Buying a used privacy-centric laptop probably goes against the very nature of the product but if I were to do that, what steps should I take to insure that it’s back to factory and nothing fundamental for it’s use has been tampered with by the previous owner? Is it possible to add a Librem key after a laptop has already been purchased and used?
Thanks,
Marc
When you receive the laptop make sure the kill switches have everything turned off before you turn it on. I would then proceed to reflash Coreboot (or Pureboot if you purchase a Librem Key) following the instructions from Purism, followed by installing the operating system of your choice.
And yes, you can definitely purchase a Librem Key to use with a previously purchased laptop.
Thank you for buying things second hand, it’s better for the environment, better for your money and also lets constructors produce better long lasting products as someone who buys first hand will buy something he can sell later
From time to time Purism sells refurbished laptops ( https://shop.puri.sm/shop/librem-15-refurbished/ ) and in that case I assume that Purism has done all that can reasonably be done to get the laptop back to factory state.
hello and welcome !
one thing to note is that Purism products and free-software oriented hardware in general tend to retain their original prices (or close to that) far longer than other proprietary oriented hardware. why ? because they are supported for LONGER and problems can be FIXED easier than locked-products. one more reason why you or anyone else should consider investing in free-software oriented products first if they are in the market for PERSONAL computing …