OpenBSD on a laptop

You won't find nearly as many online resources about setting up OpenBSD, because honestly, you really don't need any. Unlike much of Linux and FreeBSD, the included manuals are high quality, coherent, and filled with practical examples. You also need very little third party software to do basic tasks - almost everything you need is well-integrated into the base system.

You'll notice that many features that require toil to achieve on FreeBSD, such as suspend on lid close, working volume buttons, and decent battery life, work out of the box on OpenBSD. You can tell the developers actually use this thing on their personal devices.

And while the official OpenBSD FAQ has all you need to get an installation up and running, it takes a bit of grinding to massage the base installation into a seamless laptop experience. So, I wrote this guide to give you a jump start. Things should just work as long as you have a non-bleeding-edge, semi-mainstream laptop, but ThinkPads are your best bet. Enjoy!