Arch Linux bootc laptop image

This repository defines a bootc-based Arch Linux image for the ASUS Vivobook X1404ZA currently running this checkout.

The laptop variant is separate from arch-bootc-hetzner because the service profile is different:

• Laptop: GNOME/GDM, i3 alternate session, NetworkManager/iwd, Bluetooth, TLP, DisplayLink/EVDI, Docker, PipeWire, desktop apps, MT7902 Wi-Fi workaround.
• Hetzner: networkd, cloud firewall defaults, serial console, qemu guest agent, k3s, and server boot assumptions.

Build

cp .env.example .env
# Edit GHCR_USERNAME/GHCR_TOKEN if pushing to GHCR.
./scripts/build-laptop.sh

The first BOOTC_IMAGE_REFS entry is pushed as :latest. The host running the build needs podman, sudo, curl, and jq.

For local validation without a registry push:

./scripts/build-laptop.sh --local

Local mode uses rootless podman storage under ~/.local/share/containers so it does not depend on the rootful /var/lib/containers store.

The image keeps /opt image-managed rather than symlinked to /var/opt because several Arch desktop/AUR packages install package-owned payloads there.

VM disk image

./scripts/generate-laptop-disk.sh

This creates bootable-laptop.img for UEFI/QEMU validation.

Local laptop conversion

Run the preflight first:

./scripts/validate-laptop-preflight.sh

The install script is intentionally narrow. It expects this partition layout:

• Windows/OEM: /dev/nvme0n1p1 through /dev/nvme0n1p5
• Linux ESP: /dev/nvme0n1p6 (relocated from /boot to /boot/efi by the installer)
• Linux root: /dev/nvme0n1p7

Then convert the existing Arch root:

sudo ./scripts/install-laptop-existing-root.sh \
  ghcr.io/oci-native/archlinux-laptop@sha256:993bff85124206eca633b05da640a7426efc30db903e435f374fd9951f3d484b

The script backs up /boot, relocates the FAT ESP to /boot/efi so /boot resolves to the ext4 root filesystem required by bootc, runs bootc install to-existing-root --bootloader none, installs and syncs systemd-boot explicitly, and pins the ESP UUID with a systemd.mount-extra kernel argument. It also rewrites the Linux ESP fstab entry from /boot to /boot/efi; bootc otherwise remounts the FAT ESP over /boot during deployment. The ESP is mounted with umask=0077. The explicit sync avoids a bootupd dependency, which bootc otherwise requires for ostree-based bootloader installation. It requires at least 30 GiB free for the root-owned container image pull.

The public image contains no password hash. On the first boot, tty1 prompts for a new local password for bupdlap; GDM starts only after password setup succeeds. If bootc preserved an already-unlocked local password, this step is marked complete automatically.

Wi-Fi

The current laptop has a MediaTek MT7902 device (14c3:7902) bound to the in-kernel mt7921e driver. The image bakes the current working workaround:

options mt7921e disable_aspm=1

Experimental DKMS/ndiswrapper fallback notes are included in the image under /usr/share/archlinux-laptop/mt7902-fallback.md, but the default boot path does not depend on them.