Bug 139756

Summary:	/etc/modules.d/nvidia default contents are incorrect/misleading and can be easily improved
Product:	Gentoo Linux	Reporter:	Jim Tupper <gentoo>
Component:	[OLD] Library	Assignee:	X11 External Driver Maintainers <x11-drivers>
Status:	RESOLVED FIXED
Severity:	normal	CC:	garlicbread, gentoo
Priority:	High
Version:	unspecified
Hardware:	All
OS:	Linux
Whiteboard:
Package list:		Runtime testing required:	---

Description Jim Tupper 2006-07-09 04:45:58 UTC

In the file /etc/modules.d/nvidia, the second section deals with laptop use and says:

<snip>
# If you have a mobile chip, you may need to enable this option
# if you have hard lockups when starting X.
#
# See: http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=343186
#option nvidia NVreg_Mobile=1
</snip>

1st: "option" should be "options" - uncommenting that line as it stands breaks modules-update.

2nd: NVreg_Mobile=1 uses the static EDID information for DELL laptops. This is probably why it still broke my laptop.

Better than the slightly wrong debian bugreport, would be a reference to
/usr/share/doc/nvidia-drivers-1.0.8762-r1/README.gz, "Appendix I. Configuring a Laptop".

Also it might also be useful to reproduce the table in that part of the documentation:

So may I suggest using the following section instead:

<snip>
# If you have a mobile chip, you may need to enable this option
# if you have hard lockups when starting X.
#
# See: Appendix I. Configuring your laptop
# In /usr/share/doc/nvidia-drivers-1.0.8762-r1/README.gz for full details
#
# Choose the appropriate value from the table:
#    Value              Meaning
#    ---------------    ------------------------------------------------------
#    0xFFFFFFFF         let the kernel module autodetect the correct value
#    1                  Dell laptops
#    2                  non-Compal Toshiba laptops
#    3                  all other laptops
#    4                  Compal Toshiba laptops
#    5                  Gateway laptops
#
#options nvidia NVreg_SoftEDIDs=0 NVreg_Mobile=3
</snip>

Notice the extra option which explicitly disables SoftEDIDs, ensuring that the second option is actually used. Also notice I'm defaulting it to 3, which is the most generic option, and the user has enough information at their fingertips there to actually make a fully informed decision.

Thanks all

Jim

Comment 1 Jim Tupper 2006-07-09 05:15:23 UTC

At the risk of confusing my own patch, I'd replace the line:

# Choose the appropriate value from the table:

With:

# Choose the appropriate value for NVreg_Mobile from the table:

Comment 2 Jakub Moc (RETIRED) gentoo-dev

2006-11-28 06:44:19 UTC

*** Bug 156508 has been marked as a duplicate of this bug. ***

Comment 3 Chris Gianelloni (RETIRED) gentoo-dev

2006-12-05 06:51:01 UTC

Fixed in CVS... thanks...