Tonight, my Z13 made the decision for me.

Mid-session, it overheated. Refused to boot. Had to unplug it, wait, and pray it would come back.

It did. But I’m done with Windows 11 Pro on this machine.

What Happened

I was working on the blog, pushed the terminal banner post live, feeling good about shipping in public despite the fear of judgment. Then—thermal shutdown.

This is a $3,000 ASUS ROG Flow Z13 with 128GB RAM, AMD Ryzen AI MAX+ 395, and cutting-edge specs. It shouldn’t be cooking itself alive running a Jekyll server and Claude Code.

Aaron (my systems architect friend from Magic Unicorn) had already been nudging me toward Linux for dev work. Tonight sealed it.

The Migration Plan

Moving from: Windows 11 Pro Moving to: Kubuntu 25.10 (KDE Plasma 6)

Why Kubuntu?

  • Better thermal management for AMD hardware
  • Native development environment (no WSL workarounds)
  • More control over system resources
  • KDE Plasma 6 is gorgeous and customizable
  • It’s time to learn Linux properly

What I Did Before Wiping

Before nuking everything, I backed up the smart way:

1. Committed everything to GitHub:

  • All repos pushed (dev-journey, genesisflow-blog, gf-labs, shared-context-mcp)
  • Python scripts (push-to-talk Whisper, clipboard sync)
  • Configuration files (.mcp.json, .gitconfig)
  • Documentation (CLAUDE.md, JOURNEY.md, writing guides)

2. Documented the rebuild path:

  • Created POST-KDE6-SETUP.md with complete restoration steps
  • Listed all 6 LM Studio models to re-download (~77GB)
  • Noted which Python scripts need Linux adaptations
  • Wrote installation commands for Node.js, Git, GitHub CLI, AI tools

3. Saved to shared context:

  • Mac setup task queued for cross-machine workflow
  • Real-time sync via shared-context-mcp

Everything is on GitHub. Nothing will be lost.

What’s Next

Following Aaron’s path:

  1. Update BIOS to GZ302EA.311+
  2. Download Kubuntu 25.10 ISO
  3. Create bootable USB with balenaEtcher
  4. Boot from USB and install (full wipe, no dual-boot)
  5. Restore dev environment from GitHub
  6. Re-download LM Studio models
  7. Test thermal performance for a week

If the overheating persists on Linux, it’s hardware. If it’s fixed, Windows was the problem.

Either way, I’ll know.

Linux Adaptations Needed

Some things will need rework:

Push-to-talk Whisper script:

  • Windows keyboard library → Linux pynput or evdev
  • Alt key handling will be different
  • Audio backend might need adjustments

Development workflow:

  • WSL → native Linux (huge win)
  • Windows paths → Linux paths in configs
  • Some tools will “just work” better

Blog workflow:

  • Jekyll is native on Linux (no Ruby version hell)
  • Git is first-class
  • Terminal is home

Why This Matters

I started coding in August 2025. Never touched Linux before. Now I’m migrating the Z13 to Kubuntu because the hardware literally couldn’t handle Windows.

That’s growth. That’s learning in public. That’s shipping through discomfort.

My setup is becoming truly cross-platform:

  • MacBook Pro (M1 Pro): My reliable daily driver, stays macOS
  • Z13 (128GB RAM): The Linux powerhouse for heavy local LLM work
  • Both machines: Same blog, same tools, same workflow (all synced via GitHub)

When the Z13 boots into KDE Plasma 6, I’ll have:

  • Better thermal performance (hopefully)
  • Native dev environment for Linux-specific work
  • Cross-machine workflow (MacBook Pro ↔ Z13 via shared-context-mcp)
  • A deeper understanding of how systems actually work

See You on the Other Side

Next post from the Z13 will be from Linux. The MacBook Pro stays macOS.

If you’re reading this on genesisflowlabs.com, the site is still live. The repos are safe. The journey continues across both machines.

Good luck and Godspeed.

The Z13 is crossing over to the penguin side. 🐧

The MacBook Pro keeps doing what Macs do best.

This is experiment #6: Learning Linux through necessity, not choice. When your machine forces your hand, you adapt.