So I've been busy, but I have some more useful info. I've confirmed the bug's still in both version 3.5.0-40 (32 bit) and 3.2.0-53 (64 bit) of the Ubuntu kernel.
However, while I've been busy, I had the idea of just splicing the changes from Xiao's patch (which we found in the last bisect) into the mainline kernel before doing a reverse bisect on commits before that one. After a couple of false starts, I was able to isolate a prior patch clearly (I tested it 10 times in various boot-up situations, and it always worked). Apparently the magic patch was a merge by Linus: 99c6bcf46d2233d33e441834e958ed0bc22b190a by Linus Torvalds I honestly have no clue why this patch would be the earlier necessary one, and my gut feeling is that it means this bug is very tangled and subtle. I'm both busy and a little out of my league to contact the kernel mailing-list directly, but while running the bisection, I came across the name Rafael J. Wysocki a couple of times. My 2nd reverse bisection actually uses a patch by him as the earliest commit because I originally zeroed in on his commit as the next critical one. It was only after testing over 6 or 7 boots that I confirmed a bad session. Anyways, when searching for his commits in the git log, a recent one (60f75b8e97daf4a39790a20d962cb861b9220af5) jumped out since it sounded particularly relevant. It specifically handles interaction problems between PCI bridges and ACPI, then mentions graphics adapter detection as a major justification. I'm guessing you may already be in touch with him, but if not, it sounds like he might be a good person to talk to. ** Attachment added: "2nd (Reverse) Bisection Log" https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/1009312/+attachment/3828444/+files/bisect2-log -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Kernel Packages, which is subscribed to linux in Ubuntu. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1009312 Title: GPU loads unreliably, possible kernel timeout Status in “linux” package in Ubuntu: Incomplete Bug description: Reverse upstream kernel commit bisecting revealed a fix via commit d34883d4e35c0a994e91dd847a82b4c9e0c31d83 by Xiao Guangrong. WORKAROUND: If I boot my computer from battery power alone without AC, my GPU & the Ubuntu splash screen load on startup. I've been running Ubuntu 12.04 for a few weeks now, I really like it, but from the beginning, I had the issue where the proprietary nvidia driver installs but fails to load (confirmed from the commandline, jockey, and the nvidia-dashboard). Over time, I've noticed that sometimes when I power on, the driver does load and I can enter a full unity session without problems, but other times, I fall back onto the VESA driver and a unity 2d session. On a whim, I finally copied logs from both successful and unsuccessful boots, cut out the times, ran a diff on them, and noticed a pattern in the kernel messages. I'm filing this bug after a successful boot so I've also attached copies of dmesg, Xorg, & jockey logs from an unsuccessful boot. The first thing I saw in the logs was a timing discrepancy between the two boots, most of which is due to GPE storms. I've checked other logs and there's not a clear relation, I've had successful boots with them and unsuccessful ones without them. I do still wonder if they may be involved because it seems I'm a little luckier if I turn off and unplug any peripherals before booting. But around line 325 in my dmesg logs, at the last step that mentions my GPU (pci device 0000:01:00.0), there is consistently at most a 6 ms delay for successful boots, but a 30 ms one for unsuccessful ones. Also, on all dmesg logs from successful boots, around line 610, the message "Boot video device" is recorded for the PCI number of my GPU, but for every fallback, the message never appears. That's why I'm thinking it's a kernel issue because the earliest mention of a specific driver module doesn't occur until later in the log. I'm currently using fully updated versions of nvidia driver 295.49. ProblemType: Bug DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.04 Package: linux-image-3.2.0-24-generic-pae 3.2.0-24.39 ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.2.0-24.39-generic-pae 3.2.16 Uname: Linux 3.2.0-24-generic-pae i686 NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia AlsaVersion: Advanced Linux Sound Architecture Driver Version 1.0.24. ApportVersion: 2.0.1-0ubuntu8 Architecture: i386 ArecordDevices: **** List of CAPTURE Hardware Devices **** card 0: Intel [HDA Intel], device 0: STAC92xx Analog [STAC92xx Analog] Subdevices: 1/1 Subdevice #0: subdevice #0 AudioDevicesInUse: USER PID ACCESS COMMAND /dev/snd/controlC0: kyle 1790 F.... pulseaudio Card0.Amixer.info: Card hw:0 'Intel'/'HDA Intel at 0xfc400000 irq 48' Mixer name : 'SigmaTel STAC9872AK' Components : 'HDA:83847662,104d1c00,00100201 HDA:14f12c06,104d1700,00100000' Controls : 18 Simple ctrls : 9 Date: Tue Jun 5 22:44:22 2012 EcryptfsInUse: Yes HibernationDevice: RESUME=UUID=1b676222-44c7-453c-a522-06b6fd5d66f4 InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS "Precise Pangolin" - Release i386 (20120423) MachineType: Sony Corporation VGN-FZ260E PccardctlIdent: Socket 0: no product info available PccardctlStatus: Socket 0: no card ProcEnviron: PATH=(custom, no user) LANG=en_US.UTF-8 SHELL=/bin/bash ProcFB: 0 VESA VGA ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/vmlinuz-3.2.0-24-generic-pae root=UUID=e330e46a-b426-439f-8037-c1069cc693ce ro quiet splash vt.handoff=7 RelatedPackageVersions: linux-restricted-modules-3.2.0-24-generic-pae N/A linux-backports-modules-3.2.0-24-generic-pae N/A linux-firmware 1.79 RfKill: 0: phy0: Wireless LAN Soft blocked: no Hard blocked: no SourcePackage: linux UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install) dmi.bios.date: 07/04/2007 dmi.bios.vendor: Phoenix Technologies LTD dmi.bios.version: R1120J7 dmi.board.asset.tag: N/A dmi.board.name: VAIO dmi.board.vendor: Sony Corporation dmi.board.version: N/A dmi.chassis.asset.tag: N/A dmi.chassis.type: 10 dmi.chassis.vendor: Sony Corporation dmi.chassis.version: N/A dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnPhoenixTechnologiesLTD:bvrR1120J7:bd07/04/2007:svnSonyCorporation:pnVGN-FZ260E:pvrFC000001:rvnSonyCorporation:rnVAIO:rvrN/A:cvnSonyCorporation:ct10:cvrN/A: dmi.product.name: VGN-FZ260E dmi.product.version: FC000001 dmi.sys.vendor: Sony Corporation --- AcpiTables: Error: command ['pkexec', '/usr/share/apport/dump_acpi_tables.py'] failed with exit code 127: Error executing /usr/share/apport/dump_acpi_tables.py: Permission denied ApportVersion: 2.5.1-0ubuntu4 Architecture: i386 AudioDevicesInUse: USER PID ACCESS COMMAND /dev/snd/controlC0: ubuntu 3344 F.... pulseaudio CasperVersion: 1.321 DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10 LiveMediaBuild: Ubuntu 12.10 "Quantal Quetzal" - Alpha i386 (20120831) MachineType: Sony Corporation VGN-FZ260E Package: linux (not installed) PccardctlIdent: Socket 0: no product info available PccardctlStatus: Socket 0: no card ProcEnviron: TERM=xterm PATH=(custom, no user) LANG=en_US.UTF-8 SHELL=/bin/bash ProcFB: ProcKernelCmdLine: noprompt cdrom-detect/try-usb=true file=/cdrom/preseed/username.seed boot=casper initrd=/casper/initrd.lz quiet splash -- maybe-ubiquity ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.5.0-13.14-generic 3.5.3 RelatedPackageVersions: linux-restricted-modules-3.5.0-13-generic N/A linux-backports-modules-3.5.0-13-generic N/A linux-firmware 1.91 RfKill: 0: phy0: Wireless LAN Soft blocked: no Hard blocked: yes Tags: quantal running-unity Uname: Linux 3.5.0-13-generic i686 UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install) UserGroups: adm cdrom dip lpadmin plugdev sambashare sudo dmi.bios.date: 07/04/2007 dmi.bios.vendor: Phoenix Technologies LTD dmi.bios.version: R1120J7 dmi.board.asset.tag: N/A dmi.board.name: VAIO dmi.board.vendor: Sony Corporation dmi.board.version: N/A dmi.chassis.asset.tag: N/A dmi.chassis.type: 10 dmi.chassis.vendor: Sony Corporation dmi.chassis.version: N/A dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnPhoenixTechnologiesLTD:bvrR1120J7:bd07/04/2007:svnSonyCorporation:pnVGN-FZ260E:pvrFC000001:rvnSonyCorporation:rnVAIO:rvrN/A:cvnSonyCorporation:ct10:cvrN/A: dmi.product.name: VGN-FZ260E dmi.product.version: FC000001 dmi.sys.vendor: Sony Corporation --- ApportVersion: 2.10.2-0ubuntu1 Architecture: i386 AudioDevicesInUse: USER PID ACCESS COMMAND /dev/snd/controlC0: ubuntu 4176 F.... pulseaudio ubuntu 6045 F.... pulseaudio CasperVersion: 1.333 DistroRelease: Ubuntu 13.10 LiveMediaBuild: Ubuntu 13.10 "Saucy Salamander" - Alpha i386 (20130529) MachineType: Sony Corporation VGN-FZ260E MarkForUpload: True Package: linux (not installed) PccardctlIdent: Socket 0: no product info available PccardctlStatus: Socket 0: no card ProcEnviron: LANGUAGE=en_US TERM=xterm PATH=(custom, no user) LANG=en_US.UTF-8 SHELL=/bin/bash ProcFB: ProcKernelCmdLine: noprompt cdrom-detect/try-usb=true persistent file=/cdrom/preseed/hostname.seed boot=casper initrd=/casper/initrd.lz quiet splash -- maybe-ubiquity ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.9.0-3.8-generic 3.9.4 PulseList: Error: command ['pacmd', 'list'] failed with exit code 1: Home directory not accessible: Permission denied No PulseAudio daemon running, or not running as session daemon. RelatedPackageVersions: linux-restricted-modules-3.9.0-3-generic N/A linux-backports-modules-3.9.0-3-generic N/A linux-firmware 1.109 RfKill: 0: phy0: Wireless LAN Soft blocked: no Hard blocked: no Tags: saucy Uname: Linux 3.9.0-3-generic i686 UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install) UserGroups: dmi.bios.date: 07/04/2007 dmi.bios.vendor: Phoenix Technologies LTD dmi.bios.version: R1120J7 dmi.board.asset.tag: N/A dmi.board.name: VAIO dmi.board.vendor: Sony Corporation dmi.board.version: N/A dmi.chassis.asset.tag: N/A dmi.chassis.type: 10 dmi.chassis.vendor: Sony Corporation dmi.chassis.version: N/A dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnPhoenixTechnologiesLTD:bvrR1120J7:bd07/04/2007:svnSonyCorporation:pnVGN-FZ260E:pvrFC000001:rvnSonyCorporation:rnVAIO:rvrN/A:cvnSonyCorporation:ct10:cvrN/A: dmi.product.name: VGN-FZ260E dmi.product.version: FC000001 dmi.sys.vendor: Sony Corporation To manage notifications about this bug go to: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/1009312/+subscriptions -- Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~kernel-packages Post to : kernel-packages@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~kernel-packages More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
