Being in Information Technology for over two decades, I have the need for multiple computer system running a variety of operating systems from Windows, MacOS, and Linux.

I was needing a new laptop, and was looking at the Lenovo Thinkpad E15 Gen 3, with the Ryzen 7 5700U processor, part number 20YG003DUS. This particular laptop needed to run a Debian based Linux operating system, however there was limited information online about comparability. People were saying in forums that they have been running into issues with some hardware not working, but these posts were out dated.

I decided to take my chances, and purchase the laptop. I read online that Lenovo just released a new Bios update (version 1.10) on January 9th, 2022, which mentioned a fix for the function keys not working for Linux. I started by completing the Windows setup, then downloaded the latest BIOS version from the Lenovo website at https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-edge-laptops/thinkpad-e15-gen-3/20yg/20yg003dus/downloads/driver-list/component?name=BIOS%2FUEFI. I then ran the update, rebooted when prompted, and waited for the process to complete.

Now that the BIOS was updated, and I was logged into Windows, I downloaded Ubuntu 20.04.4 LTS from https://ubuntu.com/download/desktop. I then used Rufus to image my USB stick with the Ubuntu ISO.

With the USB plugged in, I rebooted the laptop, and entered the boot menu by pressing F12. I selected to boot from the USB stick, and the Ubuntu installation started. During the installation, I selected to use the whole disk for Ubuntu, as I no longer needed Windows on this laptop. I selected to “download updates while installing Ubuntu”, and also selected to “install third-party software for graphics and Wi-Fi hardware, Flash, MP3 and other media”. After the installation was complete, I opened the Ubuntu Software app store, and installed any remaining updates, then rebooted.

All in all, everything went great without issue. At the time of writing, I have used the laptop with Ubuntu for a month, and things have been working great. The only thing that doesn’t work is the lights in the backlit keyboard.