[SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

dhave · 2008-04-30 12:47:23

I get a lot of drive access noise when I use kernel 2.6.24 but not when I use kernel 2.6.25. Where should I look for the cause? Are there obvious kernel config options that would result in more drive noise? The noise continues unabated with 2.6.24.

Thanks.

Last edited by dhave (2008-04-30 20:09:34)

brebs · 2008-04-30 16:17:46

First thing to try is power-management:

hdparm -B 254 /dev/sda

shining · 2008-04-30 17:03:19

Then what's the problem? Use 2.6.25
Or do you want to use arch kernel package, and not your custom one or something?

dhave · 2008-04-30 17:17:00

brebs wrote:

First thing to try is power-management:
hdparm -B 254 /dev/sda

Thanks, brebs, I'll give that a shot.

shining wrote:

Then what's the problem? Use 2.6.25
Or do you want to use arch kernel package, and not your custom one or something?

I need to use VMware Workstation, and it's not playing nicely yet with kernel 2.6.25. Otherwise, I would prefer kernel 2.6.25. I'm sure a fix is being worked on, and I've tried a few already, but meanwhile I have to use 2.6.24.

dhave · 2008-04-30 18:10:51

I'm going to provide a few more symptoms, although, in doing so, I worry that it makes me seem like a lunatic.

(1) The excessive hard drive noise does seem to be related to access. It increases when I move the scroll bar in Firefox, for example. I'm surprised the hard drive is engaged at all for scrolling, but that's what's happening. (My machine has 4Gb of RAM, so it shouldn't be starved for memory.)

(2) If I'm running kernel 2.6.24, the noise seems especially to kick in at the point when KDE is loaded. Then the noise continues until I shut down the machine.

(3) If I'm running kernel 2.6.25, the noise seems to kick in when the X session begins, but it stops when KDE is completely loaded.

(4) Using hdparm to control power management has no observable effect.

This is all so very strange, and if it continues much longer, I'm going to stop reading this forum and join the alt.seniledementia newsgroup, which is probably where I belong anyway.

I haven't yet tried kernel 2.6.24 with another window manager or desktop environment, nor have I tested it without ever loading an X session. I need to do this but meanwhile, I thought I'd post this now in case somebody out there has had a similar paranormal experience.

Thanks.

Last edited by dhave (2008-04-30 18:11:38)

dhave · 2008-04-30 18:42:07

O.K., guys, I'm on to something here.

The hard disk sound is coming through the speakers! The noise persists with the speaker volume turned completely off (using software controls; this is a laptop). When I plug in my headphones, the noise is audible only through the headphones.

Evidently this is some kind of electronic interference that is kicking in only when I run kernel 2.6.24 but not when I run kernel 2.6.25.

I have no idea why it seems to start when I launch KDE.

It does not start when I boot and go directly into another desktop environment such as XFCE4.

The noise continues when I turn off my wifi using the hardware switch on my laptop.

FWIW, I have a Thinkpad T61p.

Any bright ideas? I'm just glad that it seems to be interference and not disk noise generated by a disk malfunction (or at least I don't think so).

Hey, I'm an English major. Somebody come to my rescue here, please!

Last edited by dhave (2008-04-30 18:49:48)

dhave · 2008-04-30 20:09:09

Ha! All I had to do was run alsaconf as root. As with many things, alsa needed reconfiguring with the switch from one kernel release to another. Rather than producing no sound at all, as I've known alsa to do in the past when it was incorrectly configured, it was generating strange audio interference related to hard disk activity.

So all is O.K. now. Thanks.

Arch Linux

#1 2008-04-30 12:47:23

[SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

#2 2008-04-30 16:17:46

Re: [SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

#3 2008-04-30 17:03:19

Re: [SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

#4 2008-04-30 17:17:00

Re: [SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

#5 2008-04-30 18:10:51

Re: [SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

#6 2008-04-30 18:42:07

Re: [SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

#7 2008-04-30 20:09:09

Re: [SOLVED] Drive noise under kernel 2.6.24, not under 2.6.25

Board footer