I upgraded my installation of Linux recently. Laptop was an IBM X40 with Mandrake 10.1 already installed. I did a full install however so I decided to report my success!
Part of this document is simply copied from my previous report: Mandriva (Mandrake) Linux 10.1 with the IBM X40
- Step 1: Install from hard disk
- Step 2: Linux install
- Step 3: centrino 2200BG wireless adapter
- Step 4: function keys
- Step 5: power management
- Step 6: no ethernet on boot
- Links
The machine
Well, it did not change. It's still an x40 with a Pentium Mobile 738LV (up to 1.4Ghz), 512MB RAM, a 40GB hard drive, 12.1" XGA TFT LCD, a modem, gigabit internet, and the Centrino 2200BG wireless adapter. I immediately upgraded the RAM to 1GB when I got it; this was straightforward: just stick the memory in, and it works.
I have used this laptop for over a year now and find it fantastic. It's small, light, and does everything I need!
Summary | ||
| Component | Status | Comment |
| Pentium Mobile 738LV | Works | |
| Sound | Works | |
| 12.1" XGA TFT LCD | Works | 1024x768, 16 millions color |
| Modem | Not tested | |
| Gigabit internet | Works | Tested on a 10/100 network |
| Centrino 2200BG wireless | Works | See section 3 |
| Power management | Partially works | See section 5 |
| Thinkpad keys | Partially works | See section 4 |
| External display | Works at 1024x768 pixels | |
Step 1: Install from hard disk
For my previous installation, I simply used an external DVD drive plugged on the USB port. It is the easiest solution and I strongly recommend you to use this option if you can.
In this case however, I did not have a drive with me, but since I already had a version of Linux running, I could perform an installation from the hard disk. Since the procedure is a little bit tricky, I reported it in a separate document: install Mandriva linux from the hard disk.
Step 2: Linux install
The Mandrake install went fine. I used my existing partitions:
- 10 gigs for windows, in
/mnt/windows - 8 gigs for the root partition, in
/ - 1 gig for the swap
- 10 gigs for my personal files, in
/home/ - 6 gigs for the programs I'll install by hand, in
/usr/local/
There was no other trouble with the install whatsoever, everything went smooth.
Step 3: Centrino 2200BG wireless adapter
Well, in my previous installation, the driver provided in mandrake 10.1 did not work properly, but they improved! With Mandriva 2006, I just had to go in the Control Center (configure your computer), select Netword and Internet, and play with the Wireless Connection section. Everything went smooth, and it works like a charm. As a user, you can simply start, stop, or change the wireless network from the KDE Panel. It's a great improvement of Mandriva 2006.
Step 4: function keys
For the controls keys, I had the following results:
Fn-F3: switch LCD screen off: does not work : fails to switch off the screenFn-F4: suspend to RAM: works, press Fn key to resumeFn-F12: suspend to disk: does not work : fails to suspendFn-Home,Fn-End: control screen light intensity: worksFn-PgUp: switch the small light above the screen: worksLoudspeaker buttonsclose to the Access IBM key: works
Step 5: power management
I didn't played too hard with the power management, but I did get my CPU to go from 500Mhz to 1.4Ghz depending on load. I know nothing about this stuff, so I just followed the same old instructions I got on this page a while ago. This is a copy and paste version of the site
My only comment is: do not forget to start the powernowd deamon! It's in the control center, under services. After that, everything works
great and my CPU speed is adjusting nicely. In the past, the KDE battery monitor did tell you the frequency at which the CPU was running. In my new version, it doesn't which is a bit annoying. On the other hand, I cheched with the -vvv option and /var/log/messages and the frequency does change, as needed.
Step 6: Last thought: no ethernet on boot
Most of the time, I use my laptop with wireless internet. Therefore, I disabled the eth0 and eth1 at boot: my computer does not try to get online straight away. There are two reasons for that: it can slow the boot process if you are not plugged in, and I like to choose my wireless access point. This can be done in the Mandrake Control Center, under network and internet options.
Links
05/2006 |
Speed-Step - Speed-step allows the system to dynamically change the frequency of the Pentium-M cpu in the X31 (from 1.4ghz down to 600mhz) to save power when the system is essentially idle. (How many Mhz do you really need to type an email?) Mandrake is nice and already provides the correct (speedstep-centrino) kernel module and a CPU frequency monitoring and control daemon (powernowd) which we just have to configure and enable. Add a line "
speedstep-centrino" to your/etc/modprobe.preloadfile so it will be loaded automatically on reboot, and then load it manually the first time by typing "modprobe speedstep-centrino".A
urpmi powernowdshould find and install thepowernowdrpm. If not, search for powernowd on google and install the RPM manually. Edit the/etc/sysconfig/powernowdand add "-vv -p 50" to the OPTIONS line. This will show a bit more information in the/var/log/messagesfile upon startup, as well as make the frequency changes happen faster than the default (1000ms or every second) to keep your system responsive. If you use -vvv instead of-vvyou will get a new line in/var/log/messagesevery time the frequency changes, which is good for debugging, but bad for daily operation.Note that the Pentium-M in the X31 can only go down to 600mhz, so 42% is the slowest the CPU will ever get down to.