Fedora on Dell XPS 9300: A Personal Setup Guide

The Dell XPS series represents one of those rare occasions where the manufacturer actively supports Linux. And as luck would have it, the XPS 9300 is my laptop of choice. This is a concise note I’ve penned down for myself, on how to set up Fedora on the Dell XPS 9300.

Reinstallation Steps:

1. Backup Before Migration:

  • Software list backup using dnf and flatpak (details here).
  • Backup home directory using rsync to a NAS or external drive, taking inspiration from this guide.

2. Fresh Install of Fedora 38 (F38):

  • Go with a clean slate. Install F38 using default options.
  • Upon first boot, create a primary user account.
  • Additionally, set up a temporary admin user to help restore the home directory safely.
  • Restore the main user’s home directory. Here’s a command for reference: 
    rsync -aAXHh --stats --info=progress2 source destination
  • Make sure to use the Trezor Wallet as a hardware key if that’s your preference.
  • Once restored, get back to your main account and delete the temporary account.
  • Now, restore your previously backed-up flatpak and dnf packages (details here).
  • Install any standalone .rpm files not available in the repository.
  • Optimize your device by enabling S3 deep sleep.
  • And setting up the fingerprint, following instructions from my earlier post.
  • Setup auto snapshoting with Timeshit details here.
  • Battery saver: not required since Gnome 40 and up now include the more efficient power-profiles-daemon. On the XPS (well supported), I get a better battery life than with TLP and things have even further improved since Gnome 43. ThinkPads should be the same as support is upstreamed as well. More info: Gitlab
  • Installed go-appimaged for nicely integrated appimage packages. Supposedly still experimental but IMHO the best implementatin available.
  • If using a Trezor wallet as your GPG token: set global env variable for trezor-agent that will cascade to Gnome, and therefore be taken into account by Seahorse (link)

Key Observations:

  • Nextcloud Users: The restored home directory means no additional configuration or login on Nextcloud is needed.

  • GPG with Trezor: If your Trezor Wallet is a GPG keycard, set the trezor-agent’s global environment variable for Gnome. This facilitates easy encryption/decryption with just a right-click.

You should be set!

Deep Dives:

Rsync with Trezor Wallet

Leverage the security of Trezor with this command:

trezor-agent -e ed25519 nameofthekey -- rsync -aAXHh --stats --info=progress2 user@host:/source /home/user

Remember, this guide is a personal note. Always double-check processes and be cautious during system changes.

Tech