Using old i810 intel Dell Dimension 2300 with KDE pclinuxos 2012

[nerdful1]

I've been trying to get an old box working with PCLinuxOS and have trouble with getting it to even boot to login.

I've tried lots of things including the rm -f /etc/xorg stuff in the rare times when getting a login screen.

I recently tried installing the drive  in an Nvidia equipped box, and putting it back in the Dell.

It shows I810 in PCC on LXDE, and shows the 512 meg memory I put in.

I can't get the video to work.

I read about support being dropped by xorg or kde, but googling it seems some are running these cards/chips.

I thought I was ok with an old (2010) LXDE install, but could not update Synaptic to get the BUTT and Icecast apps I want to use the box for.

I can't put new hardware in this, so just need to know if it is a lost cause, or even if I must reluctantly use another distro.

I just want the box to stream audio with Icecast, or toss it.

Thanks.

[djohnston]

I've been trying to get an old box working with PCLinuxOS and have trouble with getting it to even boot to login.

I've tried lots of things including the rm -f /etc/xorg stuff in the rare times when getting a login screen.

I recently tried installing the drive  in an Nvidia equipped box, and putting it back in the Dell.

It shows I810 in PCC on LXDE, and shows the 512 meg memory I put in.

I can't get the video to work.

I read about support being dropped by xorg or kde, but googling it seems some are running these cards/chips.

You have not said which iso you are trying to install from. Also uncertain is why you sometimes get a login screen, or why you are trying to nuke the /etc/X11 directory. The older x11-driver-video-i810 package has been obsoleted by the newer x11-driver-video-intel package. It should be on the iso you're booting from. What speed did you burn the CD at?

I thought I was ok with an old (2010) LXDE install, but could not update Synaptic to get the BUTT and Icecast apps I want to use the box for.

I can't put new hardware in this, so just need to know if it is a lost cause, or even if I must reluctantly use another distro.

I just want the box to stream audio with Icecast, or toss it.

Thanks.

How long did you go before trying to upgrade? How long ago did you finally try to upgrade?

[nerdful1]

Thanks for the reply. After de-cobwebbing the long retired box,  I noticed it had XP Pro on it so I thought it would be a keeper for a multipurpose machine. Mostly using PCLINUXOS, but having a remote desktop XP on it for apps not able to use Linux.  I re-parted it using Gparted, and shrunk it down to about nothing, so ignore its Windows for now.

It ran perfectly on a LXDE 2010 BETA Livecd I used for Gparted, even running a 8187 rf dongle I had nearby. I think I installed it too, forgetting the big KDE upgrade that had happened. I noticed it did not have BUTT streamcasting gui in the repo, or maybe it was too old to update.

I have the latest main PCLinuxOS iso, md5test ok. This is the one that will not even run live. It drops to a blue screen referring to the X11 stuff on safeboot, and typing 3 in at F3 input will hang at black screen.

Putting the drive in another box, installing and updating runs perfectly on its nvidia card. Putting the drive back in the Dell, it pukes on the video.

I would like to patch up any .conf files in the nvidia box if possible, then put it back in the Dell, as it doesn't like the latest LIVECD for getting to console.

New video card for this is not an option. Using nearby junk fruity G5 is not MY option. (At least over my live body).

Or: Tell me of a Pclinuxos that has BUTT and Icecast available (ideally with its resident 256M memory so I won't have to use the 256 memory I put in it).

Thanks.

[djohnston]

I have the latest main PCLinuxOS iso, md5test ok. This is the one that will not even run live. It drops to a blue screen referring to the X11 stuff on safeboot, and typing 3 in at F3 input will hang at black screen.

By the "latest main", I assume you mean the KDE iso. Look at the PCLinuxOS main page, and you'll see there are choices of KDE, LXDE and XFCE versions. The KDE4 desktop is going to be too much for the 512 MB RAM you have. Try the full or mini LXDE iso instead. Report whether one of those works or not.

[nerdful1]

I shoud have mentioned something like the flagship, main, standard, or cut and paste: Release Date: 02-02-2012
KDE Full Version (pclinuxos-kde-2012.02.iso)
Size: 690 MB
Md5Sum: a226a2efb68f0cef4ae6dfe137f479ca
Produced by: Texstar and Pinoc

It does say 512 MB memory min, and is why I upped it from 256 to 512 before starting.

Anyway I'll burn the LXDE if I don't have a disk on hand in a couple mins.

Just before checking in here I booted the above release in safe boot and it came up with a login screen.

Previously I tried playing with XFdrake in the live cd, and it sees the card and monitor, but then says "reboot" which of course is moot on livecd.

Tell me what to go in and modify if you are around, and in the meantime I'll boot with LXDE and get back to you.

Thanks

[T6]

yes, 512 is the official minimum but you won't be able to do much at decent speed with that ammount of ram with kde4, usually you will need 768 or 1 gb to work normally

now, the i810 is the chipset or the video card?

you mention card, do you use the onboard video card or a pci or agp card?

some old mainboard with intel chipsets required to disable the onboard card, verify bios

others allowed to set the amount of ram taken for onboard video card, verify bios too

old intel cards can take a portion of each ram module depending on the size, sometimes is better to leave only one 512 mbs ram moduel than two 256 mbs modules because bios will take less form each module than form one module, the other problem with i810 video cards is that it takes weirds amounts of ram, for example 5 mbs or 10 mbs, usually you need 16, 32, 64 or more, especially for kde4 effects you will need at least 64 and i810 won't take that mcuh, i beleive that the limit for it is 24 mbs

[nerdful1]

Ok, tried to boot from the latest LXDE cd. I end up with blue xorg help screen in safe boot and video safe boot. Normal boot hangs with a movable pointer on black screen.

You were typing at same time.

It is built-in video on board. Nothing in bios has a video selection for memory.

I have 2 256M memory cards.

I am also making notes to myself in IRC chat

[nerdful1]

Note is dell 2300 not 2600, can't correct subject line.

Next step, I am going to install LXDE with the drive in a cooperating nvidia equipped machine, then edit as needed any conf files if you could help, then put it back in Dell.

[T6]

i never heard about the blue screen for xorg

can you discard ram slots and ram modules? try to boot the lxde livecd with the new module in ram slot 2

are you using two pc133 or pc100 ram modules?  that i810 if i remember correctly was only pc100 capable and sometimes pc133 gave problems when mixed with pc100

[T6]

found this

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/SYSTEMS/dim2300/specs.htm#1101572

it supports up to 32 mbs of ram for video and can handle pc133

the 32 mbs of ram will only be reached if you put two 512 mbs modules, in this moment it probably will only offer 8 or 16 mbs for video, this is very low for most tasks this days

[nerdful1]

The 256M that came with the machine says 133 on it.
the one i put in is also pc133.

I only want the machine to stream using butt and icecast, I would even like to run it by remote desktop eventually.

[nerdful1]

Wow, that is low video memory... I have agp video cards around, but no PCIs.

Any way to run it without video and just remote desktop?

I'm only used to ssh, and using pclinuxos rdesktop to remote desktop xp pro machines. (Which is why I wanted to keep the windows partition on this one)

[T6]

no, even headless servers require a video card

not sure what the problem is here, or ram or the kernel not acepting this old video card

[nerdful1]

I was just reading up on rdesktop and found it is only for running Windows only not linux anyway.

I'm used to running rdesktop to xp pro on local LAN, so I guess I'll use this Dell relic that way.

I have two other Windows boxes streaming I can swap this for once I get it streaming, maybe they are better equipped, and I can run PCLinuxOS on them...

My goal was to get this one streaming, and try to make a multi streaming box with .ogg, .ram and .mp3, an identical build for backup in the second box, and one for experimenting.

I never thought I'd need extensive or 3d video...

Thanks!

[Hootiegibbon]

I was just reading up on rdesktop and found it is only for running Windows only not linux anyway.

I'm used to running rdesktop to xp pro on local LAN, so I guess I'll use this Dell relic that way.

I have two other Windows boxes streaming I can swap this for once I get it streaming, maybe they are better equipped, and I can run PCLinuxOS on them...

My goal was to get this one streaming, and try to make a multi streaming box with .ogg, .ram and .mp3, an identical build for backup in the second box, and one for experimenting.

I never thought I'd need extensive or 3d video...

Thanks!

Nerdful1,

You should not need a extensive or 3d card, I have the main iso installed on less poerful machines, you just need to get a little invetive and accept some limitations with the some parts of the install (that card will not allow any effcets - and you will need to install a lighter WM without bells and whistles post install to make it graphically usable)

First we need to know a little more about that graphics card

some things to try initially.

try the FBDEV boot option (this uses the Linux Framebuffer to provide graphics and most graphics cards should work with it) ten after choosing the Kernel options (F6 on the livecd) and selecting default and enter the follow without the quotes  "ide=nodma"

if this does not work then try (on the default boot line choice ) pressing F6 use default again and add "vesa" without the quotes (uses the vesa franme-buffer)   

dont try and log in tokde at this stage - it will likely lock up the machine.

if either of these gets you to the KDM screen post back and I will move forward with some ideas, if you still get the unable to configure xorg screen - post back and say so.

Jase