slack 9.0 install questions

[HARMANE]

I succesfully installed slackware last night thanks to the help file from this site but it will only boot with vga=0, allowing me only a res of 1024x768. I have a geforce 4 ti 4400 and 1.2gb of ram, which was an issue when installing mdk 9.1 and had to use the enterprise kernel. I've tried updating NVIDIA drivers but I'm guessing that's not the issue.


I currently am downloading 9.1 and will test that out when I get home. Is there a different kernel for slack besides the default that I should use for larger mem modules? I tried mdk 9.2 and it installed with no problems like before (it defaults to ent kernel) but i dont like all the extra bulk that comes when running mdk+kde.


??

[hard candy]

After you install Slack, when you boot up hopefully you'll start in runlevel 3. Then run "xf86config".

[HARMANE]

After booting with vga=0? Does x86config need to be setup as well? I'm barely beyond newbie.

Or maybe I was unclear...if I don't do vga=0, I get a blank black screen after lilo. Nothing, zero, zilch.

[JohnT]

Post the section of your /etc/X11/XF86Config file listed as......

# Screen sections
# ******************
(post this section)

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by HARMANE
After booting with vga=0? Does x86config need to be setup as well? I'm barely beyond newbie.

Or maybe I was unclear...if I don't do vga=0, I get a blank black screen after lilo. Nothing, zero, zilch.

Did you setup/configure X during the initial installation and everything tested ok?

If you get a blank screen after Lilo, is the pc still booting until it reaches (switches) to a runlevel such as runlevel 5 (X/KDE)?

Is the 1024x768 resolution you are referring to during the boot process or when your desktop starts?

[HARMANE]

Originally posted by mdwatts
Did you setup/configure X during the initial installation and everything tested ok?

If you get a blank screen after Lilo, is the pc still booting until it reaches (switches) to a runlevel such as runlevel 5 (X/KDE)?

Is the 1024x768 resolution you are referring to during the boot process or when your desktop starts?


I followed this guide: http://www.justlinux.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=112140
I can't offhand remember exactly what I did as I rushed through a couple of times and ended up doing a few installs of different distros just to get it on there but if I had to guess, I would say no. I have not run x86config neither. I need to reinstall as mdk 9.2 is on there now and I'm at work.

After lilo it starts to boot the kernel and then black screen. I have runlevel set to 3.

It is the desktop res, boot is 640x480.

[mdwatts]

Edit /etc/lilo.conf (as root) and change vga=??? to vga=normal and you should then see the bootup process.

There are actually loads of Nvidia related threads here that should help you with the configuration. Some in the 'How I did it' forum (tutorials), plus the Nvidia readme and other related stuff on Google for Linux.

Does Slackware have a online installation guide/document on their site you can follow instead of the one you found here? It might help.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by mdwatts
Does Slackware have a online installation guide/document on their site you can follow instead of the one you found here? It might help.


"Oddly enough, they do" (http://wwwacs.gantep.edu.tr/linux/slackware-book/slakbook/)

[HARMANE]

Originally posted by mdwatts
Edit /etc/lilo.conf (as root) and change vga=??? to vga=normal and you should then see the bootup process.

There are actually loads of Nvidia related threads here that should help you with the configuration. Some in the 'How I did it' forum (tutorials), plus the Nvidia readme and other related stuff on Google for Linux.

Does Slackware have a online installation guide/document on their site you can follow instead of the one you found here? It might help.

Thanks. I was just unsure if it was an X problem or due to large mem modules, like there was in mdk 9.1 for me and that's what I was searching for. Still haven't made it home yet but I'll try it out tonight.

[HARMANE]

Ok, got 9.1 w/KDE installed but I've spent the last 4 or 5 hours trying to get the latest NVIDIA driverset to work to no avail. Everything installed fine and i edited XF86Config according to the readme and X will not start unless it's set to the generic nvidia driver. lsmod shows that nvidia is not running at boot and even after doing modprobe nvidia and changing xf86conf accordingly, nothing. modules.conf has the appropriate nvidia string. My monitor refresh rates are withing range, according to the manufacturer of said monitor. This same setup has worked in mdk 9.1 and 9.2, as I said before. I have a host of other issues as well but I really need, for piece of mind, to get these drivers installed, if you know what I mean :mad: :mad:

One other thing I've noticed when I edit xf86conf and try to start X is that my card seems to come out of pci mode and into agp as the fans spins up like the clocks enabled

XFree86.0.log says all resolutions are out of range so I'm posting both that log and config and hopefully someone can lead me in the right direction. I did find one thread back from Nov. 03 where someone had the same problem with a ti 4600 and fixed it but never posted their solution.

Anyway,...bed...

[HARMANE]

And my config...


edit: I should also add that these are the latest drivers. I will try the 4496's tomorrow or whenever I get a chance.

[nabis]

you should uncomment Load "glx"
check you monitor frequencies (HorizSync, VertRefresh)
Enother odd thing is you BusID value,
/sbin/lspci or cat /proc/pci
will show you something which looks like:

Bus 1, device 0, function 0:
VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV17 [GeForce4 MX440] (rev 163).
(or)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV17 [GeForce4 MX440] (rev a3)

The bold numbers, I believe are your BusID, (I could be wrong :confused: )
A working configuration in the attachment.

[nabis]

change of mind :)
do it in two steps.
At Login: prompt log in as root
[root@darkstar:~]# updatedb && locate nvidia.o
[root@darkstar:~]# /usr/X11R6/bin/xfree86setup
[root@darkstar:~]# vim -N /etc/X11/XF86Config
adjust your HorizSync and VertRefresh, replace "nv" with "nvidia"
[root@darkstar:~]# su - regular_user_name
[regular_user_name@darkstar:~]# startx
see if it works

[JohnT]

Originally posted by nabis
you should uncomment Load "glx"
check you monitor frequencies (HorizSync, VertRefresh)
Enother odd thing is you BusID value,
/sbin/lspci or cat /proc/pci
will show you something which looks like:

Bus 1, device 0, function 0:
VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV17 [GeForce4 MX440] (rev 163).
(or)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV17 [GeForce4 MX440] (rev a3)

The bold numbers, I believe are your BusID, (I could be wrong :confused: )
A working configuration in the attachment.

Unless he has more than one card the bus value should be commented, so finding the value is of little consequence.

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by nabis
you should uncomment Load "glx"


That is correct as stated in the Nvidia readme and many threads here at JL.


Section "Module"
Load "dbe"
Load "type1"
Load "speedo"
Load "freetype"
Load "extmod"
SubSection "extmod"
Option "omit xfree86-dga" # don't initialise the DGA extension
EndSubSection
# Load "Glcore"
# Load "dri"
Load "glx"
Load "v4l"
EndSection


'GLcore' and 'dri' also need to be commented out.

[HARMANE]

Originally posted by mdwatts
That is correct as stated in the Nvidia readme and many threads here at JL.

I have done that. The config I posted was just re-created via xf86config instead of going in and editing manually. The nvidia module isn't loading unless I do modprobe nvidia.



Section "Module"
Load "dbe"
Load "type1"
Load "speedo"
Load "freetype"
Load "extmod"
SubSection "extmod"
Option "omit xfree86-dga" # don't initialise the DGA extension
EndSubSection
# Load "Glcore"
# Load "dri"
Load "glx"
Load "v4l"
EndSection


'GLcore' and 'dri' also need to be commented out.


GLcore and dri were never in my xf86config so I didn't have to comment or remove them. I've even tried NvAGP 3 and IgnoreDisplayDevices DFP, TV.

[JohnT]

The nvidia module isn't loading unless I do modprobe nvidia.




Your not reading the NVIDIA Doc's.

[mdwatts]

Another is to add

alias char-major-195 nvidia

to /etc/modules.conf if not already there.

If you do add, run

depmod -ae

as root after.

[HARMANE]

That was already in modules.conf.

I uninstalled 5328 and install 4496 and it worked no problem. Should have done that around 10pm last night.:rolleyes:

[HARMANE]

Originally posted by JohnT
Your not reading the NVIDIA Doc's.

That's all I've been doing is reading trying to figure this out. Maybe I misworded it but don't accuse of me of not trying to figure it out on my own when everyone here seems to be offering solutions that I've already tried and stated that hadn't worked.

:rolleyes:

[mdwatts]

Perhaps JohnT meant that some of the Nvidia docs point out problem with certain driver versions and they suggest trying others. I know that to be true for SuSE as there is a link on the Nvidia Linux driver site to some SuSE how-to's for the Nvidia drivers and alternative drivers to use.

[JohnT]

Originally posted by HARMANE
That's all I've been doing is reading trying to figure this out. Maybe I misworded it but don't accuse of me of not trying to figure it out on my own when everyone here seems to be offering solutions that I've already tried and stated that hadn't worked.

:rolleyes:

I dont think I accused you of anything , but when you make a statement like.."The nvidia module isn't loading unless I do modprobe nvidia."....only leads me to the conclusion that you haven't read the included documents, If you have you must have overlooked that one small unimportant step. I apologize for the other 99.99% vital documentation that you did read.:p

Q: The kernel module does not get loaded dynamically when X starts;
I always have to do 'modprobe nvidia' first. What is wrong?

A: Make sure the line "alias char-major-195 nvidia" appears in
your module configuration file, generally one of "/etc/conf.modules",
"/etc/modules.conf" or "/etc/modutils/alias"; consult the documentation
that came with your distribution for details.


You can also add to your /etc/rc.d/rc.modules....the line "/sbin/modprobe/xxxxx" (where x is the module name).

[HARMANE]

Originally posted by JohnT


Q: The kernel module does not get loaded dynamically when X starts;
I always have to do 'modprobe nvidia' first. What is wrong?

A: Make sure the line "alias char-major-195 nvidia" appears in
your module configuration file, generally one of "/etc/conf.modules",
"/etc/modules.conf" or "/etc/modutils/alias"; consult the documentation
that came with your distribution for details.

That would imply that X would actually start after modprobe with these drivers, which it would not, ever unless it was set to the generic nv driver. And I did read that as that exact line was in modules.conf, as I stated before, this being the third time. None of this matters as I've gotten the older drivers working and please excuse the overflowing frustration, which no doubt will continue as my fonts look like crap and have no 32bit desktop depth...

[mdwatts]

Originally posted by HARMANE
That would imply that X would actually start after modprobe with these drivers, which it would not, ever unless it was set to the generic nv driver. And I did read that as that exact line was in modules.conf, as I stated before, this being the third time. None of this matters as I've gotten the older drivers working and please excuse the overflowing frustration, which no doubt will continue as my fonts look like crap and have no 32bit desktop depth...

As long as you got it working ... who cares. Now enjoy !! :)

[hard candy]

For da fonts, funkey they may be, download freefont from linuxpackages.net (http://www.linuxpackages.net/pkg_details.php?id=1717)

this site will be one of your friends. Also grab some fonts and look into installing truetype fonts (you can use the same fonts as windows), there should be quite a few posts in these forums about it.
(By the way, you could tell JohnT. that because of the funky fonts you weren't able to decipher everything in the nvidia docs- sounds good to me :) )
And also on linuxquestions.org there is a slackware forum. There is a sticky about an easy way to upgrade the kernel in slackware. Follow that posting, it works great. Get the 2.6 kernel asap, it will make a big difference in performance- either up or down, depending on the snags you run into. :)
And cruise some of the slackware sites on the web, always a tidbit of knowledge here and there.
And get swaret working, will make life easier.
welcome to da linux plane of existence- cheaper, frustrating, harder, rewarding, exciting, and funnier than the commercial software world. Plus your reading speed will increase 10x. :D

[JohnT]

which no doubt will continue as my fonts look like crap and have no 32bit desktop depth...

Your fortunate that you picked this time to try Linux, as you would have been lucky to get a 16-bit..m/b a year or less ago.

Just load up your Win fonts on a floppy and install with KDE's "Font installer" its effortless.