Pre-Requisites and Warnings

Asahi Linux is for Apple Silicon Macs. Intel Mac users can dual boot into Windows or popular distributions of Linux, which is significantly easier. If you're looking for an easier method of playing PC games on your Mac, I'd suggest my Install Windows Steam games on Apple Silicon Macs Using Whisky (A free GPTK Front-End) tutorial. Also, Crossover offers an even greater range of compatibility than Whisky although is paid software.


Warning: This is still fairly experimental, be sure to back up all your data as you can "brick" your Mac if you are not careful. This may leave the Mac unbootable and require a DFU restore.

I need to reiterate the that this is an experimental process and may not work as expected and constantly changing. For support questions I'd recommend using communities like r/AsahiLinux.

  • Documentation: Check the official Asahi Linux docs for up-to-date support information (currently, only M1 and M2 series are supported; M3 series support is TBA).
  • Storage: Ensure you have a significant amount of free SSD space (e.g., at least 100 GB free). As of now, installation to an external drive is not supported.
  • Data Safety: This process can potentially render your Mac unbootable and may require a DFU recovery (which needs a secondary Mac). Back up all your data before proceeding.

Step-by-Step Installation Guide

Step 1: Download and Run the Installer

  1. Visit the official Asahi Linux website and copy the provided curl command.
  2. Open Terminal on your Mac and paste the command. This command downloads the installer script (typically alx.sh) and pipes it to sh for execution.
  3. The guided installer will launch. Choose to resize an existing partition to create space for Linux.

Step 2: Partition Your SSD

  1. The installer will display your SSD capacity and free space. Decide on a partition size. Note that the value you enter represents the space to be kept for macOS, with the remainder allocated for Linux.
  2. For example, on a 2 TB drive, if you want to allocate 500 GB to Linux, enter 1500 GB for macOS.
  3. Wait patiently while the partitioning process completes (this may take up to 2 hours).

Step 3: Install Asahi Linux

  1. Once partitioning is complete, select the option to install Linux into the free space. It will ask how much percentage of the free space you'd like to use for Linux. Typically most users will want to select 100%
  2. Choose your preferred desktop environment. Options typically include KDE Plasma (for customization) or GNOME (for simplicity).
  3. Decide how much of the free space to use for Linux (usually 100%) and assign a name to the new OS.
  4. Proceed with the installation by following the on-screen prompts.

Step 4: Boot into Asahi Linux

  1. After installation, fully shut down your Mac. This should be done via the terminal as the installer prompt will ask you to hit enter to shut down.
  2. Hold down the power button while turning on your computer and release it when it lists the boot menu to access the boot selector, and choose Asahi Linux.
  3. Boot into recovery mode where a Terminal window will open. Enter your password and agree to add a custom boot object (this sets your security to permissive mode for Linux).
  4. Create your username and password if prompted.

Step 5: Set Up the Linux Environment

Congrats! You should now be in Redhat Asahi Linux! Proceed through the basic installation prompts (language, user account, timezone) etc. If you've made it here, you're past the difficult part. Now it's time to get things ready.

  1. Open Terminal in Asahi Linux.
  2. Update the system by running:
    sudo dnf upgrade
    This command updates all packages—including the latest Vulkan drivers.
  3. Install Steam by running:
    sudo dnf install steam
    The installation may take some time, and Steam should launch automatically once complete.

Step 6: Configure Steam and Enable Proton

You'll need to sign into your Steam account as you normally would and enable steam play.

  1. Log into Steam once it launches.
  2. To enable Proton (which allows Windows games to run), go to Steam Settings > Compatibility and check “Enable Steam Play.” Restart Steam or your computer if prompted.
  3. Before installing games, visit ProtonDB to verify compatibility. If a game isn’t listed as working, it will not function correctly under this configuration.

Additional Notes

  • The first launch of a game may take longer due to shader compilation.
  • You can force different Proton versions per game. Right-click a game in Steam, select Properties > Compatibility, and choose your preferred Proton version.
  • Many games may still have issues due to the experimental nature of the setup.

I need to reiterate that this is early stages of support, as it's only been recently where Vulkan drivers have matured enough to support Proton. Asahi Linux still has a long ways to go. It's a viable OS but has some beta-bugs, such as not sleeping properly. I found my M1 Max was warm when I pulled it out of my backpack despite having put it to sleep and the battery was mostly drained.