HardwareSupportComponentsVideoCardsPoulsbo

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This page details support for the Intel GMA500 "Poulsbo" video hardware in various Ubuntu releases. The table below shows the current status of the driver.

|| ||'''2D graphics'''||'''3D graphics'''||'''Normal Video Playback (Xv)'''||'''Hardware Video Acceleration'''<<FootNote(Refers to Hardware-Accelerated playback using vaapi, that is, libva library http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intel_GMA#GMA_500_on_Linux)>>||
||Natty (11.04)||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#F88017>Good||<#FF0000>Broken||<#00FF00>Excellent||
||Maverick (10.10)||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#FF0000>Broken||<#00FF00>Excellent||
||Lucid (10.04)||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#FF0000>Broken||<#00FF00>Excellent||
||Karmic (9.10)||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#00FF00>Excellent||<#00FF00>Excellent||
||Jaunty (9.04)||||||||<#FF6600>No longer supported and/or recommended||
||Intrepid (8.10)||||||||<#FF6600>No longer supported and/or recommended||
||Hardy (8.04)||||||||<#CCCC00>Partial support with pre-installed version||

'''Notes'''

* Natty 11.04:
workarounds included by default,
Compiz is slow and buggy,
Unity doesn't work

* Maverick 10.10:
workarounds included by default,
Compiz works ok,
Unity doesn't work

<<BR>>
== Drivers installation ==

=== PSB drivers ===
Drivers are available in the gma500 PPA repository for Maverick, Lucid, Karmic, Jaunty and Intrepid. With the note that Jaunty and Intrepid versions are no longer supported and guaranteed to work.

Open a terminal and type:
{{{
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gma500/ppa && sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install poulsbo-driver-2d poulsbo-driver-3d poulsbo-config
}}}
reboot for the changes to take effect.

Note: remember to perform after a version upgrade the commands in the terminal again to update to the gma500 packages matching your Ubuntu version.


=== Alternative drivers ===
You can also choose from alternative drivers to the PSB drivers, all having different advantages and disadvantages over the others. These drivers are: fbdev, iegd and emgd.

For instructions on using fbdev (or plain Vesa) with 1366x768 resolution, see [[HardwareSupportComponentsVideoCardsPoulsboAlternatives]]. Iegd and emgd are not covered yet (hint,hint!).

In general the PSB drivers mentioned on this very page are best supported in performance, compatibility and features.


=== Optimized software matching the PSB drivers ===
The gma500 PPA repository also ships mplayer, gnome-mplayer and vlc (currently vlc has still some issues and does not always work) with enabled vaapi backend. These are only available for Maverick and Lucid. They can be installed with the package manager of your choice.


=== Installation CD with PSB drivers ===
An unofficial Lucid iso image with gma500 support and mplayer-vaapi already embedded is available for downloading over bittorrent.
[[http://linuxtracker.org/download.php?id=f0b262a10d2a4401a4641cb01aef44c8fbccd051&f=ubuntu-10.04-desktop-i386-psb1.torrent|torrent link]]

'''There is an error with the psb package on the ISO. Kernel upgrades are broken. Please perform commands entered below to fix this issue. Not performing these commands can render your system unable to boot in case of kernel upgrades or Ubuntu version upgrades.'''
{{{
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get purge psb-kernel-source
sudo apt-get upgrade
sudo apt-get install psb-kernel-source
sudo apt-get install poulsbo-driver-2d poulsbo-driver-3d poulsbo-config
}}}
<<BR>>
== Known issues and tweaks ==

=== Feedback ===
'''When applying any tweaks from below we kindly request you to provide feedback concerning the results from the chosen tweaks on your laptop. Please fill out [[https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dENwSWtqajhUSXRlRzN6WFk4RzJRWlE6MQ#gid=0|this form]] to send your findings to the gma500 team.'''

=== Tweaks ===
==== Suspend by moving 99video ====
(Lucid and Karmic - included in Maverick):

{{{
sudo mv /usr/lib/pm-utils/sleep.d/99video /usr/lib/pm-utils/99video
}}}

==== Suspend by using uswsusp ====
Alternative (Lucid and Karmic):

{{{
sudo apt-get purge vbetool && sudo apt-get install uswsusp
}}}

and suspend using:
{{{
sudo s2ram --force
}}}

to make this permanent, run:
{{{
sudo gedit /etc/pm/config.d/00sleep_module
}}}
and set in the file:

{{{
SLEEP_MODULE="uswsusp"
}}}

and run:
{{{
sudo gedit /etc/pm/config/defaults
}}}
and add in the file:

{{{
S2RAM_OPTS="--force"
QUIRK_NONE="true"
}}}

<<BR>>
==== Brightness hotkeys ====
(Lucid and Karmic - included in Maverick):
{{{
= Driver overview =
This page details support for the Intel GMA500 "Poulsbo" video hardware with Ubuntu 12.04 and higher.

Unfortunately the support for this hardware is extremely limited on Linux. There are several drivers, but all lack certain basic features, such as future and current maintenance or support for suspend and hardware acceleration.

Currently, the best supported driver for Ubuntu is '''gma500_gfx'''.

For obsolete and unsupported drivers see [[https://wiki.ubuntu.com/PoulsboObsoleteDrivers|GMA500 Obsolete Drivers]]


= GMA500_GFX driver =

With kernel 2.6.39, a new '''psb_gfx''' module appeared in the kernel source developed by [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Cox|Alan Cox]] to support Poulsbo hardware.

As of kernel 3.3.rc1 the driver has left staging and been renamed '''gma500_gfx''' and is thus the default, supported driver for Ubuntu 12.04 and higher.


'''''Starting with kernel 3.3.4 , the gma500_gfx driver works without adding any boot options.'''''


The gma500_gfx does not (yet) support 3d graphics and it is unclear if it will in the future.


== Live (Desktop) CD 12.04 ==
The default Ubuntu 12.04 kernel works, but requires a custom boot option. Without that option, you will either get a black screen or distortions, such as top half of the screen only.

 1. Switch to a console - Ctrl-Alt-F1

 2. Restart X with 'sudo service lightdm restart'

That should bring you back to a functional graphical desktop, so that you can proceed testing or installing.

== Post installation ==

=== Ubuntu 12.10 + ===

No workarounds should be required, however, upgrading from 12.04 is not recommended because of general UI sluggishness.

=== Ubuntu 12.04 ===

With the default settings, Ubuntu 12.04 boots to either a black screen or or top half screen.

There are several potential solutions: '''console=tty1''', '''disable splash''', or '''915 Resolution'''

==== Option 1 - console=tty1 ====

Perhaps the easiest method is to use "console=tty1" as a boot option.

  {{{
gksudo gedit /etc/default/grub
}}}

Find the following line: '''GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash" '''

Add console=tty1 in between the quotes, the end result looking as follows

  GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash console=tty1"

save and exit, then update grub with

  sudo update-grub


==== Option 2 - Disable splash ====

Some people find they need to disable the splash.

Essentially the same as above, just remove '''splash''' from the GRUB_CMDLINE_DEFAULT options.


==== Option 3 - 915 Resolution ====

First, you need to know what your desired resolution is. Common netbook resolutions are 1366x768, 1024x600 and 1024x576. The examples below will feature 1366x768, but be sure to change it to the actual resolution of your screen.

Using any editor, create a file '''/etc/grub.d/01_915resolution''' , add in lines

    {{{
echo insmod 915resolution
echo 915resolution 58 1366 768 32
}}}

Make the file executable

    {{{
sudo chmod a+x /etc/grub.d/01_915resolution
}}}

Next, edit '''/etc/default/grub''', assign value 1366x768x32 to variables GRUB_GFXMODE and GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX:

    {{{
GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX=1366x768x32
}}}

Then update grub.

    {{{
sudo update-grub
}}}

'''''NOTE: some gma500 users may have to switch to a different tty and then back to tty7 even after performing the above modification to have a correct desktop. To do this press Ctrl-Alt-F6 then press Ctrl-Alt-F7.'''''

==== Option 4 - Update kernel ====

The final option is to use the 12.10 kernel in 12.04. A higher kernel is available in backports.

Alternatively, you can try the mainline kernel:

http://packages.qa.dev.stgraber.org/qatracker/milestones/223/builds/16265/downloads

The problem with the mainline kernel is that it does not have all the Ubuntu patches (such as Apparmor) and is not supported (it is provided "as is" for testing only).

= Video Playback =

Due to the lack of Hardware accelerated video playback in the gma500_gtx kernel driver, at current video playback can be very slow, it can freeze, jump and the audio and video can desynchronise, However it is possible to avoid this by using mplayer with multithreading :
Follow these instructions :

1. Install mplayer: {{{sudo apt-get install mplayer}}}

2. cd into the directory containing your video

3. run {{{mplayer -lavdopts threads=4 -framedrop yourvideofile.avi}}}

This will drop frames when needed, and use 4 threads (You should change this depending on your Atom Processor) meaning playing HD video is possible.

= Problem solving =

Most of the problems and workarounds listed are BIOS and Vendor specific. If your hardware is not listed, you may need to experiment.

== Fix suspend ==

If suspend does not work for you, there are various quirk options you can try. See the manpage for pm-suspend for a list of them all. One that has been reported to help is quirk-vbemode-restore, which saves and restores the current VESA mode.

To test it, open a terminal and use the following commands

    sudo pm-suspend --quirk-vbemode-restore

That should suspend your system. If you are able to resume, you'll want to configure Ubuntu to use this option every time you suspend. To do this open a terminal and use the following commands:

    {{{
    gksudo gedit /etc/pm/config.d/gma500
    }}}

Add in the following code and save the file:

    {{{
    ADD_PARAMETERS='--quirk-vbemode-restore'
    }}}

If it isn't working yet, you can try setting your resolution from 1366x768 to 1360x768 before suspend, then back to 1366x768 after resume. You can automate it in a script : in a terminal, type :

    {{{
    gksudo gedit /etc/pm/sleep.d/01_survive_modeswitch
    }}}

Copy/paste the following :

    {{{
    #!/bin/bash

case "$1" in
    hibernate | suspend)
        { xrandr --output LVDS-0 --mode 1360x768 ; }
        ;;
    thaw | resume)
        { xrandr --output LVDS-0 --mode 1366x768 ; }
        ;;
esac
    }}}

Save and close. Then, in the terminal :

    {{{
    sudo chmod a+x /etc/pm/sleep.d/01_survive_modeswitch
    }}}

Suspend and resume ; it should resume well.

== Memory allocation optimization ==
You can often improve performance by limiting the amount of RAM used by the system so that there will be more available for the videocard:

    {{{
Line 118: Line 186:
add the following parameters to grub configuration:

{{{

Add the following parameters to grub configuation if you have for example 1GB RAM:

    {{{
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="mem=896mb"
}}}

or if you have 2GB RAM:

    {{{
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="mem=1920mb"
}}}

Update GRUB:
    {{{
sudo update-grub
}}}

== Brightness hotkeys ==

Problems with brightness keys are most often vendor and bios dependent.

=== Acer ===

    {{{
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub
}}}

Add the following parameters to grub configuration:

    {{{
Line 124: Line 220:
next run:
{{{
For the Acer AO751h, try blacklisting acer_wmi.

    GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="acpi_backlight=vendor acpi_osi=Linux acer_wmi.blacklist=yes""


Update Grub:
    {{{
Line 129: Line 230:
<<BR>>
==== Compiz ====
(Lucid - included in Maverick):

{{{
sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf
}}}
and add the following option:
{{{
Option "ExaNoComposite" "true"
}}}

* install this updated poulsbo-config package: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1338581/poulsbo/poulsbo-config_0.1.2%7E1004um3_all.deb

* install compiz

<<BR>>
==== Memory allocation optimization ====
(Lucid - included in Maverick)

You can often improve peformance by limiting the amount of RAM used by the system so that there will be more available for the videocard:
{{{
sudo gedit /etc/default/grub
}}}
add the following parameters to grub configuation if you have for example 1GB RAM:

{{{
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="mem=896mb"
}}}

or if you have 2GB RAM:

{{{
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="mem=1920mb"
}}}

next run:
{{{
sudo update-grub
}}}


<<BR>>
==== Flash plugin replacement for Firefox ====
(Maverick and Lucid):

* install gnome-mplayer and gecko-mediaplayer

* tune gnome-mplayer settings like the following screenshots:

http://lukaszklich.pl/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/vaapi_output.png

http://lukaszklich.pl/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/vaapi_va.png

(This should already be automatically done by the gnome-mplayer package from the gma500 repository)

* install this firefox addons:
http://flvideoreplacer-extension.blogspot.com/


=== Tweaks that are deprecated ===

==== Kernel mode setting ====
(Outdated)
If you still want to enable KMS, paste the following command:

{{{
echo "psb
drm_psb" | sudo tee -a /etc/initramfs-tools/modules && sudo update-initramfs -u
}}}
In Maverick you would also have to remove "no_fb=1" from /etc/modprobe.d/poulsbo.conf


<<BR>>
<<Anchor(hardy)>>
== Hardy (8.04) ==

The Poulsbo hardware is not supported in the community version of Ubuntu. However, it is reputed to "just work" on Hardy version shipped by a netbook manufacturer.

For example, the support for GMA 500 hardware by Dell Ubuntu Hardy 8.04 is provided by the following repository
{{{
deb http://dell-mini.archive.canonical.com/updates hardy-dell-mini public}}}

== Contribution ==

The Ubuntu community is a great example of free software community in action, and is arguable one of the greatest examples of free software community in the world. To make Ubuntu better, You would like to take a look on new project [[https://launchpad.net/gma500|Intel GMA500 'Poulsbo']] and provide any help.

== Common problems ==

=== X doesn't start ===

Double check that the psb kernel module can be loaded into the running kernel by running '''modprobe psb'''. If not, remove and re-install the psb module as mentioned under Installation CD with psp drivers.

=== 3D Graphics (OpenGL) does not work after suspend and resume ===

This is a known bug with psb kernel driver. Due to partial close nature of the driver, because Intel has not released an open source driver, the bug fix is currently no available. There are reports<<FootNote(http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=NzY2Mg)>> that a new driver will be available shortly.

=== Additional Reading ===

Why GMA 500 hardware doesn't work out of the box? Read [[http://www.linuxjournal.com/content/how-kick-your-friends-face-gma500| "How To Kick Your Friends in the Face: GMA500" by Shawn Powers]] and the Intel "apology" [[http://www.linux.com/news/hardware/desktops/166625-blaming-intel-for-how-the-world-is|"Blaming Intel for how the world is" by Henry Kingman]]

=== Other problems? ===

If you're still having problems, please mail ubuntu-mobile@lists.ubuntu.com, and do not submit bug reports.
After adding the parameters to grub, functional keys such as wireless and volume also work.


== Have xrandr (multi-screen, color management) work correctly ==

By default (at least on 12.04, didn't test 12.10), Xorg uses the fbdev driver. Here is what to do to use modesetting :

install xserver-xorg-video-modesetting from this ppa : https://launchpad.net/~xorg-edgers/+archive/ppa,

then :

    {{{ gksudo gedit /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-modesetting.conf }}}

Put the following :

    {{{
Section "Device"
    Identifier "gma500_gfx"
    Driver "modesetting"
    Option "SWCursor" "ON"
EndSection
}}}

Save and close gedit, then disconnect/reconnect (or reboot your computer).


= Ubuntu 11.10 =

The default 3.0.x kernel does not work.

The linux-libre 3.3.x kernel is working. You can obtain it from [[http://jxself.org/linux-libre/|This repository]]

After adding the repository,

{{{sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install linux-image-3.3.2-gnu-686 }}}

= References =

 * [[http://blog.bodhizazen.net/linux/ubuntu-12-04-gma500-poulsbo-boot-options/|bodhi.zazen's blog : gma500 boot options]]
 * [[http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1984236|GMA500 (Poulsbo) gma500_gfx support thread on ubuntuforums]]

----
CategoryHardware

Driver overview

This page details support for the Intel GMA500 "Poulsbo" video hardware with Ubuntu 12.04 and higher.

Unfortunately the support for this hardware is extremely limited on Linux. There are several drivers, but all lack certain basic features, such as future and current maintenance or support for suspend and hardware acceleration.

Currently, the best supported driver for Ubuntu is gma500_gfx.

For obsolete and unsupported drivers see GMA500 Obsolete Drivers

GMA500_GFX driver

With kernel 2.6.39, a new psb_gfx module appeared in the kernel source developed by Alan Cox to support Poulsbo hardware.

As of kernel 3.3.rc1 the driver has left staging and been renamed gma500_gfx and is thus the default, supported driver for Ubuntu 12.04 and higher.

Starting with kernel 3.3.4 , the gma500_gfx driver works without adding any boot options.

The gma500_gfx does not (yet) support 3d graphics and it is unclear if it will in the future.

Live (Desktop) CD 12.04

The default Ubuntu 12.04 kernel works, but requires a custom boot option. Without that option, you will either get a black screen or distortions, such as top half of the screen only.

  1. Switch to a console - Ctrl-Alt-F1
  2. Restart X with 'sudo service lightdm restart'

That should bring you back to a functional graphical desktop, so that you can proceed testing or installing.

Post installation

Ubuntu 12.10 +

No workarounds should be required, however, upgrading from 12.04 is not recommended because of general UI sluggishness.

Ubuntu 12.04

With the default settings, Ubuntu 12.04 boots to either a black screen or or top half screen.

There are several potential solutions: console=tty1, disable splash, or 915 Resolution

Option 1 - console=tty1

Perhaps the easiest method is to use "console=tty1" as a boot option.

  • gksudo gedit /etc/default/grub

Find the following line: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"

Add console=tty1 in between the quotes, the end result looking as follows

  • GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash console=tty1"

save and exit, then update grub with

  • sudo update-grub

Option 2 - Disable splash

Some people find they need to disable the splash.

Essentially the same as above, just remove splash from the GRUB_CMDLINE_DEFAULT options.

Option 3 - 915 Resolution

First, you need to know what your desired resolution is. Common netbook resolutions are 1366x768, 1024x600 and 1024x576. The examples below will feature 1366x768, but be sure to change it to the actual resolution of your screen.

Using any editor, create a file /etc/grub.d/01_915resolution , add in lines

  • echo insmod 915resolution
    echo 915resolution 58 1366 768 32

Make the file executable

  • sudo chmod a+x /etc/grub.d/01_915resolution

Next, edit /etc/default/grub, assign value 1366x768x32 to variables GRUB_GFXMODE and GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX:

  • GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX=1366x768x32

Then update grub.

  • sudo update-grub

NOTE: some gma500 users may have to switch to a different tty and then back to tty7 even after performing the above modification to have a correct desktop. To do this press Ctrl-Alt-F6 then press Ctrl-Alt-F7.

Option 4 - Update kernel

The final option is to use the 12.10 kernel in 12.04. A higher kernel is available in backports.

Alternatively, you can try the mainline kernel:

http://packages.qa.dev.stgraber.org/qatracker/milestones/223/builds/16265/downloads

The problem with the mainline kernel is that it does not have all the Ubuntu patches (such as Apparmor) and is not supported (it is provided "as is" for testing only).

Video Playback

Due to the lack of Hardware accelerated video playback in the gma500_gtx kernel driver, at current video playback can be very slow, it can freeze, jump and the audio and video can desynchronise, However it is possible to avoid this by using mplayer with multithreading : Follow these instructions :

1. Install mplayer: sudo apt-get install mplayer

2. cd into the directory containing your video

3. run mplayer -lavdopts threads=4 -framedrop yourvideofile.avi

This will drop frames when needed, and use 4 threads (You should change this depending on your Atom Processor) meaning playing HD video is possible.

Problem solving

Most of the problems and workarounds listed are BIOS and Vendor specific. If your hardware is not listed, you may need to experiment.

Fix suspend

If suspend does not work for you, there are various quirk options you can try. See the manpage for pm-suspend for a list of them all. One that has been reported to help is quirk-vbemode-restore, which saves and restores the current VESA mode.

To test it, open a terminal and use the following commands

  • sudo pm-suspend --quirk-vbemode-restore

That should suspend your system. If you are able to resume, you'll want to configure Ubuntu to use this option every time you suspend. To do this open a terminal and use the following commands:

  •     gksudo gedit /etc/pm/config.d/gma500

Add in the following code and save the file:

  •     ADD_PARAMETERS='--quirk-vbemode-restore'

If it isn't working yet, you can try setting your resolution from 1366x768 to 1360x768 before suspend, then back to 1366x768 after resume. You can automate it in a script : in a terminal, type :

  •     gksudo gedit /etc/pm/sleep.d/01_survive_modeswitch

Copy/paste the following :

  •     #!/bin/bash
    
    case "$1" in
        hibernate | suspend)
            { xrandr --output LVDS-0 --mode 1360x768 ; }
            ;;
        thaw | resume)
            { xrandr --output LVDS-0 --mode 1366x768 ; }
            ;;
    esac

Save and close. Then, in the terminal :

  •     sudo chmod a+x /etc/pm/sleep.d/01_survive_modeswitch

Suspend and resume ; it should resume well.

Memory allocation optimization

You can often improve performance by limiting the amount of RAM used by the system so that there will be more available for the videocard:

  • sudo gedit /etc/default/grub

Add the following parameters to grub configuation if you have for example 1GB RAM:

  • GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="mem=896mb"

or if you have 2GB RAM:

  • GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="mem=1920mb"

Update GRUB:

  • sudo update-grub

Brightness hotkeys

Problems with brightness keys are most often vendor and bios dependent.

Acer

  • sudo gedit /etc/default/grub

Add the following parameters to grub configuration:

  • GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="acpi_osi=Linux acpi_backlight=vendor"

For the Acer AO751h, try blacklisting acer_wmi.

  • GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="acpi_backlight=vendor acpi_osi=Linux acer_wmi.blacklist=yes""

Update Grub:

  • sudo update-grub

After adding the parameters to grub, functional keys such as wireless and volume also work.

Have xrandr (multi-screen, color management) work correctly

By default (at least on 12.04, didn't test 12.10), Xorg uses the fbdev driver. Here is what to do to use modesetting :

install xserver-xorg-video-modesetting from this ppa : https://launchpad.net/~xorg-edgers/+archive/ppa,

then :

  •  gksudo gedit /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-modesetting.conf 

Put the following :

  • Section "Device"
        Identifier  "gma500_gfx"
        Driver      "modesetting"
        Option     "SWCursor"       "ON"
    EndSection

Save and close gedit, then disconnect/reconnect (or reboot your computer).

Ubuntu 11.10

The default 3.0.x kernel does not work.

The linux-libre 3.3.x kernel is working. You can obtain it from This repository

After adding the repository,

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install linux-image-3.3.2-gnu-686 

References


CategoryHardware

HardwareSupportComponentsVideoCardsPoulsbo (last edited 2013-11-11 16:58:16 by 157)