Linux PC boost: 27 new Lenovo ThinkStation and ThinkPad devices come preloaded with Ubuntu LTS

Linux PC boost: 27 new Lenovo ThinkStation and ThinkPad devices come preloaded with Ubuntu LTS

Ubuntu-loaded ThinkPad and ThinkStation devices will be available to purchase directly from Lenovo.

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Lenovo’s P920 ThinkStation is one of several Lenovo devices that will be bundled with Ubuntu 20.04 LTS

Image: Lenovo

Lenovo has expanded its Linux certification program to include 27 additional ThinkPad and ThinkStation series PCs preinstalled with Canonical’s Ubuntu LTS operating system.  

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The device range includes 13 ThinkStation and ThinkPad P Series workstations, as well as 14 ThinkPad T, X, X1 and L Series laptops. Previously only accessible to enterprises via a customized bid, members of the public will soon be able to buy Ubuntu devices directly from Lenovo’s website.

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Most will come preinstalled with Ubuntu LTS 20.04, with the exception of the L Series, which will ship with version 18.04. Ten-year security patching will be offered by Lenovo. 

Availability begins this month and will continue rolling out in phases over the course of next year.  

Lenovo’s certification of Ubuntu devices follows the manufacturer’s announcement in June that it was broadening its support for desktop Linux, including full certification for both the Ubuntu LTS and Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) distributions.

At the time, Lenovo said that full end-to-end support will be offered for the distros, including security patches and updates, firmware and bios optimizations, web support and configuration guidance. Lenovo will also upstream device drivers directly to the Linux kernel.

The company has seen demand for Linux creep up in recent years, with previous figures from Lenovo suggesting that 7.2 million of the 250 million computers sold each year are running some form of the Linux operating system.

SEE: ‘The world is really changing’: Why Linux on desktop is taking a sudden leap forward (TechRepublic)

The computer maker also released its first ThinkPad preinstalled with the Fedora 32 Workstation distribution in early September, as part of a partnership with the Fedora Project. Fedora 32 Workstation is available as a customizable option for the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 8, with the ThinkPad P1 Gen2 and ThinkPad P53 also set to receive the Fedora treatment later down the line.

Igor Bergman, vice president of PCSD software and cloud at Lenovo, said its decision to begin offering full certification for Linux devices was “a step in the right direction” for supporting customers who choose open-source platforms as their primary operating system.

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“Lenovo’s expansion of Ubuntu certified devices shows great commitment to open source and the Linux community,” said Dean Henrichsmeyer, VP of engineering at Canonical.

“With data scientists and developers increasingly needing Linux for emerging workloads, this collaboration enables enterprises to equip their employees with the assurance of long-term stability, added security and simplified IT management.” 

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