hp dv6000 series (dv6116eu)

Introduction

The dv6000 series from HP has some varying hardware setups, each with its own varying degree of success under Ubuntu Edgy. Hopefully this Wiki page will help sort out some of the hardware issues that arise from this series. Many users frequently report problems with boot hangs, screen resolution, wireless connectivity, audio, microphone/headphone ports, and fan speed.

This page is intended to help you with the setup of troublesome components, and is by no means an official HOWTO. If you find something to be incorrect, or have your own experience to share, please feel free to help us out.

Installation

First things first: if your laptop fails to boot the LiveCD (i.e. hangs at a certain point), then you most likely have a common problem with "apic."

Solution: When given boot options for the LiveCD, press F6 for other options and you should see a command line with commands already entered. Simply add as required.

noapic nolapic

to the end of the line and press enter. The system should now boot without stalling.

if that did not work, try this:

noapic nolapic noapci noirqpoll nosmp

Note I've been informed :-just boot with "noapic", the usb ports will not function... also, when I boot with "nolapic", Xorg doesn't load the nvidia drivers correctly... however, when u boot with BOTH options, ("noapic nolapic"), the USB ports function fine, and xorg has no problems running at all (beryl and AIGLX run great). if others find this please tell me so I know it's common issue

installed but not booting

As with the above, but at grub we need to hit the "e" key to edit our boot options. look for the longest kernel boot line if you've put the command no irqpoll on the linux image line in your boot loader (grub menu.lst) eg... example Linux-2.6-12-XXX blah noirqpoll splash and try booting. when you find the one that works-in terminal

sudo update-grub

The 6116eu laptop will quite happily install from an edgy live install cd, you may require alternate cd ISO if you need any .Deb packages prior to connecting to the internet EG network-manager-gnome.

*the dv6102 model has been reported to install Edgy without a hitch. *the dv6402ca model has been reported to install Fiesty using Wubi using boot options (above). Wireless is not available by default.

reported as bug

here's one more thing to add about the kernel boot options... according to http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=406143 , it's the noapcid option that actually disables the usbports. Their solution to this is to add the "irqfixup" option at the end of the line to counteract the "noapcid" option.

I found that I needed to add this 3rd option on, because without it the usbports will eventually stop functioning (10 mins or so). Very strange feisty fawn bug that only seems to affect amd64 machines. Forward Message

Screen Resolution

After initial installation, widescreen resolutions are sometimes unavaible, even if you edit xorg.conf.

For models that have the intel onboard video chipset, installing the package "915resolution" from the repositories will solve this problem. Reboot the system, and your screen resolution should be correct.

Wireless

Intel Chipsets

Some dv6000 models have the Intel 3945 Wireless chipset, and should work out-of-the-box with a basic Ubuntu install. If you are having problems connecting, enable the extra package repositories and install linux-restricted-modules, and don't forget wpa-supplicant if you need to use WPA security.

Broadcom Chipsets

The broadcom AIRFORCE 4113 rev 01 can be made to work with "bcm43xx-fwcutter". I used the script to install firmware and found it buggy using the wl_apsta.o firmware and bandwidth was useless. https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WifiDocs/Driver/bcm43xx/Dapper

Preferred method: Install ndiswrapper When set up correctly, works flawlessly. Getting to that point is the challenge.

1. Use synaptic to install the following: ndisgtk ndiswrapper-common ndiswrapper-utils ndiswrapper-utils-1.1 ndiswrapper-utils-1.8 module-assistant

2. Follow the guidelines in the link below. https://help.ubuntu.com/community/WifiDocs/Device/Broadcom_BCM4311_rev_01_%28ndiswrapper%29?action=show

I removed ndiswrapper kernel module and rebooted before proceeding with install

sudo rmmod ndiswrapper

sudo module-assistant

will allow you to see if module has been removed. It would be wise to remove the folder /etc/ndiswrapper before attempting to install the source, as described in the link above.

I used ndiswrapper 1.29 and compiled from source. The sp33008.exe can be extracted with cab extract and you must install using

sudo ndiswrapper -i bcmwl5.inf

For some reason ndisgtk never correctly installs them and when correctly installed ndisgtk doesn't show them.

Use this command to see installed drivers:

• sudo ndiswrapper -l
  

if you are lucky then you will get bcmwl5 driver installed, hardware (14E4:4324) present (alternate driver: bcm43xx) If you get a fatal error or it complains that it's not a valid driver it would seem that you haven't removed the original edgy kernel module and/or you didn't reboot after removing and before installing. If you are successful on reboot the wireless light will turn blue and you can install the package gnome-network-manager, if not already installed.

Reported wireless success

Graphics

You may use Envy, a Python script that eases installation of the official Nvidia and ATI drivers. Please see http://albertomilone.com/nvidia_scripts1.html

Envy works without problem with nvidia Geforce 6150 GO

If that did not work, try this:

nvidia Geforce 6150 GO Will run on open GL but requires the beta driver 13/04/07, this can be tricky to get to work nvidia-glx or nvidia-glx-legacy I have also tried driver direct from nvidia and anything apart from nv in xorg results in blank screen and having to boot into recovery and

sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

The 6116eu I am having problems with text only terminal and ethernet while in text login-this could be affecting nvidia driver install-will figure out and report findings

The dv6000z with a GeForce Go 7200 works with the nvidia driver, so long as you install nvidia-kernel-source and nvidia-glx (and any other packages that are required by these). After installing the source, use module-assistant to compile and install the nvidia module (driver). Type:

    module-assistant a-i nvidia

You might have to manually ensure that the video card driver in xorg.conf is "nvidia" and not "nv". (This was tested on Debian etch and lenny/sid, kernels 2.6.18 and 2.6.20)

The following guide has resulted in success: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=263851

Tested models

Integrated Devices

   module-assistant a-i linux-uvc

If the vendor ID of your webcam is 05ca, try installing the driver found at this website, http://lsb.blogdns.net/ry5u870/ or you can look in the forums here http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=2295682#post2295682. Follow the instructions located in the README. Here is a list of software that work and do not work with the webcam.

Applications Tested and Found to Work or Mostly Work

• xawtv -- the canonical video4linux test application

• Ekiga softphone.

• camstream version 0.27. Version 0.26.3 does not work due to YUYV bugs.

• Kopete instant messenger, although version 0.12 decodes color incorrectly and presents non-working video controls.

• aMSN instant messenger

• effectv real-time video effects

• Motion motion-detection and security

Applications That Do Not Work

As a warning, most of these applications do not work due to lack of support for the YUYV or UYVY pixel formats, or simple related application bugs.

• Camorama 0.18. This application does not understand YUYV or UYVY pixel formats, and will display a distorted image. A patch has been sent to the author.

• Wengophone 2.0. This application has trivial problems with its pixertool library that prevent it from recognizing the YUYV pixel format. Wengophone 2.1 will include a fix for this problem, and will correctly capture and display frames in most cases. Unfortunately, Wengophone 2.1's V4L input handler implements the minimum possible functionality and that app still has a few problems. It does not specifically request pixel formats that it understands, and if the last app to open the webcam configured UYVY, Wengophone won't work. Wengophone 2.1 also limits frame rates by not maintaining continuous capture and will cause the capture LED to blink erratically.

Media Card Reader

In most cases, the onboard media card reader will not work without a little persuasion. The driver for internal card readers is present in kernel 2.6.17, but is turned off by default. To enable it, do the following:

lspci

Look for SD/SDIO/MMC/MS/MSPro Host Adapter and note the number at the beginning of the line. For example, 05:05.2. Then run (inserting your number in place of mine):

sudo setpci -s 05:05.2 4c.b=0x02

Now put in an SD card, and it should work. The driver is still buggy, but should perform well nonetheless.

This method is not permenant, we're working on that.

suggested, but untried as my model has no media slot but-you could use "update-rc.d" to determine run levels and automate

Front Headphone/Microphone Jacks

NOTE: Feisty Fawn has a newer version of ALSA that detects and supports the front audio jacks.

For dv6000 models with Intel audio hardware (hda_intel), the ALSA driver included with edgy does NOT support the front audio jacks. The latest ALSA driver fixes the problem. To correct this, follow these steps:

1. Use synaptic to install build-essential and linux-headers packages.

2. Download alsa-driver package from alsa-project.org

3. Unpack it.

4. Open a terminal and navigate to the directory where you unpacked the driver. Then run "./configure --with-cards=hda-intel"

5. Run "sudo make"

6. Run "sudo make install"

7. Edit /etc/modules with sudo gedit /etc/modules and add "snd-hda-intel" on a new line within the file.

8. Reboot your computer and your front jacks should work!

After reboot, open up volume control and make sure that none of your channels are muted.

Tested models

Modem

Integrated modem with Conexant Chipset in the nVidia high definition audio that appears in lspci as 00:10.1 Audio device: nVidia Corporation MCP51 High Definition Audio (rev a2) works flawlesly with the driver provided by dell here

Please be sure to find out if your modem has a Conexant chipset before trying to use this driver. To do that refer to this page.

Once installed you have to reboot, and you can connect using kppp in kde or gppp in gnome. For more information take a look here I must warn you that getting an integrated laptop modem (winmodem) may be tricky sometimes so take it easy, but for me the dell driver worked perfectly and I got it working in 5 minutes or so.

Power Management

Battery Life

To pull some more life from your battery, open a terminal and type

sudo gedit /etc/default/acpi-support

Look for the section containing ENABLE_LAPTOP_MODE=false and change this value to true. This will cause your laptop to enter laptop mode when running on battery power, conserving more power. A restart will put this into effect.

Next open Synaptic and make sure you have the extra repositories enabled. Then install the following packages:

laptop-mode
laptop-mode-tools
laptop-detect
cpufreqd
cpufrequtils

or install them from the command line using this

sudo apt-get install laptop-mode laptop-mode-tools laptop-detect cpufreqd cpufrequtils

Additionally you can visit the unofficial Ubuntu Guide at www.ubuntuguide.org and follow the instructions found here http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu:Feisty#How_to_enable_your_CPU.27s_Power_Saving.2FFrequency_Scaling_features which has been reported to improve battery life.

Suspend / Hibernate

Suspend usually works out of the box for Ubuntu 7.04. If it does not post in the forums for quick help. Hibernate is a bit trickier and if it doesn't work out of the box use the following steps

sudo apt-get install uswsusp 
sudo s2disk        ## CAUTION: make sure data is saved for this test!

You will have to use that command to hibernate but at least it will be functional. If you use Beryl for desktop effects and find that suspend and hibernate do not work properly, then go into beryl settings and disable "Sync To VBlank". Next edit the /etc/default/acpi-support and set this

POST_VIDEO=false 

Known Issues

1. Reports of incorrect fan operation and risk of overheating. You should monitor your laptop's temperature until you are sure that the cooling system is operating correctly. Could be firmware issue - more info needed'

2. Occasional shutdown crash.

3. The headphone and microphone jacks are known to NOT work with the version of ALSA shipped in Edgy. Some users have reported that compiling a more recent version of ALSA has solved the problem. NOTE: Feisty Fawn Herd 5 and on support the headphone jack.

4. dv6116eu: If you duel-boot, the HP System Check will NOT inform you of BIOS updates as it claims. Both friend and myself have the 6116eu and on random occasions with f.17 BIOS it will not power up without first removing the battery and then re-inserting it. I followed the HP chat person's advice and used the automated updater - when instructed to remove battery & hold power button for 30sec-1 min, insert cable and boot without battery, boot windows and shut down, then re-fit battery.

5. I still get random lockups and crashes, especially when a beep might occur (e.g. pressing tab at a bash prompt to complete a filename).

6. Almost every time I shutdown, the system gets as far as shutting down the system clock, and then it locks up. The few times I've seen it get past that, I see that the next thing to get shut down is the alsa driver, which makes me wonder whether the reason for my lockups and inability to shutdown properly is due largely to the alsa driver.

latest bios allows button beep to be turned off (bios f.27 02/01/07) serious boot issues

The dv6116eu has ongoing issues with edgy - everything I've tried has failed to result in reliable booting:

1) Ndiswrapper and the Nvidia driver don't play nice.

2) ACPI sometimes stalls on boot, Noapic options have zero effect.

3) Occasional screen corruption on gdm login manager.

4) Since bios upgrade I now have some program like xfree86 is trying to directly access hardware - stalls on boot.

5) random hard lockups

Result boot 1 in 8

I fixed the boot issues by keeping an edgy base system and installing feisty kernel 2.6.20-6-generic - Do this entirely at your own risk

Wireless Issues:

*With the Intel 3945ABG wireless chipset, boot sequence will sometimes pause if the wireless switch is in the ON position. Turning the switch to OFF causes the boot process to resume normally. Once booted, wireless can be reactivated without a hitch.

• - - - > Could be related to the native drivers. Some users have reported that replacing them with ndiswrapper has resulted in greater boot reliability.

keyboard and touchpad

search

ksynaptics (kde) gsynaptics (gnome)

or

qsynaptics (general for config of synaptic)

panel system>administration>preferences>keyboard you can alter repeat rate etc

Installation using Wubi

Wubi creates a virtual Linux disk on a Windows system. I tried installing Linux on its own but I ended up ruining my dual-boot setup. I suggest you do this to make sure Ubuntu runs nicely on your system before making a full switch. "This has been tested with a dv6402ca." Download the latest Wubi Windows: http://wubi-installer.org/

Step 1

Run the installer. It will download the correct alternate ISO according to your choice. No 64-bit ISOs are listed, but you can get around this by reading up on instructions on how to install a custom ISO. I suggest installing to a new (unused) partition. If you are installing on the same drive as Windows, run Defrag twice. Otherwise, you will get some odd errors when booting into Linux.

Step 2

Run through the test installation. It's quite straight-forward. Once you reboot (installation complete) you will get a boot-up screen with "Windows (default)" and "Ubuntu". You can go ahead and select Ubuntu. Important: Be ready to press the ESC button, otherwise your computer might hang-up. There will be a 3 second pause (by default) to press escape and put in special boot-up options. If you miss this step, you will have to run Chkdisk (Windows usually does this automagically) and reboot to Ubuntu again.

Step 3

You should be at a black and white text screen with a couple of boot options. Using the arrow keys, select the top-most 'kernel' entry and press 'e' on your keyboard. You will now see the boot-up string. Add "noapci nolapic noapic noirqpoll nosmp" to the end of this line. Press enter to exit the edit. Press 'b' to boot using your newly edited kernal options. Note: The next time you boot into Ubuntu, you will have to do this again. To permanently make the change, you must edit your boot options while in Ubuntu. See point #2 here: http://grumpymole.blogspot.com/2007/05/ubuntu-how-to-edit-grub-boot-parameters.html

Step 4

You should see Ubuntu! Log in and mess about. Test everything and begin customizing interface and getting your drivers properly installed. Good luck! am /at/ artform /dot/ ca

NOTE

I started this wiki page as much for my own reference as to help others, without their help this page wouldn't be so comprehensive. Because the Dv6000 series varies in hardware, some users will have perfect systems and others will struggle.

Please feel free to add sections, if you feel there is an error please pm me and discuss before you delete

My DV6116eu has been an ongoing struggle with bios firmware and compatibility, I have resolved this by moving to Debian etch and beta Nvidia driver.

if bios update and power cycle do not resolve power button issue and power on times become longer-indicates hardware failure-interestingly in my case touch buttons then booted system.

After trying boot options that didn't work with ubuntu NOAPIC NOAPCI NOSMP I found NOAPIC worked on etch. I will be maintaining this wiki as ubuntu is debian based, I may not know the answer-but I am Teaker1s and you can pm me on forum for a chat.

NOTE 2: BIOS version F.3A released

HP has recently released two new versions of the BIOS for some dv6000 models (mine is a DV6383eu); the latest one (F.3A) seems be a (small) step forward in fixing some of the problems described on this page.

After a rather enthusiastic announcement, that the new bios was fixing most of the problem on my laptop (requiring only the NOAPIC boot option in order to work smoothly) i discovered that the solution had probably to be credited by a rather cryptic combination of the new patch and the hardware that was plugged in my computer (specifically: after 2 days, removing an usb webcam reverted everything to the old behavior...).

Until i will be able to perform more tests in order reproduce the lucky combination and generalize it a little, i can only report that the new F.3A patch for the BIOS doesn't solve the Pavillion problems (at least on my laptop) though doesn't compromise it's functionality either (and should probably be installed).

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