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Testing the 2-in-1 Framework 12 Laptop
Framework supports Linux, but it does not sell systems with it pre-installed, so DIY is the best choice unless one needs Windows. Its computers should work well with most Linux distributions, but the company has a list of distributions that are either officially supported or community supported. Official support means that Framework coordinates with the distribution, produces install guides for recent releases, and provides support-ticket assistance. Community support means that Framework publishes install guides provided by the distributions, and offers ""best efforts assistance"" through its community forums. If a user opens a ticket for a problem with Framework hardware with a community-supported distribution, they will likely be asked to test or reproduce the problem with an officially supported distribution.
Framework's Linux compatibility guide lists three distributions as officially supported for the 12-inch model: Bazzite, Fedora Linux 42, and Ubuntu 25.04. The company also lists four distributions as "community supported": Arch Linux, Bluefin, Linux Mint, and NixOS 25.05. It is interesting that three of the seven are, essentially, the same distribution—Bazzite and Bluefin are both maintained by the Universal Blue project, using Fedora packages as the base for each distribution. LWN covered Bluefin in December 2023.