I worked in retail until 2016, and a few years before I left they switched all the PoS registers to Linux.

You mean the SSD chipset, or the does the enclosure have a chipset, too?

The M.2 enclosure I have gets extremely hot during periods of extended use like installing an OS or transferring large amounts of data. Not sure if it’s a problem with other enclosures, but it’s something to consider.