I am having serious trouble installing NixOS on a MacBook Pro (Intel Core i9 based, a 2019 model with the infamous TouchBar). Installing from ISO images 25.11.8478.bcd464ccd2a1-x86_64 has not been possible for me, because both minimal and graphical installer each fail to recognize the built-in keyboard and touchpad. Not only is there no backlight, not even the caps-lock LED lights up. The only working button is the Power switch. This means I can currently neither enter any commands, nor use the mouse.
Because this seemed like a rather odd problem to have, I also tried installing Arch (for something bleeding edge) and Ubuntu Server 24.04 LTS. Alas, these two also failed to recognize the keyboard and touchpad, so maybe I need some rather exotic Linux driver I am not yet aware of? It seems odd, though, given this MacBook’s advanced age.
In any case, installing NixOS on this particular MacBook is my goal. I currently don’t know how to proceed further, and I am hoping for pointers from the NixOS community. Oh, and I’d rather avoid purchasing an external keyboard and mouse, too. Thanks.
-Ralph
P.S.: There is nothing wrong hardware-wise. This MacBook currently runs macOS 26.4 Tahoe without a hitch.
Thanks. I should have mentioned that I have already disabled Apple’s boot security options. Sorry for not making that clear right away. The MacBook Pro will not even boot from an external drive or USB stick with the default settings.
That said, I wonder about a possible connection between the keyboard and the T2 security module. Isn’t the T2 SoC used for handling encryption keys, e.g. for FileVault? Still, I will look more closely at the links you provided.
@eblechschmidt Looks like you’re on to something. I downloaded a pre-built ISO image and flashed it to a USB drive. After booting, the keyboard was operational, so I will be following this path further.
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@eblechschmidt Your pointers to t2linux.org were very helpful. I followed the linked guides closely, and after various steps (including providing the necessary firmware and building a custom kernel with support for T2, which unexpectedly required hours of build time), I now have NixOS running on the MacBook Pro. KDE Plasma seems content, built-in hardware is supported (Wi-Fi, internal Retina display, sound, keyboard, touchpad). In other words, things are looking much better than the day I started.
Thank you once again, your help put me firmly on the right track.
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I‘m glad I could help. I have a slightly older MacBook Pro (14.1) and NixOS-Hardware and its links was a good help for me as well.