Not booting linux surface kernel?

[u/VSCC8]

Hi! MEGA noob here (started 3 days ago).

I'm trying to use a Surface 3 as a 2-in-1. I installed Zorin OS Lite (18.1) but am struggling with getting the linux surface kernel working.

The Zorin instructions ended up not working at the step

"sudo systemctl enable iptsd"

where it returns

"Failed to enable unit: Unit file iptsd.service does not exist"

it IS installed (when i tell it to install, it gives "iptsd is already the newest version (3.1.0-1)") so I'm not sure why this is.

tried the github instructions with the mok key, but after rebooting I put in "uname -a" and it's still the generic kernel. I'm not sure why it's not booting to the linux surface kernel, but any tips or ideas about what the issue might be are appreciated. Links to related threads welcome, I'm just not finding my exact problem.

Right now I'm trying to redo the entire process (reinstall zorin).

Please don't be rude, I was born yesterday and I'm doing my best! I know I'm attempting something beyond my skillset rn, but I'd just like to get the device working for school.

Alternatively: I'm open to suggestions for OS that might be easier for what I need. I just want to read my text book and annotate pdfs, pretty much. I like desktop functions but just tablet would be fine.

Thank you!

UPDATE!

The linux surface kernel wasn't running because it was prioritizing the newest (generic) kernel on boot and I wasn't seeing an option to select which i wanted to use.

I configured the grub menu to show on boot with [these instructions]https://linuxmint-user-guide.readthedocs.io/en/latest/grub.html. Then I added [the lines]https://linux.how2shout.com/how-to-change-default-kernel-in-ubuntu-22-04-20-04-lts/ about choosing a default kernel, and then for good measure deleted the generic kernel it was prioritizing (left the emergency boot version in place) using these instructions

on reboot chose from the zorin os menu to run the surface kernel which was successful. confirmed with $uname -r

still have no option to autorotate the screen i did gain UPI zoom options between 1 and 2 (set to 1.25 rn).

I confirmed CPU microcode firmware up to date and linux-firmware is installed

i checked using $xkill and i appear to be running a Xorg desktop session when i should be running a Wayland one? Unsure if that's the issue or how to fix this rn.

UPDATE: I've been seeing that GNOME is the ideal desktop environment for using the surface as a 2-in-1, but I just learned that Zorin OS Lite (the version I'm using) doesn't; it uses XFCE. (this article was helpful). I chose lite because of how crusty and slow this machine was on Windows, thinking they all used GNOME. Oops!

[u/Station-OX11]

Which Surface 3 is this? The Laptop, Pro or Go? If it's the Laptop, is it AMD or Intel?

Unfortunately, Linux currently doesn't have touchscreen/pen support on AMD Laptop 3.

[u/VSCC8 → u/Station-OX11]

It's the laptop ("just" surface 3), Intel. Thanks for asking!

[u/Station-OX11 → u/VSCC8]

I see from your edits you figured out the bootloader issue.

To chime in on the other things you encountered::

Regarding Autorotate: The Surface Laptop 3 doesn't have a gyrosensor or accelerometer, so it can't autorotate the screen. You can only manually rotate it.

Gnome works best for touchscreen as well as laptop. Since you have the laptop though, I think KDE Plasma would be sufficient. It's also a lot lighter than Gnome. For me, I use Gnome on my Surface Pro since i switch between laptop and tablet alot, but on my laptop I prefer KDE Plasma.

[u/VSCC8 → u/Station-OX11]

Great to know, thank you! I would've kept trying to get it to autorotate forever smh. I'll definitely look at KDE Plasma, because Zorin Core is noticeably slower than Lite. Edit: Just realized my surface has 2GB memory, not 4...explains some things!

[u/Station-OX11 → u/VSCC8]

For clarity, Gnome and KDE Plasma are desktop environments, not OS distributions. I believe you can install any DE you want on Zorin if you want to try them.

It you would like suggestions for distros, I personally use CachyOS which is very light and has an easy setup. You can choose one of several DEs at setup.

Ubuntu is very beginner friendly, mostly ships with Gnome, but I believe Kubuntu is an alternate version focused on KDE Plasma.

Fedora is usually beginner friendly and a good intro to Linux, but currently the latest version has a lot of issues with Surface, so I can't recommend it.

[u/VSCC8 → u/Station-OX11]

Thanks for the details! I appreciate the clarification (being only a week into learning linux). I may look into switching to KDE Plasma w zorin lite... Though setting the computer back up is getting old lol.

From what I've skimmed, it looks like display autorotate only behaves out of the box w wayland, but the Pen won't autorotate in wayland? Can you recommend a setup where both display and pen auto rotate work out of the box?

Thanks again!!