If you’re waiting for official Linux support to arrive for the M1 Macs, then we have got a great news for you. According to the website Phoronix, Linux’s upcoming 5.13 cycle could bring preliminary support for the M1 Macs. The Linux 5.13 release is expected to be released in June.
According to the report there’s still some work to be done before Linux runs perfectly on Apple Silicone, however it is currently running in “good enough shape” for Linux 5.13 kernel to add support for it.
Work on adding M1 Chip support to Linux operating system began earlier this year with the release of several rounds of Linux kernel patches. These patches brought drivers that were needed for M1 devices such as the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air and 2020 Mac mini to boot up with Linux.
The Linux port for the M1 Chip gets support for basic functionality, as detailed in the report.
This initial Apple M1 Linux port gets the UART, interrupts, SMP, and DeviceTree bits in place for offering basic functionality. There is also a SimpleFB-based frame-buffer but getting working 3D/video acceleration will obviously be a daunting challenge.
This information comes from a pull request for Linux 5.13 kernel that was submitted on GitHub. You can view it here.
We will update you when further details about Linux port on M1 Chip are available to share.
