I have tried to learn Linux for ages, and have experimented with installing Arch and Ubuntu.

There’s your problem. Try Linux Mint.

Is it an unrealistic goal to want to eventually run a computer with coreboot and a more cybersecurity heavy emphasis? I’m still a noob at this and any advice would be appreciated!

Don’t try to bite off more than you can chew. Start small and easy, with a beginner Linux distro, and once you’ve become really comfortable with that, you can try to move onto something less user friendly.

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Don’t start with the most complicated distro and then fail.

Is it an unrealistic goal to want to eventually run a computer with coreboot and a more cybersecurity heavy emphasis?

No, its not unrealistic. However, what I think is unfair to yourself is to attempt this before knowing what you are doing. Think of it like learning to draw. You have good taste, and you see art you like, and want to do it too. Yet your personal skill level, you finger dexterity, isn’t yet there to be able to make the art you can visualize in your mind.

If a task is too hard, or to complex, then there must exist a smaller, easier task to accomplish first. Coreboot specifically is an extremely low hardware/firmware level system, but you don’t feel confidant in installing a working desktop OS. You have aspirations for cyber security, as well. Find the smaller, and easier task first. Get Debian/Ubuntu working in a VM. Then look at what software is installed, and read about it. If you want to eventually pursue security projects, setup a LAMP stack. If that too hard, just get the A in LAMP. If that’s too hard, find out why. What do you know, what do you not know? It’s machines all the way down, and its an extremely small chance you are the first person with a problem. Don’t worry about “correctness” and focus on the learning experience.

It is 100% achievable, but it is a lot of time. I started with it because I wanted to run a game server for myself. It’s a couple of decades later, and I still have a massive amount to learn.

Mint is great. I recently switched fully to Linux and mint feels comfortable

Arch is a bad distro for newbies. Go find an ISO for Kubuntu and install that. The install wizard is idiot-proof. I use KDE-based distros like Kubuntu even though I’m a fairly advanced user so don’t view it as some kind of failure. There’s no virtue in using more complicated stuff. Get comfortable with the easier distros first.

You definitely don’t need Coreboot. Try Linux Mint to start with, and just use your computer as you normally would. Getting comfortable with how Linux does things is something you need to learn before taking the next steps. No one became a Linux guru by reading the “Linux manual” front to back. I picked up almost all of my Linux knowledge on-the-fly because I broke something or because I wanted to do something.

Also, if all you want is better cybersecurity, you’ll make a huge leap just by picking any Linux distro. Save Coreboot, full disk encryption, etc for at least a few months down the road when you’re picking a new distro and have a better idea of what you want to do differently.

i wouldn’t say that it’s unrealistic.

The “Problem” is however, that there are a gazillion different approaches to everything. And everyone will tell you their method and maybe even badmouth other peoples methods… That way you don’t really know what to do anymore.

Imho, don’t install them in a VM. Get yourself a new cheap SSD. Unplug the one with windows on it and just install a well-known Linux distro that has a big open community on your PC.

If you want something Arch-based: I’d highly recommend you Garuda-Linux. Don’t get scared off by it’s … flashy default looks. This can be changed very easily. But they have one of the most welcomming and helpful communities i have ever witnessed. They aren’t really here or on reddit, but rather have their own forum.

This thing will give you everything you need to start. And if something breaks, it does automatic snapshots of your system everytime you install a new package. So if something breaks, you turn off…turn on…and in the boot menu you’ll find your snapshots. Pick the last working one. and that’s it. Good to go again.

But these are just my 2 cents…

Start with Ubuntu, eventually switch to Debian, then give Arch a shot.

Even though Arch is very well documented, it’s not really accessible to newcomers. The documentation assumes that you know the basics, so if you don’t, you’re screwed. Mint, Pop! and Debian, to some extent, are much more accessible.

You’re on the right track! That feeling of understanding less is normal - and good news is that it isn’t true. You understand more than you did before - but now you also know of some other things you don’t know about yet. This is good and exciting! I wish I were in your shoes so I could experience this for the first time again.

I would recommend Fedora Silverblue 38. It is an immutable OS, meaning that it is impossible to break it to the point where it doesn’t work. Since the root file system is read only, like a mobile OS, you would be hard pressed to actually break it. Don’t worry though, most graphical applications are available as flatpaks on Flathub. Flathub is integrated with the app store in Fedora 38, no need to use the terminal. For terminal applications you want to use there are toolboxes, which are little mini fedora containers that have access to your home directory and some other integrations. Also Fedora Silverblue is easy to install and works with most hardware.

Bog standard arch is absolutely not what I’d recommend to a new user, maybe endeavor if they’re really asking for it, but you really should have some idea what you’re doing before using arch. Try Linux Mint or Pop OS. I’m surprised you had an issue with Ubuntu, though I haven’t used it since like 16.04 so maybe it just is a pain now.

One word: Mint

It’s pretty streamlined, more reliable than some newer trendy Ubuntu spin offs, and still powered at it’s core by the same old kernal that even the “advanced” distros use.

I applaud you for trying Arch, and if you can figure it out while learning Linux in general that’s a great achievement, but it’s overly complicated and I personally wouldn’t reccemend it to anyone starting out (or even a most experienced users unless they had a particular need for it’s features).

If you continuously get issues across all distros in VMs a live environment might also be worth checking out (live being booted off external media without an install).

Ultimately, though if Linux does mess with your workflow, then use what works best for you. Sure I like Linux, but if it breaks what you need and Windows or Mac doesn’t then use what works best for you. But, there’s a saying “the more the island of my knowledge grows the greater the shore of my ignorance”. The more you learn the more that you realized how little you know. It’s always the case for anybody who’s either not an extreme expert or a narcissistic, but it’s also a great motivator to keep learning.

Don’t use regular Arch if you’re struggling. There are some arch-based distros that are more user friendly, though. Like EndeavourOS or ArchMan. Manjaro can be good too but there are legitimate problems with how the project is run.

I was having graphics driver problems in Ubuntu-based distros until I tried Linux Mint.

If you get crashes right before or after login, it’s often a (Nvidia) graphics issue. To get around this, you could use nomodeset in the Grub menu to get a successful first boot where you can then install the proprietary drivers.

Look at sections 4 and especially 5 on this page
Also, here is that info in a tutorial format

Also, you may want to set the Desktop Environment to Xorg or X11 (same thing) if Wayland is causing you problems. It’s older, but in some cases more efficient and less experimental. Check out the section: Switching desktop environments using a graphical user interface. It should look similar to the pictures. And notice that the “gear” icon may not appear until you select a user.

If your problem is different than this, open a support ticket in the discord or forums of the distro you’re using. Linux Mint has a great system for this on Discord.

If I were you I would start by using standard Ubuntu desktop. In my experience it tends to be the most reliable, easy to install, least technical and does alot of stuff behind the scenes that others don’t. A simple thing like plugging in a printer works very well in Ubuntu but is a nightmare on opensuse.

If you still run into issues then start to troubleshoot, especially if you are installing on bare metal and not a VM. Often the most common issues are WiFi drivers and graphics drivers. This is because these companies often don’t make their code available so other Devs have to reverse engineer their own code and it’s not included in the kernel. It has you need installed after installation. If your pc has an ethernet port or ethernet adapter I HIGHLY recommend using that when installing.

In Ubuntu open the search page and type “drivers” and it will show you an option to install additional drivers. Click that and it should detect what hardware you have and give you the choice to tick a box and install those drivers. Your must be connected to the internet via ethernet for this to work. After successful installation, reboot and the WiFi/graphics card should work.

If you have issues Google it an Ubuntu normally has TONS of answers.