Downgrade linux-system76 dependency to recommends

[hyperair]

system76-driver contains a number of useful scripts (especially the ones in /lib/systemd/system-sleep) for System76 laptops, even without the use of the system76 kernel.

This PR downgrades the linux-system76 dependency to a Recommends so that users can run custom kernels, or even a stock Ubuntu kernel of their choosing without needing to keep a kernel installed that they will never use.

[hyperair]

If downgrading the linux-system76 dependency to Recommends is not an acceptable approach, I'd suggest splitting the scripts into a separate package so that we can have just the scripts without pulling in the linux-system76 dependency.

[jacobgkau]

I'm not sure we'd want to do this. The kernel is a basic part of hardware support for some of our products. The support team may depend on it being present during troubleshooting. No harm discussing it, though.

[hyperair]

In that case can we have system76-driver be a pure metapackage with no contents, and the scripts be in a separate package like system76-driver-scripts or system76-driver-daemon? That way I can keep the scripts around but not actually pull in the kernel.

[jacobgkau]

I can understand the use case behind doing one of those two things.

For what it's worth in evaluating this proposal, Pop!_OS gets the linux-system76 package pulled in as a hard dependency regardless of the driver due to the pop-server metapackage requiring it: https://github.com/pop-os/desktop/blob/master_jammy/debian/control

So this would only potentially affect our Ubuntu users (and users on other Ubuntu-based distros using the PPA).

[jacobgkau]

I know this is an annoying question, but can I ask why you don't want to pull in the System76 kernel? Is it software/DKMS compatibility for something you require only supporting the Ubuntu kernel?

[hyperair]

Sorry for the late response, I must have missed your last message.

It's nothing like that, it's just that I feel that.. no offence meant, Ubuntu as a whole has more resources than System76 to keep up with kernel updates and security patches for the entire duration that the Ubuntu release is supported. Additionally, after the initial mainlining of patches happens for the model of laptop I use, I don't think there's much need to stick to a vendor-specific kernel.

I also used to compile and run my own kernels anyway, and because I foolishly provisioned a small root and boot partition I don't really have the disk space to spare for more than 1 kernel long term, so I would just have one kernel installed unless I'm upgrading. Not needing to keep linux-system76 around would also be beneficial in this case.