xorg doesn't startup with unichrome driver (on edgy)

[qji]

Binary package hint: xserver-xorg-video-unichrome

I installed xserver-xorg-video-unichrome package and reconfigured the xserver-xorg and now the xorg doesn' startup. There are error messages in the X.org.0.log file:

(EE) LoadModule: Module unichrome does not have a unichromeModuleData data object.
(EE) Failed to load module "unichrome" (invalid module, 0)
(EE) No drivers available.

thx
--
qji

[Alejandro Díaz-Caro (janus)]

I have the same problem.

My video card is the S3 Unichrome K8M800. I am using Ubuntu Edgy Eft, i386.

More information:

$ lspci -vv
[..]
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. S3 Unichrome Pro VGA Adapter (rev 01) (prog-if 00 [VGA])
        Subsystem: Micro-Star International Co., Ltd. Unknown device 7142
        Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B-
        Status: Cap+ 66MHz+ UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=medium >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR-
        Latency: 32 (500ns min)
        Interrupt: pin A routed to IRQ 201
        Region 0: Memory at f0000000 (32-bit, prefetchable) [size=64M]
        Region 1: Memory at f4000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
        [virtual] Expansion ROM at f5000000 [disabled] [size=64K]
        Capabilities: <access denied>

$cat xorg.conf
[...]
Section "Device"
  identifier "VIA Technologies, Inc. S3 Unichrome Pro VGA Adapter"
  boardname "S3 UniChrome"
  busid "PCI:1:0:0"
  driver "unichrome"
  screen 0
  vendorname "S3"
EndSection
[...]

$cat Xorg.0.log
[...]
(II) LoadModule: "unichrome"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/unichrome_drv.so
(EE) LoadModule: Module unichrome does not have a unichromeModuleData data object.
(II) UnloadModule: "unichrome"
(II) Unloading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/unichrome_drv.so
(EE) Failed to load module "unichrome" (invalid module, 0)
[...]

[Alejandro Díaz-Caro (janus)]

I was able to resolve the unichromeModuleData issue by renaming the file /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/unichrome_drv.so to /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/via_drv.so and changing the driver to "via" on the xorg.conf.
The only problem is that this file conflicts with the package xserver-xorg-video-via which provide the via_drv.so file (next update will rewrite that file), so, I removed that package.

[persicsb (persicsb)]

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=1747777#post1744775 contains the solution, and the description why these packages conflict. It also has the solution.

[libv (libv)]

This was caused by Rodrigo Parra Novo <email address hidden>, when he explicitely ignored my advice on how to handle the different unichrome forks.

As i'm not close to debian packaging, i'm not sure whether this is so feasible, but Replaces/Conflicts between the different packages should've solved this.

People just get the default via_drv.so installed, if they want to switch to another one, why not just apt-get install that one, and have the default replaced?

My reasoning behind this was that when IDRs pci rework hits, drivers will be loaded automatically, on the basis of PCI-IDs. Having multiple of drivers present for the same devices is not going to be helpful then.

But no. My suggestion got ignored, although, the reply received rodrigo's reply did gloss over that.

Congratulations.

[Alejandro Díaz-Caro (janus)]

> People just get the default via_drv.so installed, if they
> want to switch to another one, why not just apt-get install
> that one, and have the default replaced?

The problem is that, although we do that, we must change the name of the file because the driver can't load

[libv (libv)]

But the name of the resulting driver is via_drv.so under normal circumstances.

This is exactly what was changed and what breaks here.

[qji (qji)]

My videocard is a P4M800.
If I rename the file and use "via" driver in xorg.conf, I get error message, because the via driver doesn't support my card. In fact, the original via driver doesn't support my card, but the unicrome driver does.

[libv (libv)]

I should support P4M800 (although i don't have this device specifically), as the P4M800 is a VT7205 moved from an AMD northbridge (KM400) to an intel northbridge.

What i don't support is the P4M800CE and Pro and whatever variants VIA marketing have thought up.

So if you have something with a suffix, then yes, it is not supported, as clearly stated pretty much everywhere.

[Joachim Beckers (jbeckers)]

please, can we have this fixed before feisty?

it's really simple to fix this:

1) xserver-xorg-video-via should contain /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/via_drv.so with the old via driver.

2) xserver-xorg-video-unichrome should contain /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/via_drv.so with the new unichrome driver. this should not be renamed, or eslse it will break!

3) both packages should conflict. xserver-xorg-video-via should be preferred over the other one, since it's the official driver.

there's really no point in packaging the unichrome driver if it's not done this way...

[libv (libv)]

For whatever nasty and deprecated value of "official" here :)

There really is no real X maintainer for xf86-video-via. It was once sanctioned that openchrome was in charge of that, and that i, being the author of most of the code there too, as such, was not to be involved.

[Joachim Beckers (jbeckers)]

I was just calling the original driver "official", because unichrome/openchrome are both derived from the via driver. that one was bad/buggy/..., hence not really something official.

Furthermore, I9 think ubuntu wouldn't want to express any preference between openchrome and unichrome. let's just have them both packaged, so that the user can choose. but let's not force the user to either one by defaulting to it.

I think the old driver is really the best default choice.

[libv (libv)]

You can now get the unichrome driver packaged quite easily:

git-clone git://people.freedesktop.org/~libv/xf86-video-unichrome/

Then run dpkg-buildpackage on it to watch a correct package being created.

[Timo Aaltonen (tjaalton)]

Please test a new version for Feisty at:

http://users.tkk.fi/~tjaalton/dpkg

[Alejandro Díaz-Caro (janus)]

I am sorry, but I changed my video card last month

[Joachim Beckers (jbeckers)]

first problem that I can see is in the package description:

"This driver is originally shipped to be loaded as 'via' on xorg.conf, but this
package renames it to 'unichrome', so it doesn't conflicts with the other VIA
driver already available on Ubuntu."

this section is obsolete.

will test the driver now.

[Joachim Beckers (jbeckers)]

the driver works fine, and the package installs correctly.

attached Xorg.log

[Timo Aaltonen (tjaalton)]

Thanks for the feedback!

[bpdsmyth (brian-smyth)]

My system was using the the xserver-xorg-video-via driver not openchrome as I thought. I uninstalled the via driver and reinstalled the xserver-xorg-video-openchrome driver and everything is fine. I have 1440x900 resolution!

Brian