Arch Linux

Jeffhunt90

Member

Registered: 2012-11-20

Posts: 14

xorg-server video and DRI compatibility

I am attempting to install an elderly Sony laptop model PCG-9G2P. It has run Ubuntu for  several years so it can be done.

Output from lspci | grep VGA gives 01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [Amd/ATI} Rage Mobility AGP 2x Series )rev 64)

When I startx there are either no screens found or it goes out of range with a blank screen.

Article https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=137803 which seems to deal with this includes the line:
"That's 3d support, not 2d. And even 3d can be made to work: compile the dri driver from mesa 7.11 source, then recompile the 2d driver with --enable-dri."

I got xf86-video-r128-6.9.2.tar.bz2 and attempted to compile it with --enable-dri but I now have a new problem. I get the error "No package 'xorg-server'  found"
I know xorg-server is there because it crashes the computer when I 'startx'

/var/log/Xorg.0.log has the line:
Screen 0 is not DRI2 capable
which seems to confirm what's said in the article above.

I'm stuck.

Also how do I control which video driver the system is attempting to use, now that I have fiddled with several?

Thanks for anything offered.

lordheavy

Developer

From: France

Registered: 2010-04-01

Posts: 292

Re: xorg-server video and DRI compatibility

There is xf86-video-r128 and r128-dri packages. Have you tried with these?

Jeffhunt90

Member

Registered: 2012-11-20

Posts: 14

Re: xorg-server video and DRI compatibility

thanks for response.
I've (re)tried xf86-video-r128 an r128-dri and they both give 'No screens found', unlike vesa which takes me out of range.

ConnorBehan

Package Maintainer (PM)

From: Long Island NY

Registered: 2007-07-05

Posts: 1,359

Website

Re: xorg-server video and DRI compatibility

This is a very late reply, but xf86-video-r128 is compiled with "--enable-dri" in the repos now. It would be useful to see the rest of your Xorg.0.log. That DRI2 message is harmless. To control the driver that your system is using, you should have an xorg.conf section like

Section "Device"
  Identifier Card0
  Driver "r128"
EndSection

For this driver to work, you will also most likely need a Screen section that specifies a resolution. Something small like 1024x768.

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