Fedora Complete Setup Guide¶

Fedora Workstation

Step-by-step guide to installing and configuring Fedora on the BC-250.

Overview¶

Fedora is the most recommended distribution for BC-250, offering: - Easy installation process - Mesa 25.1+ in official repositories (Fedora 43) - Extensive BC-250 community support - Automated setup scripts available

Prerequisites¶

BC-250 board with BIOS flashed and configured
USB drive (4GB+) for installation media
Display connected via DisplayPort
Keyboard and mouse (USB)
Internet connection recommended

Download Fedora¶

Recommended Version: Fedora 43 Workstation

Download from: getfedora.org

Desktop Options: - GNOME (default) - Modern, clean interface - KDE Plasma (Fedora Spins) - Highly customizable, recommended by many users

Create Installation Media¶

Using Fedora Media Writer (Recommended): 1. Download Fedora Media Writer 2. Run and select Fedora Workstation 3. Select your USB drive 4. Click "Write" and wait

Using balenaEtcher: 1. Download ISO from Fedora website 2. Download balenaEtcher 3. Select ISO, select USB drive, flash

Installation¶

Step 1: Boot Installation Media¶

Insert USB drive into BC-250
Power on the BC-250
System should boot to GRUB menu

Black Screen Issue

If you get a black screen, the installer is trying to use the GPU before drivers are loaded.

Step 2: Select Boot Mode¶

Fedora 42 is End of Life

Fedora 42 reached EOL. If still running Fedora 42, upgrade to Fedora 43.

For Fedora 43 with working kernels (6.18.18 LTS or 6.17.11+):

You can try the standard "Install Fedora" option. If it boots successfully, no need for basic graphics mode.

If you get a black screen:

At GRUB menu, select "Troubleshooting"
Choose "Install Fedora Workstation in basic graphics mode"
This enables nomodeset automatically

Nomodeset May Not Be Required

On Fedora 43 with working kernel versions (6.18.18 LTS or 6.17.11+), nomodeset is often no longer needed during installation. However, if you encounter a black screen, use basic graphics mode.

Recommended Kernel Versions

Kernel 6.18.18 LTS: Current LTS, RECOMMENDED
Kernel 6.17.11+: Working (Dec 2025+)
Kernels 6.17.8–6.17.10: Known broken, avoid
Kernel 6.19.x: Current stable, works well
Note: Unpatched kernels have 1000–2000 MHz frequency limits. Custom kernel compilation or distro patches (e.g., CachyOS) unlock higher ranges.

Step 3: Complete Installation¶

Select language
Choose installation destination (your M.2 SSD)
Configure network (optional but recommended)
Create user account
Set root password (optional)
Click "Begin Installation"
Wait for installation to complete
Click "Reboot System"

Note: System will reboot with nomodeset still active (limited resolution is normal for now).

Post-Installation Setup¶

Step 1: First Boot and Update¶

# Update system
sudo dnf upgrade --refresh

Step 2: Install Dependencies¶

sudo dnf install -y git cmake make gcc-c++ libdrm-devel lm_sensors

Step 3: Verify Mesa Version¶

# Check Mesa version
dnf list mesa-\*

# Should show 25.1+ for Fedora 43
# Fedora 43 ships Mesa 25.x — no additional setup needed

Step 4: Install GPU Governor¶

Option 1: COPR (Recommended)

# Use filippor/bazzite COPR with cyan-skillfish-governor-smu
sudo dnf copr enable filippor/bazzite
sudo dnf install cyan-skillfish-governor-smu
sudo systemctl enable --now cyan-skillfish-governor-smu

Governor Package

The filippor/bazzite COPR provides both cyan-skillfish-governor-smu (recommended, no kernel patch needed) and cyan-skillfish-governor-tt (alternative, requires kernel patch). Confirmed stable as of Mar 2026.

Step 5: Configure Sensors¶

For read-only monitoring (temperatures, voltages, fan speeds):

echo 'nct6683' | sudo tee /etc/modules-load.d/99-sensors.conf
echo 'options nct6683 force=true' | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/options-sensors.conf
sudo dracut --regenerate-all --force

For PWM fan control (recommended), use nct6687 instead — see the Sensors Guide for full setup instructions.

Step 6: Remove nomodeset and Configure GRUB¶

# Edit GRUB configuration
sudo nano /etc/default/grub

# Find: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="nomodeset quiet"
# Change to: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet"

# Optional: Add mitigations=off for performance boost
# GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet mitigations=off"

# Note: amdgpu.sg_display=0 is only needed for kernels < 6.10

# Save (Ctrl+O, Enter, Ctrl+X)

# Update GRUB
sudo grub2-mkconfig -o /boot/grub2/grub.cfg

Kernel Parameters Explained

quiet - Reduces boot messages
mitigations=off - Disables CPU security mitigations (+18 FPS in Cyberpunk 2077)
amdgpu.sg_display=0 - Only needed for kernels < 6.10 (not needed on Fedora 43)

Step 7: Reboot¶

sudo reboot

After reboot, you should have full resolution and GPU acceleration.

Verification¶

Check GPU is Working¶

# Check Mesa version
glxinfo | grep "OpenGL version"
# Should show: Mesa 25.1.X

# Check GPU detected
vulkaninfo | grep deviceName
# Should show: AMD Radeon Graphics (RADV GFX1013)

# Check governor running
systemctl status cyan-skillfish-governor-smu
# Should show: active (running)

# Check sensors
sensors
# Should show GPU temp, fan speeds, etc.

Install Gaming Software¶

Steam¶

sudo dnf install steam

Enable Proton for Windows games: 1. Open Steam 2. Settings → Compatibility 3. Check "Enable Steam Play for all other titles" 4. Select Proton version (latest is fine)

Proton GE (Recommended)¶

# Install ProtonUp-Qt
sudo dnf install protonup-qt

# Run ProtonUp-Qt and install latest Proton-GE

Gaming Tools¶

# Install useful gaming tools
sudo dnf install mangohud goverlay gamemode gamescope

# MangoHud: FPS overlay
# Goverlay: MangoHud configurator
# Gamemode: CPU governor optimization
# Gamescope: Compositor for better frame pacing

Optional: Hold Kernel Version¶

Since kernel 6.15.0-6.15.6 and 6.17.8–6.17.10 break BC-250, you may want to prevent automatic kernel updates to broken versions. Note: 6.18.18 LTS and 6.17.11+ are confirmed working:

# Install versionlock plugin
sudo dnf install python3-dnf-plugin-versionlock

# Lock current kernel
sudo dnf versionlock add kernel

# To unlock later:
# sudo dnf versionlock delete kernel

Troubleshooting¶

Display Still Not Working After Setup¶

# Check amdgpu module loaded
lsmod | grep amdgpu

# Check for errors
dmesg | grep amdgpu

# Verify Mesa
glxinfo | grep -i "opengl renderer"
# Should NOT show "llvmpipe"

Governor Not Starting¶

# Check governor service
sudo systemctl status cyan-skillfish-governor-smu

# Check logs
sudo journalctl -u cyan-skillfish-governor-smu

# Restart service
sudo systemctl restart cyan-skillfish-governor-smu

Low FPS in Games¶

# Verify GPU is being used (not CPU rendering)
# Run game with MangoHud:
mangohud steam

# Check GPU frequency scaling
cat /sys/class/drm/card1/device/pp_dpm_sclk
# Should show frequencies changing under load

Fedora-Specific Issues¶

Kernel Auto-Update to Broken Version¶

Symptom: System breaks after update Cause: Kernel 6.15.0-6.15.6 or 6.17.8-6.17.10 breaks BC-250 (6.17.11+ is fixed)

Solution:

# Boot into rescue mode or older kernel
# Remove broken kernel (example for 6.15.5)
sudo dnf remove kernel-6.15.5\*
# Or for 6.17.8-6.17.10 range
sudo dnf remove kernel-6.17.9\*

# Upgrade to latest kernel (6.17.11+ has the fix)
sudo dnf upgrade kernel

# Or install LTS for stability
sudo dnf install kernel-6.18.18-200

MTG Arena Crashes on Fedora¶

Symptom: Magic: The Gathering Arena crashes/freezes Workaround: Some users report better stability on Manjaro or Bazzite Possible Fix: Try different Proton version

Performance Tuning¶

CPU Frequency Scaling¶

Requires ACPI Fix

CPU frequency scaling is not available by default on BC-250. Install the bc250-acpi-fix SSDT-PST table to enable cpufreq with 8 P-states (800-3200 MHz). With the fix, schedutil governor is recommended:

echo schedutil | sudo tee /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu*/cpufreq/scaling_governor

Optimize for Low Latency¶

# Edit /etc/sysctl.conf
sudo nano /etc/sysctl.conf

# Add:
vm.swappiness=180
vm.vfs_cache_pressure=50

# Apply
sudo sysctl -p