Turning my Framework laptop computer right into a tiny desktop was enjoyable. Now it wants a job. – Ars Technica

Many business pundits have been skeptical when the brand new laptop computer firm Framework introduced a repair-friendly, upgrade-ready laptop computer in 2021. May you actually swap components between laptops—moderately skinny and light-weight laptops—yr over yr? Would that even work as a enterprise mannequin?

Framework launched the primary version of its machine, and we discovered that it lived as much as its guarantees. The corporate adopted by means of with a second-generation laptop computer, and we reviewed the third iteration as “a field of components” that upgraded the earlier model. The improve experiment has been successful. All that is left are, properly, the components left behind.

It is 2023, and those that have Framework’s first technology of laptops, containing Intel’s Eleventh-generation Core processor) could be itching to improve, particularly with an AMD mannequin across the nook. Or possibly, like me, they discover that system’s middling battery life and tricky-to-tame sleep draining (since improved, however not completely fastened) make for a laptop computer that does not really feel all that transportable. Or they’re simply prepared for one thing new.

What are you able to do with these previous inside organs? You may all the time listing them on the market. Or, like me, you can purchase a custom-printed Cooler Grasp case (or 3D-print your personal), switch your laptop computer’s mainboard, reminiscence, and storage over, and create a desktop that simply suits on high of your precise desk. I am unable to advocate it sufficient as a small weekend challenge, as a method to get extra worth out of your buy, and as a thought experiment in what sort of job you can provide to a skinny little slab of Framework.

Gathering your components and instruments

It was straightforward to overlook the announcement earlier this yr that Framework would collaborate with Cooler Grasp to design and promote a $40 mainboard case. It is custom-built to the Framework board’s persistent form, so it really works for no matter model of the Framework 13 laptop computer you might have. It has smoked translucent plastic on the entrance and inoffensive mild grey/beige on the again, and it has all of the slots mandatory for fan consumption and exhaust, the Framework’s USB-C growth modules, and VESA mounts or a tiny rubberized stand. And there is a little energy button.

I had an Eleventh-gen i7 Framework, plus a superb variety of growth ports. One difficulty I knew I would see was the Intel AX200-series card inside, which I’ve seen some Linux-based methods (together with ChromeOS) complain about. So I added Framework’s personal Ethernet growth card to my order. This was removed from mandatory, as I might have used any Ethernet-to-USB-C converter and plugged it into the USB-C receiver for an growth card. However I most well-liked the clear plastic to the dongle, so I added it to my order.

There’s room within the case to deliver over your audio board (i.e., headphone jack) and a Wi-Fi/Bluetooth card, although you will have to purchase your personal SMA antenna cable setup. If you recognize you are not going to make use of the Framework chassis once more and really need Wi-Fi inside your new slab, you can most likely pluck the antennae from contained in the case, hinge, and monitor bezel, however there is not any restore information for that but.

Emptying out a laptop computer

There is not any heroic, hacky story available in pulling the mainboard out of a Framework laptop computer, as a result of it is designed to be completed by anyone. There’s an official information, primarily written by the corporate’s CEO, displaying the steps wanted to get the system open utilizing only a Phillips and T5 Torx driver (included with the system) and your arms.

The trickiest half is getting the tiny antenna cables out of the best way. In any other case, you pull just a few connectors and flip just a few flex cable latches, and also you’re ultimately left with a separated mind and physique.

You may maintain the storage and reminiscence in your mainboard as-is, nevertheless it’s a superb time to improve when you’re excited about it. I made a decision to stay with the 500GB WD_Black SN750 NVME drive and 16GB of Essential RAM I had inside. Paired with the Eleventh-Gen i7-1165G7 at 2.8 GHz on 8 cores, I had loads of energy for this very secondary pc. Afterward, after just a few weeks’ use, I went again into my laptop computer and introduced over the headphone jack. There’s something to be stated for having an analog fallback, and I missed it.

Utilizing the Framework “slabtop” (with Linux)

Framework modules match two on all sides in press-to-release slots, similar to the laptop computer. That is a boon for cable administration, permitting you to place whichever ports you need dealing with both approach. In the event you want extra USB-C ports, you may come out a module and use its connecting port, supplied your cable suits.

For my functions, I wanted a USB-C port for devoted energy (the default charger is 60 W), one other USB-C for my monitor connection (with my monitor appearing as a USB hub for peripherals), Ethernet by means of the growth card, after which a USB-A, simply because.

My Framework initially ran Home windows, however I wished to begin contemporary on this new type issue. I attempted out ChromeOS Flex and it labored fantastic, not blocked by an incompatible Intel Wi-Fi card. However I wished to run just a few apps, together with Steam, that felt cramped in ChromeOS, so I moved on to Linux.

Linux on a Framework is an fascinating proposition. Framework has gone out of its approach lately to encourage every kind of Linux distros and tinkering on their methods. The corporate affords its DIY Version laptop computer with no OS, and it chooses elements based mostly partially on not having to generate new kernel drivers. Framework makes firmware updates obtainable to Linux customers concurrently Home windows and actively participates in neighborhood discussion board posts about Linux points.

Just lately, although, the rising however nonetheless early days firm has restricted its efforts to a couple “formally supported” (Ubuntu, Fedora) and “neighborhood supported” (Manjaro, Linux Mint) distros. After reviewing the Pangolin laptop computer, I grew to become a fan of System76’s Pop!_OS. Framework cannot carry on high of Pop!_OS’s “rising incompatibility points” at even a neighborhood assist stage. So my assist will largely come from deep searches of some Framework discussion board threads.

Does this matter? Not likely. Once you strip away a display screen, audio system, microphone, Wi-Fi, fingerprint scanner, webcam, keyboard, trackpad, and any actual want for fine-tuned battery and energy administration, it isn’t too laborious to make any comparatively fashionable Linux distro work. I loaded up a USB stick, put in Pop!_OS on the storage, and that was it. I have been working from my Framework “slabtop” (as I refuse to cease calling it) on and off for weeks, and I’ve made zero modifications to any system recordsdata.

Essentially the most shocking factor I’ve observed is how quiet an Eleventh-gen, i7-based Framework system will be when it isn’t a laptop computer. Working with Firefox, Slack, a messaging app, and some different apps open, I hardly hear the fan besides when encountering a type of terrible ad-strewn web sites that tax us all. I do not know if it is the brand new area and air flow, the dearth of an enormous and lively battery close by, or a determined lack of Home windows, nevertheless it appears like a free improve.

Then there are the opposite perks. The Framework laptop computer’s mainboard has little aspect LEDs that blink 22 instances on boot-up! And you may see each bizarre, indecipherable colour by means of the Cooler Grasp case. It is a little bit celebration of {hardware} interoperability each time I boot up. And there is the minimal measurement and weight of this factor. It is the one desktop pc I’ve ever used that I can tuck away in a drawer. My monitor would not permit me to mount the slabtop onto the again of it, utilizing the two-headed bolts that include the case, nevertheless it’s an concept for the longer term.

What else might I do with this slab?

Proper now, my Framework slab is sort of a midrange motorbike, filling in every time I do not want the pickup truck (gaming PC tower) or sedan (M2 MacBook Air), and it is doing fantastic at that job. However I tinkered with just a few concepts for it that did not fairly pan out, for numerous causes:

• Devoted Plex server (I truly do not have that a lot media to dish out)
• TrueNAS backup server (TrueNAS and its adherents completely detest the usage of exterior USB drives in swimming pools)
• House Assistant (Too highly effective; I have already got a Raspberry Pi 4 for the job)
• Docker server with containers for House Assistant, Plex, Wireguard VPN, streaming music server, and many others. (I am not adequate with Docker… but?)

I’ve but to even enterprise into some farther-out concepts, like creating an overpowered DIY set-top streaming field (what distant would you even use?) or the like. So I put it to our readers: What would you do when you had a 2-year-old laptop computer core, with hot-swap ports, inside a case you can simply tuck away someplace?