I have just pulled an old 2013 Mac out of storage and ran a couple of updates. It not compatible with anything beyond the last version of Catalina. It’s also incompatible with a lot of today’s software (including Tuta or Bitwarden desktop apps). Would it be possible for me to replace the Mac OS with a Linux distro (Fedora Workstation for example) or are there underlying hardware vulnerabilities that make this a bad idea regardless of the OS I am running?
You can easily run Linux on older intel Macs, but specific driver support may vary based on model.
As for hardware vulnerabilities, virtually all Intel CPUs from this time are affected by Spectre but no attacks have been observed yet in the real world. Furthermore, it does not have a secure element or TPM unlike future Macs that have a T2 security chip.
In short, I won’t recommend using your Mac if your threat model includes targeted attacks. However, there isn’t anything wrong with revitalizing it with a fresh install of Linux for casual use.
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@KevPham mentioned most of it.
In terms of security it is more vulnerable but not so much that you couldn’t use it.
Hardware support is basically non-existent though.
When I tried Linux on a Macbook from around the same year the keyboard and touchpad only worked with specific distros and kernels. I’d also lose them if the laptop ever suspended or shut off the screen.
Built in speakers didn’t work, but the headet jack did.
Camera didn’t work (this is a well known thing though)
If you dig around a bit you can find drivers or other fixes for some of these things. There’s a Mac camera driver on github for instance. But I basically just called it quits after trying a few distros.
If it’s a Mac Desktop I expect you’ll have slightly better luck.
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Hi, I seamlessly installed linux Zorin on a Macbook Air 2017. Only webcam not working.
I’ll echo this. I had an ancient Mac that couldn’t even run the latest browser. I installed Linux on it, and it breathed fresh air into an otherwise obsolete device.
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