Saturday, August 11, 2007

Lenovo thinkpad R61i - install and configuration with slackware 12.0

- install slackware 12

Simple, I still do the same as I first use slackware 3 in 1996, I can not remember the exact year.

- configuration

audio : alsamixer and alsactl store
video : use default xorg.conf change resolution to 1280x800
user account: adduser markc
choose windows: kde as default.

also, to build linux kernel and I need...

# chown -R markc:root /usr/src


- setup wireless with ipw3945

That's a big story, I spent several night on it experience failure and success, another failure and another success. I am using linux kernel 2.6.21-5 from slackware 12.0 with the following packages:


ieee80211-1.2.17
ipw3945-1.2.1
ipw3945-ucode-1.14.2
ipw3945d-1.7.22

They are important, because it fails with ieee80211-1.2.18 and ipw3945-1.2.2.

1 with ieee80211, "tar, make, make install"
2 with ipw3945, "tar, make, make install, depmod"
3 with ipw3945-ucode, copy the ucode file to /lib/firmware.
4 with ipw3945d, copy ipw3945d at x86 to /sbin
5 Now goto ipw3945: do ./load debug=0,
or, modprobe ipw3945 if there is no ieee80211 and ipw3945 installed.
6 "/sbin/ipw3945d &"
7 "wpa_supplicant -Dwext -ieth1 -c /etc/wpa_supplicant.config -B"
8 dhcpcd eth1
9 ping www.google.com, happly to get successful response
10 set startup script


modprobe ipw3945
/sbin/ipw3945d

in my /etc/rc.d/rc.local

and /etc/rc.d/rc.inet1.conf

use_dhcp[1] to "yes" instead of use_dhcp[0]


- setup ACPI

The default ACPI not works on the thinkpad, the only way to fix it is to rebuild the kernel.
Here is my current setting

#
# ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface) Support
#
CONFIG_ACPI=y
CONFIG_ACPI_PROCFS=y
CONFIG_ACPI_AC=y
CONFIG_ACPI_BATTERY=y
CONFIG_ACPI_BUTTON=y
CONFIG_ACPI_VIDEO=m
CONFIG_ACPI_FAN=y
CONFIG_ACPI_DOCK=y
CONFIG_ACPI_BAY=m
CONFIG_ACPI_PROCESSOR=y
CONFIG_ACPI_THERMAL=y
# CONFIG_ACPI_ASUS is not set
CONFIG_ACPI_IBM=y
CONFIG_ACPI_IBM_BAY=y
# CONFIG_ACPI_TOSHIBA is not set
CONFIG_ACPI_BLACKLIST_YEAR=0
# CONFIG_ACPI_DEBUG is not set
CONFIG_ACPI_EC=y
CONFIG_ACPI_POWER=y
CONFIG_ACPI_SYSTEM=y
CONFIG_X86_PM_TIMER=y
CONFIG_ACPI_CONTAINER=m
# CONFIG_ACPI_SBS is not set


After rebuild the kernel, ACPI at last works, but I found the following problem.

~ # dmesg | grep 3945
ipw3945: Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945 Network Connection driver for Linux, 1.2.1d
ipw3945: Copyright(c) 2003-2006 Intel Corporation
ipw3945: Detected Intel PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network Connection
ipw3945: ipw3945.ucode load failed: Reason -2
ipw3945: Could not read microcode: -2
ipw3945: probe of 0000:03:00.0 failed with error -2
~ #


So I still prefer to use my download wireless packages that I have configured before, so I did an another reconfiguration on the wireless thing to make it work. BTW, in building linux kernel, the wireless device driver may have failures, I fix it by reconfigure linux kernel, such as don't include ipw2200 etc. Build a linux kernel is most easy thing for a programmer.

At last the main things works: video card with 1200x800mode, ACPI can show battery usage, and wireless network, audio can play music.

I did not test the other things such as print, fax, cd burner, usb connection, etc.

At last, I want to thank slackware, it is a wonderful distribution, not like ubuntu and fedora they have so many people and efforts on them but still not excellent, while slackware is just simply make things done.