Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On 06/02/16 07:26, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 5, 2016, at 2:43 PM, Clive Menzies wrote: In this context, reading back through the threads I see that Peter has rolled some 4.* kernels. Any suggestions as to which one I try first and any particular messages in the thread I should pay attention to? If your G5 is a "PowerMac11,2" like mine, then Peter's "4.4.0-rc7-powerpc64" kernel works well for me with the "VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 LE] (rev a2)" graphics card. Thanks Rick That is the machine exactly :-) Are you running sid or jessie? Regards Clive -- Clive Menzies Political Economist +44 (0) 7836 601378
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues - SOLVED
On 06/02/16 10:16, Clive Menzies wrote: On 06/02/16 07:26, Rick Thomas wrote: If your G5 is a "PowerMac11,2" like mine, then Peter's "4.4.0-rc7-powerpc64" kernel works well for me with the "VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 LE] (rev a2)" graphics card. Thanks Rick, Peter That worked! It seems to be delivering the same functionality as on Wheezy If you want any information, let me know Regards Clive -- Clive Menzies Political Economist +44 (0) 7836 601378
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On Feb 6, 2016, at 2:16 AM, Clive Menzies wrote: > On 06/02/16 07:26, Rick Thomas wrote: >> On Feb 5, 2016, at 2:43 PM, Clive Menzies wrote: >> >>> In this context, reading back through the threads I see that Peter has >>> rolled some 4.* kernels. Any suggestions as to which one I try first and >>> any particular messages in the thread I should pay attention to? >> If your G5 is a "PowerMac11,2" like mine, then Peter's "4.4.0-rc7-powerpc64" >> kernel works well for me with the "VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA >> Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 LE] (rev a2)" graphics card. >> >> > > Thanks Rick > > That is the machine exactly :-) > > Are you running sid or jessie? Stretch. In the sources.list, I have jessie, jessie/updates, jessie-updates, jessie-backports, and stretch repositories; all with main, non-free, and contrib activated. HTH! Rick
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On 06/02/16 17:01, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 6, 2016, at 2:16 AM, Clive Menzies wrote: On 06/02/16 07:26, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 5, 2016, at 2:43 PM, Clive Menzies wrote: In this context, reading back through the threads I see that Peter has rolled some 4.* kernels. Any suggestions as to which one I try first and any particular messages in the thread I should pay attention to? If your G5 is a "PowerMac11,2" like mine, then Peter's "4.4.0-rc7-powerpc64" kernel works well for me with the "VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 LE] (rev a2)" graphics card. Thanks Rick That is the machine exactly :-) Are you running sid or jessie? Stretch. In the sources.list, I have jessie, jessie/updates, jessie-updates, jessie-backports, and stretch repositories; all with main, non-free, and contrib activated. Thanks At present, I've just got jessie and will probably stick with it until I find it limits functionality. I used to run sid but I'd break my system every so often - not great for productivity :-) Having got X and xfce working, I've now added a second DVI monitor but it seems to have knocked out the original Mac monitor. Both xfce4 settings and xrandr recognise there are 2 monitors but the Apple (DVI-I-2) monitor doesn't receive signal clive@silvermachine:~$ xrandr Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 1680 x 1050, maximum 4096 x 4096 DVI-I-1 connected 1280x1024+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 338mm x 270mm 1280x1024 60.02*+ 1152x864 75.00 1024x768 85.0075.0860.00 832x624 74.55 800x600 85.0675.0060.32 640x480 85.0175.0060.00 720x400 70.08 DVI-I-2 connected 1680x1050+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 433mm x 270mm 1680x1050 59.88*+ trying to force it with xrandr makes no difference clive@silvermachine:~$ xrandr --output DVI-I-1 --mode 1280x1024 --output DVI-I-2 --mode 1680x1050 --right-of DVI-I-1 Peter, is there a specific kernel parameter required? Regards Clive
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
Sorry Rick if this is the third time but Icedove started screwing around and sending messages from the wrong address which isn't registered with the list. See below. On 06/02/16 17:27, Clive Menzies wrote: On 06/02/16 17:01, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 6, 2016, at 2:16 AM, Clive Menzies wrote: On 06/02/16 07:26, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 5, 2016, at 2:43 PM, Clive Menzies wrote: In this context, reading back through the threads I see that Peter has rolled some 4.* kernels. Any suggestions as to which one I try first and any particular messages in the thread I should pay attention to? If your G5 is a "PowerMac11,2" like mine, then Peter's "4.4.0-rc7-powerpc64" kernel works well for me with the "VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 LE] (rev a2)" graphics card. Thanks Rick That is the machine exactly :-) Are you running sid or jessie? Stretch. In the sources.list, I have jessie, jessie/updates, jessie-updates, jessie-backports, and stretch repositories; all with main, non-free, and contrib activated. Thanks At present, I've just got jessie and will probably stick with it until I find it limits functionality. I used to run sid but I'd break my system every so often - not great for productivity :-) Having got X and xfce working, I've now added a second DVI monitor but it seems to have knocked out the original Mac monitor. Both xfce4 settings and xrandr recognise there are 2 monitors but the Apple (DVI-I-2) monitor doesn't receive signal clive@silvermachine:~$ xrandr Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 1680 x 1050, maximum 4096 x 4096 DVI-I-1 connected 1280x1024+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 338mm x 270mm 1280x1024 60.02*+ 1152x864 75.00 1024x768 85.0075.0860.00 832x624 74.55 800x600 85.0675.0060.32 640x480 85.0175.0060.00 720x400 70.08 DVI-I-2 connected 1680x1050+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 433mm x 270mm 1680x1050 59.88*+ trying to force it with xrandr makes no difference clive@silvermachine:~$ xrandr --output DVI-I-1 --mode 1280x1024 --output DVI-I-2 --mode 1680x1050 --right-of DVI-I-1 Peter, is there a specific kernel parameter required? Regards Clive
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On 06/02/16 17:01, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 6, 2016, at 2:16 AM, Clive Menzies wrote: On 06/02/16 07:26, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 5, 2016, at 2:43 PM, Clive Menzies wrote: In this context, reading back through the threads I see that Peter has rolled some 4.* kernels. Any suggestions as to which one I try first and any particular messages in the thread I should pay attention to? If your G5 is a "PowerMac11,2" like mine, then Peter's "4.4.0-rc7-powerpc64" kernel works well for me with the "VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 LE] (rev a2)" graphics card. Thanks Rick That is the machine exactly :-) Are you running sid or jessie? Stretch. In the sources.list, I have jessie, jessie/updates, jessie-updates, jessie-backports, and stretch repositories; all with main, non-free, and contrib activated. Thanks At present, I've just got jessie and will probably stick with it until I find it limits functionality. I used to run sid but I'd break my system every so often - not great for productivity :-) Having got X and xfce working, I've now added a second DVI monitor but it seems to have knocked out the original Mac monitor. Both xfce4 settings and xrandr recognise there are 2 monitors but the Apple (DVI-I-2) monitor doesn't receive signal clive@silvermachine:~$ xrandr Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 1680 x 1050, maximum 4096 x 4096 DVI-I-1 connected 1280x1024+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 338mm x 270mm 1280x1024 60.02*+ 1152x864 75.00 1024x768 85.0075.0860.00 832x624 74.55 800x600 85.0675.0060.32 640x480 85.0175.0060.00 720x400 70.08 DVI-I-2 connected 1680x1050+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 433mm x 270mm 1680x1050 59.88*+ trying to force it with xrandr makes no difference clive@silvermachine:~$ xrandr --output DVI-I-1 --mode 1280x1024 --output DVI-I-2 --mode 1680x1050 --right-of DVI-I-1 Peter, is there a specific kernel parameter required? Regards Clive
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On Feb 6, 2016, at 9:36 AM, Clive Menzies wrote: > At present, I've just got jessie and will probably stick with it until I find > it limits functionality. I used to run sid but I'd break my system every so > often — not great for productivity :-) I'm not sure -- Peter will know -- but the 4.4 Kernel may require Stretch. > Having got X and xfce working, I've now added a second DVI monitor but it > seems to have knocked out the original Mac monitor. You're out of my depth now... Sorry! Rick
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
Hello , some day ago i tried to install Stretch PPC using Installer-Alpha 4 - but it always finished off when tryxing to install Software Packages. Why is that so? Do i need to use always the latest installers (in this case Alpha-5 i guess)? Jessie installed fine , though. I bought also a Radeon x800 xt as replacement for NVidia 5200 FX , so i am wondering how this will change my Linux experience on G5 Powermac to the better. Thanks Rich Rick Thomas schrieb: On Feb 6, 2016, at 2:16 AM, Clive Menzies wrote: On 06/02/16 07:26, Rick Thomas wrote: On Feb 5, 2016, at 2:43 PM, Clive Menzies wrote: In this context, reading back through the threads I see that Peter has rolled some 4.* kernels. Any suggestions as to which one I try first and any particular messages in the thread I should pay attention to? If your G5 is a "PowerMac11,2" like mine, then Peter's "4.4.0-rc7-powerpc64" kernel works well for me with the "VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 LE] (rev a2)" graphics card. Thanks Rick That is the machine exactly :-) Are you running sid or jessie? Stretch. In the sources.list, I have jessie, jessie/updates, jessie-updates, jessie-backports, and stretch repositories; all with main, non-free, and contrib activated. HTH! Rick
Re: Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
Hi Clive, Glad you got your G5 up and running! Regarding my config, currently am running 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, xfce desktop and on Debian stretch (testing) repo's. As a side note, on the testing repo's, the only package that I personally have noticed that has broken and affected me recently is binutils, i.e. binutils versions currently >2.25-5 are not capable of building kernels correctly (the kernel modules within the initrd seem to not be built correctly). Aside from that you get much newer packages than jessie. Also, Mesa and 3D hardware accel should now work with nouveau and PPC (well it works for me anyway)! Sid is basically the absolute bleeding edge Debian repo. Not surprised that things break regularly! But if you feel comfortable doing bug reports every now and then and can help contribute to Debian, perhaps the testing repo is more for you (which is for the future stretch release). Of course, the choice is yours! Now, regarding your issue! You made me connect a second LCD to my G5 and try out the dual display functionality! :) With the version of xfce currently in stretch (testing repo's), all I had to do was use the built in features of xfce and use the built in control panel in Applications >> Settings >> Display. Ensure that the checkbox is ticked for "Configure new displays when connected". I then logged out of xfce and then logged back in and it just worked. Detected extra screens and allowed me to change the layout as desired. The version of xfce in jessie is an earlier release with older packages, so it may not be as simple and easy. Fortunately, Brock W. who is on the mailing list has posted a blog on the PowerPC Liberation page which should hopefully do the trick. Note: I believe that this was for LXDE desktop while running jessie. So it may or may not apply for xfce that currently is in jessie. Link Below: http://powerpcliberation.blogspot.ca/2015/08/g5-simple-dual-monitor-setup.html As i mentioned earlier, this might not be required if you are using the xfce version currently in stretch, but as always, YMMV. Hope it makes sense! Regards, Peter
Re: Re: Re: Power Mac G5: Attempting to get 2D acceleration with nouveau and 6800 Ultra
Hi Logan, Oh well, cant say we didn't try everything! So from my recollection, currently the status of Apple OEM or FCODE flashed nVidia GPU's reported working with nouveau on PPC G5's: AGP: GeForce 5200. PCIe: GeForce 6600, GeForce 7800GT, GeForce 7800GTX, Quadro FX4500. Obviously this is with 4kb page size kernels and MSI interrupts disabled for PCIe based nVidia GPU's on PPC G5's. Reported currently not working with nouveau on PPC G5's: AGP: Geforce 6800 (Ultra or Ultra DDL). Hopefully if anyone has other updates (i.e. status of other AGP nVidia GPU's or other known workarounds), please keep us all posted. Regards, Peter
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On Feb 6, 2016, at 1:06 PM, Richard Kuenz wrote: > Hello , > > some day ago i tried to install Stretch PPC using Installer-Alpha 4 - but it > always finished off when tryxing to install Software Packages. Why is that so? > Do i need to use always the latest installers (in this case Alpha-5 i guess)? > Jessie installed fine , though. > I bought also a Radeon x800 xt as replacement for NVidia 5200 FX , so i am > wondering how this will change my Linux experience on G5 Powermac to the > better. > > > Thanks > > Rich > > Rick Thomas wrote: >> Stretch. >> In the sources.list, I have jessie, jessie/updates, jessie-updates, >> jessie-backports, and stretch repositories; all with main, non-free, and >> contrib activated. >> HTH! >> Rick > Hi Rich, I haven't tried installing Stretch directly on my G5. I got where I am by installing Jessie and upgrading to Stretch and adding Peter's kernel that fixes the NVidea video driver problems. I don't know if the Radeon card will help you. I haven't tried it. Maybe there's someone else on the list who has? Enjoy! Rick
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On 06/02/16 20:52, Peter Saisanas wrote: Regarding my config, currently am running 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, xfce desktop and on Debian stretch (testing) repo's. As a side note, on the testing repo's, the only package that I personally have noticed that has broken and affected me recently is binutils, i.e. binutils versions currently >2.25-5 are not capable of building kernels correctly (the kernel modules within the initrd seem to not be built correctly). Aside from that you get much newer packages than jessie. Also, Mesa and 3D hardware accel should now work with nouveau and PPC (well it works for me anyway)! Thanks Peter It sounds worth upgrading to stretch. Sid is basically the absolute bleeding edge Debian repo. Not surprised that things break regularly! But if you feel comfortable doing bug reports every now and then and can help contribute to Debian, perhaps the testing repo is more for you (which is for the future stretch release). Of course, the choice is yours! I found sid a great learning experience on my G4 a few years ago but I don't have the time to spend breaking and fixing my system at present and so testing is a better option. Now, regarding your issue! You made me connect a second LCD to my G5 and try out the dual display functionality! :) With the version of xfce currently in stretch (testing repo's), all I had to do was use the built in features of xfce and use the built in control panel in Applications >> Settings >> Display. Ensure that the checkbox is ticked for "Configure new displays when connected". I then logged out of xfce and then logged back in and it just worked. Detected extra screens and allowed me to change the layout as desired. It's strange because xfce sees both monitors as does xrandr but the signal just doesn't seem to get the screen working although the desktop behaves as though both are active. I'll upgrade and then see where I get to, with the later kernel. The version of xfce in jessie is an earlier release with older packages, so it may not be as simple and easy. Fortunately, Brock W. who is on the mailing list has posted a blog on the PowerPC Liberation page which should hopefully do the trick. Note: I believe that this was for LXDE desktop while running jessie. So it may or may not apply for xfce that currently is in jessie. Link Below: http://powerpcliberation.blogspot.ca/2015/08/g5-simple-dual-monitor-setup.html I'll check this out before trying the upgrade As i mentioned earlier, this might not be required if you are using the xfce version currently in stretch, but as always, YMMV. Hope it makes sense! Sure does and thanks again :-) Regards Clive
Re: Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On Sun, Feb 07, 2016 at 07:52:37AM +1100, Peter Saisanas wrote: > Hi Clive, > > Glad you got your G5 up and running! > > Regarding my config, currently am running 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, xfce > desktop and on Debian stretch (testing) repo's. > > As a side note, on the testing repo's, the only package that I > personally have noticed that has broken and affected me recently is > binutils, i.e. binutils versions currently >2.25-5 are not capable > of building kernels correctly (the kernel modules within the initrd > seem to not be built correctly). I'm also affected by this. I think that the problem will be fixed by: http://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/1602.0/05322.html Hopefully there will be soon an upload of fixed binutils to testing. Otherwise I'll have to compile and install binutils myself. Gabriel
Re: Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
Hi Richard, In my opinion, the best way to install Debian would be to just install using a Jessie release. When installing, ensure you install an SSH server in addition to be able to login via another computer if you happen to have display issues (which you probably will). I believe the stretch release currently has issues with the included default installed kernel (probably due to the version of binutils it has been built with). So personally I would just install Jessie, then install a kernel perhaps from ones that I have available. Afterwards you can upgrade to stretch by changing repositories, but just keep booting with the kernel I have provided. If you happen to still have the nVidia FX5200 installed, I can step through the procedure for you. Install Jessie and ensure you can ssh in to the G5. Specifically Install the 4.5.0-rc2 kernel I have configured for you. (Actually this kernel config should work for most Powermac G5's (11.2 or 7.3 or 7.2), i.e. AGP or PCIe with nVidia GPU's with the bare minimum of tinkering required). If all goes well that is! I have set it up so it should hopefully require NO kernel parameters or tinkering, i.e. fans should automatically work, nouveau should automatically work, sound should automatically work. The required modules that previously needed to be forced to be loaded are built in to the kernel, msi interrupts are disabled in the kernel and kernel is built with 4kB pagesize as currently needed by nouveau. Link for kernel image (no need to install the kernel headers in your case): https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8pqd5Ots1vfdlNtUFh6dGhiR1U copy the kernel image deb file to your hdd. install the kernel using the command: sudo dpkg -i linux-image-4.5.0-rc2-powerpc64_2_powerpc.deb Once installed you need to edit yaboot.conf Use the following command: sudo nano /etc/yaboot.conf Append the following text exactly as listed at the end of the file: image=/boot/vmlinux-4.5.0-rc2-powerpc64 label=test read-only initrd=/boot/initrd.img-4.5.0-rc2-powerpc64 append="" Save yaboot.conf Apply yaboot config with following command: sudo ybin -v Reboot your G5 and when prompted, ensure you enter "test" for the label in yaboot bootloader. I have tried to make this as simple as possible. Hopefully if all goes well, it should just work without ANY tinkering afterwards! If any issues or tweaks are required, please let me know and I and others will try our best to help you out! Good Luck! Regards, Peter
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
It probably affects everyone trying to build a BE 64bit PPC kernel, perhaps others as well. I don't have a Power 8 running LE 64bit... But If anyone would like to donate one and pay my power bill, by all means ill give it a try :) Its a bit of a chore downgrading to binutils 2.25-5 every time I build a kernel. Not sure how versions of binutils > 2.25-5 ever left the sid repo and into testing. Would be great if testing repo's downgraded to binutils 2.25-5 :) But then again, only the hardcore devs running sid then would probably notice the bugs. Alas, It has been reported quite a while ago Just wait and see for the fix I guess! Cheers, Peter On 07/02/16 08:42, Gabriel Paubert wrote: On Sun, Feb 07, 2016 at 07:52:37AM +1100, Peter Saisanas wrote: Hi Clive, Glad you got your G5 up and running! Regarding my config, currently am running 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, xfce desktop and on Debian stretch (testing) repo's. As a side note, on the testing repo's, the only package that I personally have noticed that has broken and affected me recently is binutils, i.e. binutils versions currently >2.25-5 are not capable of building kernels correctly (the kernel modules within the initrd seem to not be built correctly). I'm also affected by this. I think that the problem will be fixed by: http://lkml.iu.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/1602.0/05322.html Hopefully there will be soon an upload of fixed binutils to testing. Otherwise I'll have to compile and install binutils myself. Gabriel
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On Sun, Feb 07, 2016 at 09:35:21AM +1100, Peter Saisanas wrote: > It probably affects everyone trying to build a BE 64bit PPC kernel, > perhaps others as well. Oops, I read too quickly the patch headline, the fix is not for binutils, it is for the kernel. And it is a one liner, trivial to apply by hand. It's a bit late for rc3, but I expect it will be in rc4. > I don't have a Power 8 running LE 64bit... Neither do I. And would not run in LE anyway. > But If anyone would like to donate one and pay my power bill, by all > means ill give it a try :) > > Its a bit of a chore downgrading to binutils 2.25-5 every time I > build a kernel. The compilers I have installed insist on binutils >2.25.90, so I'd have to also downgrade all the compilers. Not an option... Cheers, Gabriel
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On 06/02/16 22:12, Clive Menzies wrote: On 06/02/16 20:52, Peter Saisanas wrote: Regarding my config, currently am running 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, xfce desktop and on Debian stretch (testing) repo's. As a side note, on the testing repo's, the only package that I personally have noticed that has broken and affected me recently is binutils, i.e. binutils versions currently >2.25-5 are not capable of building kernels correctly (the kernel modules within the initrd seem to not be built correctly). Aside from that you get much newer packages than jessie. Also, Mesa and 3D hardware accel should now work with nouveau and PPC (well it works for me anyway)! Thanks Peter It sounds worth upgrading to stretch. Sid is basically the absolute bleeding edge Debian repo. Not surprised that things break regularly! But if you feel comfortable doing bug reports every now and then and can help contribute to Debian, perhaps the testing repo is more for you (which is for the future stretch release). Of course, the choice is yours! I found sid a great learning experience on my G4 a few years ago but I don't have the time to spend breaking and fixing my system at present and so testing is a better option. Now, regarding your issue! You made me connect a second LCD to my G5 and try out the dual display functionality! :) With the version of xfce currently in stretch (testing repo's), all I had to do was use the built in features of xfce and use the built in control panel in Applications >> Settings >> Display. Ensure that the checkbox is ticked for "Configure new displays when connected". I then logged out of xfce and then logged back in and it just worked. Detected extra screens and allowed me to change the layout as desired. It's strange because xfce sees both monitors as does xrandr but the signal just doesn't seem to get the screen working although the desktop behaves as though both are active. I'll upgrade and then see where I get to, with the later kernel. The version of xfce in jessie is an earlier release with older packages, so it may not be as simple and easy. Fortunately, Brock W. who is on the mailing list has posted a blog on the PowerPC Liberation page which should hopefully do the trick. Note: I believe that this was for LXDE desktop while running jessie. So it may or may not apply for xfce that currently is in jessie. Link Below: http://powerpcliberation.blogspot.ca/2015/08/g5-simple-dual-monitor-setup.html I'll check this out before trying the upgrade As i mentioned earlier, this might not be required if you are using the xfce version currently in stretch, but as always, YMMV. Hope it makes sense! Sure does and thanks again :-) I upgraded to stretch - did a plain upgrade and rebooted all fine and then did a dist-upgrade but system is now unbootable. It seems to barf on: /Begin: Running /scripts/local-block done// //Begin: Running /scripts/local-block done// //Begin: Running /scripts/local-block done/ which repeats about 20 times and then says something about dropping into a shell but fails with: /Can't access tty: job control turned off// //(initramfs)///cursor stops here//but no keys seem to work/ /Have I got to reinstall Jessie from scratch and try the upgrade again or is there a way out of this? Regards Clive // -- Clive Menzies Political Economist +44 (0) 7836 601378
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
I'm in the same boat and unfortunately haven't found the time to sail my way out of it just yet. What I do know is if I boot with an old 3.18 kernel I have, everything works out okay again. I believe it was mentioned already that this could be related to the issue with binutils being used to build the newer kernel you are trying to boot from that came with Stretch. I downloaded Peter's 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, installed it, and updated my yaboot.conf but still the same issue. But honestly I could have missed something when configuring my system to boot from his newer kernel. Planning to look at that again here this evening and peruse some logs to see what pops out at me. If nothing else I will re-install Jessie, download and install Peter's 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, and then complete the upgrade to stretch and continue booting from that same kernel. Will post my results when I can. Thanks, Brock Sent from my iPhone > On Feb 6, 2016, at 8:10 PM, Clive Menzies wrote: > >> On 06/02/16 22:12, Clive Menzies wrote: >>> On 06/02/16 20:52, Peter Saisanas wrote: >>> Regarding my config, currently am running 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, xfce desktop >>> and on Debian stretch (testing) repo's. >>> >>> As a side note, on the testing repo's, the only package that I personally >>> have noticed that has broken and affected me recently is binutils, i.e. >>> binutils versions currently >2.25-5 are not capable of building kernels >>> correctly (the kernel modules within the initrd seem to not be built >>> correctly). Aside from that you get much newer packages than jessie. Also, >>> Mesa and 3D hardware accel should now work with nouveau and PPC (well it >>> works for me anyway)! >> Thanks Peter >> >> It sounds worth upgrading to stretch. >>> >>> Sid is basically the absolute bleeding edge Debian repo. Not surprised that >>> things break regularly! >>> But if you feel comfortable doing bug reports every now and then and can >>> help contribute to Debian, perhaps the testing repo is more for you (which >>> is for the future stretch release). Of course, the choice is yours! >> I found sid a great learning experience on my G4 a few years ago but I don't >> have the time to spend breaking and fixing my system at present and so >> testing is a better option. >> >>> Now, regarding your issue! >>> You made me connect a second LCD to my G5 and try out the dual display >>> functionality! :) >>> With the version of xfce currently in stretch (testing repo's), all I had >>> to do was use the built in features of xfce and use the built in control >>> panel in Applications >> Settings >> Display. >>> Ensure that the checkbox is ticked for "Configure new displays when >>> connected". I then logged out of xfce and then logged back in and it just >>> worked. Detected extra screens and allowed me to change the layout as >>> desired. >> It's strange because xfce sees both monitors as does xrandr but the signal >> just doesn't seem to get the screen working although the desktop behaves as >> though both are active. I'll upgrade and then see where I get to, with the >> later kernel. >>> >>> The version of xfce in jessie is an earlier release with older packages, so >>> it may not be as simple and easy. >>> Fortunately, Brock W. who is on the mailing list has posted a blog on the >>> PowerPC Liberation page which should hopefully do the trick. >>> Note: I believe that this was for LXDE desktop while running jessie. So it >>> may or may not apply for xfce that currently is in jessie. >>> >>> Link Below: >>> http://powerpcliberation.blogspot.ca/2015/08/g5-simple-dual-monitor-setup.html >> I'll check this out before trying the upgrade >>> >>> As i mentioned earlier, this might not be required if you are using the >>> xfce version currently in stretch, but as always, YMMV. >>> >>> Hope it makes sense! >> Sure does and thanks again :-) > I upgraded to stretch - did a plain upgrade and rebooted all fine and then > did a dist-upgrade but system is now unbootable. > > It seems to barf on: > Begin: Running /scripts/local-block done > Begin: Running /scripts/local-block done > Begin: Running /scripts/local-block done > which repeats about 20 times and then says something about dropping into a > shell but fails with: > > Can't access tty: job control turned off > (initramfs) cursor stops here but no keys seem to work > > Have I got to reinstall Jessie from scratch and try the upgrade again or is > there a way out of this? > > Regards > > Clive > -- > Clive Menzies > Political Economist > +44 (0) 7836 601378
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On 07/02/16 02:32, Brock Wittrock wrote: I'm in the same boat and unfortunately haven't found the time to sail my way out of it just yet. What I do know is if I boot with an old 3.18 kernel I have, everything works out okay again. I believe it was mentioned already that this could be related to the issue with binutils being used to build the newer kernel you are trying to boot from that came with Stretch. I downloaded Peter's 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, installed it, and updated my yaboot.conf but still the same issue. But honestly I could have missed something when configuring my system to boot from his newer kernel. Planning to look at that again here this evening and peruse some logs to see what pops out at me. If nothing else I will re-install Jessie, download and install Peter's 4.5.0-rc2 kernel, and then complete the upgrade to stretch and continue booting from that same kernel. Will post my results when I can. Thanks Brock I decided to bite the bullet and do a fresh jessie install; I was thinking of doing the same as you. If I make progress before you, I'll let you know. Regards Clive
Re: Debian 8 on Late 2005 G5, Graphics Issues
On Feb 6, 2016, at 2:11 PM, Peter Saisanas wrote: > Hi Richard, > > In my opinion, the best way to install Debian would be to just install using > a Jessie release. > When installing, ensure you install an SSH server in addition to be able to > login via another computer if you happen to have display issues (which you > probably will). > > I believe the stretch release currently has issues with the included default > installed kernel (probably due to the version of binutils it has been built > with). So personally I would just install Jessie, then install a kernel > perhaps from ones that I have available. > > Afterwards you can upgrade to stretch by changing repositories, but just keep > booting with the kernel I have provided. > > If you happen to still have the nVidia FX5200 installed, I can step through > the procedure for you. > > Install Jessie and ensure you can ssh in to the G5. > > Specifically Install the 4.5.0-rc2 kernel I have configured for you. > (Actually this kernel config should work for most Powermac G5's (11.2 or 7.3 > or 7.2), i.e. AGP or PCIe with nVidia GPU's with the bare minimum of > tinkering required). If all goes well that is! > > I have set it up so it should hopefully require NO kernel parameters or > tinkering, i.e. fans should automatically work, nouveau should automatically > work, sound should automatically work. The required modules that previously > needed to be forced to be loaded are built in to the kernel, msi interrupts > are disabled in the kernel and kernel is built with 4kB pagesize as currently > needed by nouveau. > > Link for kernel image (no need to install the kernel headers in your case): > https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8pqd5Ots1vfdlNtUFh6dGhiR1U > > copy the kernel image deb file to your hdd. > > install the kernel using the command: > sudo dpkg -i linux-image-4.5.0-rc2-powerpc64_2_powerpc.deb > > Once installed you need to edit yaboot.conf > > Use the following command: > sudo nano /etc/yaboot.conf > > Append the following text exactly as listed at the end of the file: > > image=/boot/vmlinux-4.5.0-rc2-powerpc64 >label=test >read-only >initrd=/boot/initrd.img-4.5.0-rc2-powerpc64 >append="" > > Save yaboot.conf > > Apply yaboot config with following command: > > sudo ybin -v > > Reboot your G5 and when prompted, ensure you enter "test" for the label in > yaboot bootloader. > > I have tried to make this as simple as possible. > Hopefully if all goes well, it should just work without ANY tinkering > afterwards! > > If any issues or tweaks are required, please let me know and I and others > will try our best to help you out! > > Good Luck! > > Regards, > Peter Don't forget: If you want to boot the 4.5 kernel every time by default, you have to add a line to /etc/yaboot.conf default=test following the line enablecdboot And don’t forget to do sudo ybin -v to apply the new config Also, if you want to know what kernel is running, you can type uname -r HTH! Rick
