Lenovo computers are widely praised by many tech experts for its unique combination of hardware specs and software features. However, Lenovo was recently on the receiving end of harsh criticisms after experts found out that some of the company's computers are strictly programmed to run on Windows and are banned to run the Linux operating system.
Experts working on the issue revealed that some variants of the Lenovo Yoga 900 and Yoga 710 are using a dubious RAID configuration on its solid state drives that the Linux operating system cannot understand or process. The issue went further out of hand after some of Lenovo's website admins locked a handful of forum threads that discuss the problem.
According to Engadget, a Lenovo Product Expert on Best Buy claims that the Lenovo Yoga 900 uses a Windows 10 Home Signature Edition software which means that that the device is "locked per our agreement with Microsoft." If this claim is true, it could mean that Microsoft and Lenovo connived to purposely set-up some of the latter's devices to run strictly on Windows and exclude any operating systems.
In a response to the issue, Lenovo said that the company "does not intentionally block" non-Windows operating systems such as Linux on its computers. Lenovo added that for users to be able to install Linux on their machines, all they have to do is update their OS kernel and drivers in order to make sure that it recognize the SSD RAID configuration. According to BBC, Lenovo switched to the new storage system in order to provide faster read/write speed that conventional methods.
Regarding its SSD RAID configuration, Lenovo defended it saying that its Yoga line of devices requires "very specific, complex, and unique drivers." In a statement sent to Engadget, Microsoft reinforced Lenovo's claim stating that the company's Signature program is not intended to prevent users from installing non-Windows operating systems like Linux.