Linux 2.6.1 on a Thinkpad 600E

[elfs]

As always, I've been trying to upgrade my Linux box and keep it current with the most recent deployments. Now that the 2.6.1 kernel is out I've been working out how to install it on Lain, which is a thinkpad 600E.

My first try through was a complete bust. I didn't understand the new module model well enough, but after re-reading the instructions I managed to get it to work; I could reboot to 2.4 and run in 2.6 without much problem. The sound is different in 2.6; instead of a hacked cs4232 card, it actually recognized the cs4600 card and uses it. Unfortunately, this doesn't do me much good as I still can't get sound working.

But the real nightmare was that APM didn't work. That's a killer on a laptop, naturally, where having power management is essential, especially if you want the laptop to suspend correctly. I finally found the culprit. The relevant discussion regarding the Thinkpad 600 line can be found here. Note that if the patch isn't in the correct places in 2.6.2 you may have to hack this patch in by hand. It's completely cargo-cult; I don't understand quite what it does in the place that it's in, but I understand the effect: it pokes the port to turn off the floppy driver in the BIOS. A closer look at the code shows that this is where are block devices are instantiated in the kernel and hardware responsibility for them is surrendered.

--- linux/drivers/block/ll_rw_blk.c_ORIG        Mon Jan  5 20:51:28 2004
+++ linux/drivers/block/ll_rw_blk.c     Mon Jan  5 20:35:23 2004
@@ -2690,6 +2690,9 @@
        for (i = 0; i < ARRAY_SIZE(congestion_wqh); i++)
                init_waitqueue_head(&congestion_wqh[i]);
  
+#if defined(__i386__)  /* Do we even need this? */
+       outb_p(0xc, 0x3f2);
+#endif
        return 0;
 }

I had hoped that would be the end of it, but no. Of course not. I was given another rude shock when, after popping out the network card, ifconfig locked up trying to shut down the ethernet port. This was not the case on the 2.4.21 kernel.

I had hoped to have the 2.6.1 kernel up and running quickly. It promises a great many improvements. But not today. I've gone back to 2.4.21 and will probably be there for a few more weeks.

Comments

[j5nn5r.livejournal.com]

hate to admit it but I just blew away my Linux desktop and installed windblows 2000. It works, integrates the rest of my computers and web/ftp server and palm, and camera and plays sound/video and, and, and...

I feel so...dirty but, it was real easy to get there. :)

I Feel Your Pain

[kenshardik]

I occasionally think that I'm geek enough to install and configure Linux.

Then I get all frustrated because I keep using "find" and "whereis" when what I really should be using is "locate" and what I really WANT is an easy-to-use, easy-to-install OS that doesn't make me learn a bnch of shrt txt cmmds in semi-arbitratily placed config files. (Is it in /bin or /usr/bin or maybe in /usr/local/sbin?)

That's why I run Mac OS X. And once in a while, I open Terminal, and grep something... just because I can!

Re: drrrrrr....

[elfs.livejournal.com]

I suppose it matters what you grew up with. I've never been "A Windows user," having gone from Macs to Amiga straight to Linux without any windows in between. I've always found that Linux "just works" for me, and I've never had stability problems at all with an out-of-the-box install of Redhat, Mandrake, or SuSE. I can't remember the last time I had my laptop crash; its uptime is usually measurable in months of constant use.

I feel your pain

[popefelix.livejournal.com]

I'm running stock 2.6.1 on my Thinkpad X31, and while my APM is at least somewhat worky, I'm still getting more random lockups after resuming than I was under 2.4.22 (Con Kolivas' patchset). I'm tempted to try ACPI, but when I tried it last (2.6.0-testsomething) I couldn't suspend/resume.

drrrrrr....

[http://users.livejournal.com/dominic-m-/]

I am not even going to claim to even know one bit of code for anything.im a terribly self taught wannabe-computer geek who has only played with linux only a tiny bit on a friends computer and was utterly startled by its complexity.if i wanted to adjust even one small thing i had to literally "dig" for it through so many things ive never heard of.maybe...just maybe one day ill get a handle on all this coding and computer/networking/and much much stuff but till then im going to hold onto my windows for the time being.its just SOO damn ez in XP.

Re: drrrrrr....

[elfs.livejournal.com]

For what it's worth, I feel the same way about windows. I can't imagine having to use XP; my few experiences with Omaha's XP install have been the epitome of frustration. Everything is in the "wrong place," nothing follows a reasonable heirarchy of goals and structures. Dealing with the networking code, it's as if the whole thing was put together by a bunch of drunken dwarves who didn't really understand "that Internet stuff."

I don't use archaic commands much anymore, except when I'm doing heavy geek stuff (like trying to retrofit a stock Redhat with a new kernel). The UI in the new Linux X-Windows setup, Gnome, is sweet and handles the printing and so on without much of a headache.

Re: drrrrrr....

[http://users.livejournal.com/dominic-m-/]

well ive never had to many problems with windows in general past 98 and so far with xp i have no major problems ever.installation was a breeze (if a little long) and the whole way XP is set up its like practically built for simplicity but has the option of complexity.i dont worry about adjusting to much of the really deep details of windows because i know it handles itself pretty darn well with its constant windows updates and simplistic reminders when i do a "boo-boo" and how to fix them with a few clicks of a button.the only problem i could think xp would have to often is that it runs slow occasionally when playing heavy graphics games for too long(in my case alot).but thats just me talking.maybe its code is written by drunken fools.but what i ahe to say is im more than pleased with XP and how it whoops previous version booty real good.

FC2 (2.6.5) -- suspend/hibernate works but no sound

[(Anonymous)]

I installed FC 2 on my 600e (2645-CP2) because I wanted the "swappiness" VM attribute that 2.6 has. (I was really annoyed at the way 2.4 swapped out the only application running -- firefox -- if I put the machine down for an hour or so. Then it's "move the mouse and wait 45s -- 2 min." with the disk chattering before firefox was alive again.) I installed tpctl 5.5 with no problems, and hibernate etc. works fine. (You need a "cardctl eject" before running "tpctl --hibernate" or you get the lockup problem you saw.) Unfortunately, no sound; even trying the OSS CS4232 module doesn't work, it says "no such device" or something. I'm trying to decide if sound is enough of a must-have to go back to 2.4.

Isn't it true that the 600e has a 4232 (an ISA PnP chip) rather than a 46xx (which are PCI chips)?

I had no problems with sound on 2.5 (RedHat 9).

phliar
http://www.drones.com/