users from the start by performing very advanced techniques beyond their time and patience: dual booting multiple operating systems (so they don’t have to buy Linux-dedicated hardware), using any graphics card (the latest and greatest GPUs are all closed source and developers who work on Linux do so because they despise closed source), using the least expensive hardware (which are typically closed source and buggy with anything except Windows), and emulating Windows apps so they don’t have to learn new workflows or abandon their favorite games (technically, Proton with Steam allows Windows games like FFXIV to be played, but it’s a neverending journey to get it working and keeping it working.
If you switch to Linux, accept that for a smooth experience you’ll have to pay more than you would for a Windows machine (e.g. System76, Framework) And if you want graphics card support for your emulated Windows games on Steam, you’re going to have to use the specific flavor of Linux the manufacturer supports.
That said, if you value free/libre open source software, then making the switch from Windows is totally worth it.
Can you elaborate on the incompatibility of the newest GPUs? It looks like Nvidia publishes a Linux driver for the Blackwell series and there are a number of AI applications (like supporting Triton and pysam-based methods) which seem harder to get working on Windows than on Linux.
I’m considering switching over but I hear mixed things about Nvidia support. Some people seem to say it’s a pain to get the drivers working and others seem to think that’s an issue that’s been resolved. Not sure what to think in terms of how difficult the switch would be.
I’m not sure about the specific AI apps you mention, but from my personal experience the “AMD works way better than Nvidia on Linux” mindset is no longer a thing.
When I upgraded to a new gpu a few years ago, I first got an AMD gpu because of that mindset that was all over the internet (I believed them), but for the life of me I couldn’t get games to run properly with it. A week later I traded it for an Nvidia card and it just works.
I do suffer from system wake from sleep issues that I think are the nvidia drivers fault, but atleast I can play games if I decide to.
Can I ask what distro you’re running? Some of the gaming-focused ones like Bazzite still seem to gather some comments about working better with AMD, though it seems like there are some workarounds. I am resolved to leave Microsoft behind completely at the W11 switch so I’m trying to get my bearings!
but from my personal experience the “AMD works way better than Nvidia on Linux” mindset is no longer a thing.
Oh my god it absolutely is, and until NVK becomes the standard everywhere it will most likely stay that way. That shit breaks so often on a laptop I gonna sell soon, on my families’ computers and apparently also in computers from people in my local hackerspace. Some distros just managed to work around those drivers’ problems really well, sometimes by including them from the start of creating their own well-working packages (like Arch’s nvidia-dkms).
I think this may be out of date now, dual booting is relatively simple to set up and there are a wealth of tutorials online for it, setting up a graphics card (nvidia) was a breeze, and for the wide majority of games in my library (I play both indie and AAA), I’ve had very few issues running native, and most that haven’t ran out of the box have guides posted on protondb.com, most are up and running in 5 mins.
Many Linux distros are not very user friendly and intuitive when it comes to normal users with two left hands when it comes to PCs. Lots of Linux power users need to get off of their high horse and realize this. If I had some issues, my parents definitely will.
You are right about trying to be power users. I switched to Linux recently and definitely struggled with my sudden reduction is understanding. I got everything I needed for gaming setup up in a few hours. Then I tried to set up some productivity workflows and slammed into a brick wall of my own ignorance. I definitely considered just going back to Windows.
It’s already really good to hear you got gaming set up so quickly. A lot of people struggle with that as well either because team green (Nvidia) is involved since their drivers are utter garbage, or due to trying Linux on an older machine that doesn’t support Vulkan (which is a necessity if you want Proton to just work).
The value of getting a perfectly supported machine from a Linux vendor like System76, Tuxedo, Slimbook, StarLabs, NovaCustom etc. can’t be understated. Even more so since you also buy their customer support with it. We must not forget that, even though Linux runs on basically anything, most consumer devices are first-and-foremost Windows machines.
It’s been so good. I sit at my desk and neglect my gaming PC and Steam Deck to play this thing. 2 weeks later I’m still in the honeymoon phase with it.
I’ve been going fucking wild with emulators lately.
I have Dolphin, Xenia, OpenGOAL, PCSX2 and RPCS3. I have Shadow the Hedgehog, Sonic Heroes, Sonic '06, all the Ratchet & Clank PS2 games, the Sly Cooper trilogy and Sly 4, all the Jak games, the first two InFamous games, the Tak trilogy, and even more.
I was wanting Sony (or someone) to port at least Sly and Jak to PC, so I got tired of waiting and just got emulators. Old games are super fun.
With InFamous, RPCS3 works damn near flawlessly (some games need some tweaking individually to smooth out some kinks, but it’s easy to do).
I ran into some issues late-game in the first one where if you attacked a certain enemy with your basic shock attack, it would totally freeze and crash the game, so you need to switch it to the ASMJIT recompiler. Which, if you do that, the game will run almost perfectly aside from minor audio and graphical bugs.
The second one has some framerate issues, but it’s entirely playable. I’m on the last mission of my good playthrough now.
Minecraft. You think that there’s no way to play Minecraft “wrong”, right up until you accidentally fall into the 4-block wide valley that I’ve cut through the entire map or walk into the liminal space that I’ve mined out just above bedrock. Fuck cutesy cottages and Minecraft in minecraft- let’s just build superstructures that disappear beyond the draw distance of the map. Fuck creative mode- let’s do it while we’re facing down mobs day and night. Fuck explosives- do that shit with a pick like a goddamn man. You haven’t really seen confused rage until your child discovers hundreds of unexplained and unexplainable brutalist towers extending into the distance like the gravestones of alien gods when they thought you were building a farm over the next hill.
Shit like this I have only seen in a Manga once, forgot the name, but basically bunch of robots that humanity made were let loose without humans(they died) and they kept building giant megastructures for no reason without stopping It’s just absolutely surreal and I just love it
There’s a great level of detail mod that can keep distant structures and terrain loaded in. I think it’s called Distant Horizons. That and a render performance improvement are the only mods that I play with, makes such a big difference.
I’ve finally figured out how to install frogcomposband in a docker container. It’s a fork of a game called Angband that’s played in a terminal window. Angband itself has a long history. Somewhere around 30 years if I remember correctly.
It’s setting is closer to lord of the rings but it has the insane complexity of a pen and paper, dungeons and dragons type game. A huge amount of races and classes to play and even the option to play an impressive amount of different monsters or enemies.
I think what I’m enjoying about it is that the graphics are just coloured numbers, letters and symbols. The playable character is just the @ symbol. It leaves room for the imagination to fill in the blanks which feels very calming.
When I was going through my Baldur’s Gate phase, I noticed my brain was in complete overdrive after playing a session. I think processing the crazy details in that game was too much for my brain.
Now when I shut off the game I’m not overwhelmed and I still get my role playing game fix. It’s nice.
Yea just set up a windows 11 pc for the first time and the experience was basically:
It forces you into making a Microsoft account or log in with one, then it told me mine was locked even though I was able to log in fine elsewhere. I had to use the alternate log in method to get in (I know you can make a local account but I already had one set up for this).
Then it tries to force you to “back up from your old pc” which this was an entirely different system so I’m not even sure why I would want that.
Then it tries to convince you to send them a bunch of telemetry while reminding you that you’ll still get ads if you don’t, they just won’t be targeted towards you.
Then it tries to push microsoft office on you.
Then it needs to do updates which took like 45 minutes.
Then you’re finally at the desktop where you get probably half a dozen othe pop ups between windows and the vendor.
Then it’s “usable”
By comparison Bazzite took like 20 minutes to get to a usable desktop and isn’t nagging me about ads at all. I have a laundry list of things still to figure out but so far way less annoying.
There is a workaround for installing win 11 with local account, it’s still horseshit
the fact that they think that just because they still show ads it’s ok in any way shape or form to collect any personal information is insane
don’t forget they are also trying to screen record 24/7 and then store it in the cloud (yes they store it “locally” in you appdata, that they then decided to sync with OneDrive)
Yea, I had a throwaway account already to use for the login so I didn’t bother trying it. They still managed to make it annoying even when I did it their way and agreed it is horseshit.
Agreed.
I DID forget about that. Thanks for reminding me I need to figure out how to opt out (assuming it’s even possible).
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Aktywne