
Alexander is a writer, traveler, and serial digital entrepreneur. He’s the founder of the Tushi, the Gen X personal growth newsletter Further, and offers small business advice at Unemployable.

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## My Titan 2 Elite Advanced Setup

I hope this doubles as a written guide on how to get Termux up and running on the Titan 2 Elite;
this is the exact setup I run daily as a pocket terminal / dev machine.

#### **1. Install tmux from F-Droid**

Get `tmux` (and Termux itself) from [F-Droid](https://f-droid.org/).
The version in the Play Store will *not* work for you; it is out of date and the required mirrors cannot be set up on it.

#### **1.5. Install Unknown Keyboard and my custom symbols layout**

For anything resembling real terminal work you need a keyboard that gives you quick access to special characters.
I use [Unknown Keyboard](https://f-droid.org/en/packages/jp.co.hi_zya.keyboard/) with this custom symbols layout:

```xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<keyboard name="Symbols (1-Row)" script="latin">
  <row>
    <key c="(" ne=")" nw="&lt;" se="&gt;"/>
    <key c="[" ne="]" nw="{" se="}"/>
    <key c="=" n="+" s="-" e="*" w="/" nw="%" ne="^"/>
    <key c="\\" n="|" w="~" se="`"/>
    <key c="." n="," e="!" w="\?" ne=":" nw=";"/>
    <key c="&quot;" n="'" e="_" w="-"/>
    <key c="\@" n="\#" e="&amp;" s="%"/>
    <key c="$" ne="€" se="£" sw="¥"/>
  </row>
</keyboard>
```

Also, for my optimal usage, I apply the following key mappings:

- `alt` -> `shift`
- `left shift` -> `alt`
- `home` -> `ctrl`
- `right shift` -> `tab`
- `space` -> `home`

Now you should be able to manage and navigate everything similar to a regular keyboard.
*Note that the Unknown Keyboard will still be required for some special chars!*

#### **2. Set up your Termux package mirrors**

```bash
termux-change-repo
```

Then update and prepare the packages:

```bash
pkg update
pkg upgrade
```

#### **3. Set up Termux storage**

```bash
termux-setup-storage
```

#### **4. Install some helpful packages**

```bash
pkg install git
pkg install gh
pkg install neovim
```

<img width="807" height="900" alt="Termux setup on the Titan 2 Elite" src="/static/assets/titan_setup/02_termux_screenshot.png" />

#### **5. Set up opencode**

I run [opencode](https://opencode.ai/) on the phone via the Termux port from [Hope2333/opencode-termux](https://github.com/Hope2333/opencode-termux).
Grab an `opencode` binary from the [release page](https://github.com/Hope2333/opencode-termux/releases), then:

```bash
apt install -y glibc-repo
apt update
apt install -y glibc openssl-glibc

dpkg -i /path/to/opencode_<version>_aarch64.deb
```

If you want to configure it for local llm usage, check out [my article on usability with local llms](https://blog.t1m.me/blog/opencode-with-local-llms).

#### **6. Running a local llm**

Multiple options here; for now the simplest one: download [Ollama](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ollama) from the Google Play Store.

#### **7. Setting up QEMU**

Termux ships QEMU packages, so we can run a *full Linux VM* right on the phone.
Since Android won't expose KVM on an unrooted device, the guest runs fully emulated as x86_64 through TCG (`-machine q35,accel=tcg`);
slower than native virtualization, but completely functional and headless (`-nographic`), which is all I need inside tmux.

I scripted the whole flow and attached all scripts to this post; grab them straight into Termux:

```bash
for s in setup-host start-installer start-vm postinstall-alpine kill-vm reset-vm; do
  wget "https://github.com/tbscode/tims-blog-posts/raw/main/assets/titan_setup/scripts/$s.sh"
done
chmod +x *.sh
```

Each script is also linked inline below, so you can read exactly what it does before running it.

#### **8. Preparing the host: `setup-host.sh`**

One script does all host preparation: [`setup-host.sh`](https://github.com/tbscode/tims-blog-posts/blob/main/assets/titan_setup/scripts/setup-host.sh)

It will:

1. install the required packages (`qemu-system-x86_64`, `qemu-utils`, `wget`)
2. create the host shared directory at `~/docker_shared`
3. create a 50G `alpine.qcow2` disk image (if missing)
4. download the `alpine-virt-3.20.2-x86_64.iso` (if missing)
5. make the helper scripts executable

```bash
bash setup-host.sh
```

#### **9. Installing Alpine inside QEMU**

Now boot the installer with [`start-installer.sh`](https://github.com/tbscode/tims-blog-posts/blob/main/assets/titan_setup/scripts/start-installer.sh);
it boots the ISO from the qcow2 disk, forwards `2222 -> 22` and `8080` to the host, and exposes `~/docker_shared` to the guest via a 9p `hostshare` mount:

```bash
./start-installer.sh
```

Then inside the VM:

1. log in as `root` (no default password)
2. run `setup-alpine`
3. select the `vda` partition and `sys` as the installation type
4. set a strong root password
5. `poweroff` once the install completes

Here's the disk & install step; you can also see the extra-keys row and my custom symbols keyboard in action, which make navigating and typing the installer prompts feel almost like a real terminal session:

<img width="540" height="602" alt="setup-alpine selecting the vda disk with sys install type in Termux" src="/static/assets/titan_setup/03_alpine_setup_vda.png" />

Boot the installed system with [`start-vm.sh`](https://github.com/tbscode/tims-blog-posts/blob/main/assets/titan_setup/scripts/start-vm.sh) (same flags, minus the ISO), log in as `root`, and run [`postinstall-alpine.sh`](https://github.com/tbscode/tims-blog-posts/blob/main/assets/titan_setup/scripts/postinstall-alpine.sh) inside the guest
(it is already visible under `/mnt/shared` once you mount the share, or just paste its contents):

```sh
sh /mnt/shared/postinstall-alpine.sh
```

The script hardens and provisions the base system in one pass:

- enables the `community` repository and installs `sudo`, `docker`, `docker-cli-compose`, `shadow`
- creates your user, adds it to the `docker` group and grants full sudo access
- enables the Docker daemon at boot
- configures the 9p share as a persistent auto-mount at `/mnt/shared`, owned by your user

Verify everything works from inside the VM:

```bash
su - <your-user>
docker run --rm hello-world   # docker works without root
sudo apk update               # sudo works
touch /mnt/shared/test.txt    # file appears on the host in ~/docker_shared
```

That's it: a persistent Alpine with Docker, reachable from the host via SSH on port `2222`, sharing files through VirtFS.

And it's genuinely usable for real work; here I'm building [this very blog](https://blog.t1m.me) through the shared folder inside the VM:

<img width="540" height="602" alt="docker compose build of the blog running inside the Alpine VM via the shared folder" src="/static/assets/titan_setup/04_docker_compose_build.png" />

##### Day-2 helpers

- [`kill-vm.sh`](https://github.com/tbscode/tims-blog-posts/blob/main/assets/titan_setup/scripts/kill-vm.sh) — stops any running QEMU VM process (graceful, then forced)
- [`reset-vm.sh`](https://github.com/tbscode/tims-blog-posts/blob/main/assets/titan_setup/scripts/reset-vm.sh) — wipes and recreates the qcow2 disk when you want a clean slate

---

That's it for now; the phone happily sits in my pocket running tmux, neovim, opencode, a local model — and now a full Alpine VM with Docker, this blog's dev server included:

<img width="540" height="602" alt="docker compose up of the blog frontend inside tmux on the Titan 2 Elite" src="/static/assets/titan_setup/05_docker_compose_up.png" />


A hands-on guide on turning the Titan 2 Elite into a real pocket dev machine with Termux, tmux, opencode, a local LLM and a full Alpine Linux VM under QEMU.

My Titan 2 Elite Advanced Setup: The Pocket Terminal Conversion


### Full Setup Lenovo Yoga 9 Pro Regolith Linux (Ubuntu 23.10 + i3)

This is my setup guide for Linux on my new laptop. I'm using the newest 23.10 Ubuntu because I want to.
This blog intends to report how I got things set up & the open issues I still have.

> Don't hesitate to contact me if you have possible solutions or questions regarding my setup, cheers :)

This is the labtop in question: https://geizhals.de/lenovo-yoga-pro-7-14aph8-storm-grey-82y80020ge-a3000891.html?hloc=at&hloc=de

- 14.5", 2560x1600 (WQXGA), 16:10, 208ppi, 90Hz, non-glare (matt), IPS, 350cd/​m², Blaulichtfilter, Dolby Vision, 1.500:1, 100% sRGB 
- AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS, 8C/16T, 3.80-5.10GHz, 16MB+8MB Cache, 35W TDP, 54W cTDP, Codename "Phoenix" (Zen 4, TSMC 4nm) 
- AMD Radeon 780M (iGPU), 12CU/768SP, 2.70GHz, Architektur "RDNA 3" (Phoenix) ( no additional GPU )
- 32GB LPDDR5X-6400 (32GB verlötet, nicht erweiterbar) 


## Open Issues:

1. Keyboard backlight levels not working correctly
It goes from bright to medium to bright to out. But medium is also very bright.
2. Master sound level not working (generally sound seems off)
I've also played with a lot of different output options in `pavucontrol`,
some seem to be completely broken and sound super metallic, while others sound pretty good at full volume but then start sounding weird when leveling down the audio.
This is significantly annoying but ok since it can be worked around by leveling the specific output sound level instead of using the volume buttons.

## Initial setup

The laptop comes with Windows originally. So I:

- create a boot USB with Ubuntu 23.10.
- disable BitLocker in PowerShell
- disable hibernation in PowerShell
- in Windows prepare an unformatted partition of the hard drive
- in BIOS disable secure boot
- boot & install Ubuntu 23.10
- install regolith-desktop using package: https://regolith-desktop.com/

## Configuring Regolith

Basic Regolith / i3 looks can be configured in `~/.config/regolith3/Xresources`.
E.g.: I like to adjust gap and border sizes & colors:

```
wm.gaps.inner.size: 1
wm.window.border.size: 3
wm.client.focused.color.child_border: #AAD3E9
```

## Resolution

- Falsely detected out of the box required xrandr adjustments.
- issues with fractional scaling if not on Ubuntu desktop (so i3)

I found that the i3 window header and bar sizes seem to depend on the dpi set in `~/.Xresources`.
`Xft.dpi: 100`. Weirdly, a higher value causes bigger i3 bar and UI and a lower one smaller.

> I found the cursor size set here to have no effect `Xcursor.size: 5`

To view the current resolution config `xdpyinfo | grep -B 2 resolution`:

```
screen #0:
  dimensions:    2560x1600 pixels (677x423 millimeters)
  resolution:    96x96 dots per inch
```

## External Monitors (& USB monitors)

At first, I thought the external monitors were not working but I soon realized that they were detected but not set to `active`, simply going into `arandr`, setting them to active, and then applying the configuration made all external monitors work as expected.

### Persisting xrandr settings using autorandr

`sudo apt install autorandr` just set the correct settings using `xrandr` or a UI like `arandr`,
then save the profile as default `autorandr --save default`

### Gnome Scaling Factor

I wasn't yet able to get fractional scaling working on Ubuntu yet.
But I found that the overall scale can be set from the command line using:

```bash
gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.plugins.xsettings overrides  "[{'Gdk/WindowScalingFactor', <1>}]"
gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface scaling-factor 1
```

It accepts scaling factors `1`, `2`, `3`

## Setting up Keepmenu as password manager

I love using Keepmenu to easily manage a local password database.

- https://github.com/firecat53/keepmenu

I use it with `rofi`; this is my config: `~/.config/keepmenu/config.ini`:

```ini
[dmenu]
dmenu_command = rofi -show drun -dpi 1

[dmenu_passphrase]
nf = #222222
nb = #222222
rofi_obscure = True

[database]
database_1 = XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
keyfile_1 = 
pw_cache_period_min = 30
autotype_default = {USERNAME}{TAB}{PASSWORD}{ENTER}
```

### Setting up the keybinding

The easiest way is to just use the GNOME system keybindings like described in: https://regolith-desktop.com/docs/using-regolith/configuration/

Just open the GNOME settings `Super+c` & open the keybindings editor in the 'Keyboard' settings.

You could also set it up using an i3 config e.g.:

```bash
bindsym $mod+Shift+K exec "DO SOMETHING"
```

## Setup screenshot command

`sudo apt install gnome-screenshot`

I like to map it to `Super+Shift+U`

Then setup a keyboard shortcut like this: `gnome-screenshot -acf /tmp/test && cat /tmp/test | xclip -i -selection clipboard -target image/png`
[as per this stack overflow answer](https://askubuntu.com/questions/1196914/gnome-screenshot-cant-copy-to-clipboard-in-ubuntu-18-04).

I saw only this stategy working, copying directly with `-acf` wan't working for me.


A comprehensive setup guide for setting up a Lenovo Yoga 9 Pro with Ubuntu 23.10 and Regolith i3, including resolution and external monitors configuration, and workarounds for common issues.

Setup Guide

My Titan 2 Elite Advanced Setup: The Pocket Terminal Conversion

Full Setup Guide: Lenovo Yoga 9 Pro with Regolith Linux (Ubuntu 23.10 + i3)