Ubuntu Wiki

Driver overview

This page details support for the Intel GMA500 "Poulsbo" video hardware in various Ubuntu releases. Unfortunately the support for this hardware is extremely crappy on Linux. There are several drivers, but all lacking certain basic features, future and current maintenance or support for things like suspend.

The list of drivers including its major properties and below tables with a features matrix:

• PSB driver
  • Closed-source core
  • Good performance
  • Not supported anymore by its original developers (Tungsten Graphics)
  • Some 'glue' around this core available, which can be maintained by community.
  • Community was able to fix the glue for newer releases of Ubuntu, though with driver performance degradation
  • No real sustainable future possible (gets harder with each Ubuntu release)
• EMGD driver
  • Closed-source core and glue
  • Mediocre performance
  • Supported by Intel Embedded division
  • Nothing of this driver is open source, completely at the mercy of Intel
  • Intel lacks with releasing up-to-date drivers. Almost full Ubuntu release cycle behind.
  • Nobody knows how long Intel will support it; And when support stops this driver is directly dead.
• PSB-GFX driver
  • Open-source kernel module
  • Brand new, only basic features. But with good 2D performance.
  • No 3D, Xv, Hardware Acclerated Video and such available
  • Written by kernel hackers
  • This driver will be very sustainable in the future, though whether a full set of features will ever be supported is unclear
• IEGD driver
  • Closed-source core and glue
  • Mediocre performance
  • Supported by Intel Embedded division
  • Nothing of this driver is open source, completely at the mercy of Intel
  • Even though new versions are released, no new Xorg versions are supported, limiting support to Karmic and making it useless on newer Ubuntu releases.
  • As user you can consider this driver as dead.
• Other

  • You can also choose to use a basic driver like fbdev, see HardwareSupportComponentsVideoCardsPoulsboAlternatives.

PSB driver

EMGD driver

PSB-GFX driver

IEGD driver

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-3d

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.

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. 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

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 this form to send your findings to the gma500 team.

Tweaks

Known tweaks and workarounds for Karmic and Lucid (installed by default for Maverick and Natty)

Suspend by moving 99video

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

Suspend by using uswsusp (alternative)

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"

Brightness hotkeys

sudo gedit /etc/default/grub

add the following parameters to grub configuration:

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="acpi_osi=Linux acpi_backlight=vendor"

next run:

sudo update-grub

Compiz

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

Memory allocation optimization

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

Kernel mode setting

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

Flash plugin replacement for Firefox

(for all Ubuntu releases):

* 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/

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 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 reports² that a new driver will be available shortly.

Additional Reading

Why GMA 500 hardware doesn't work out of the box? Read "How To Kick Your Friends in the Face: GMA500" by Shawn Powers and the Intel "apology" "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.