Xenialpup64 CE 7.5 / 25 Nov 2017

[slenkar]

it started working now, dont know how it got fixed sorry

does puppy have a power getting low warning?

I dont get a warning then the laptop just switches itself off.

Oh I just noticed QBat has an option to give a warning.

[Lassar]

Found part of the answer concerning booting up to a different puppy, from what I was expecting.

It seems that puppy looks thru the partitions one by one for puppy...sfs files.

And if it finds it, uses that sfs file.

This is how puppy torments the poor developer, who stores puppy...sfs files on his hard drive.

Instead of searching partitions one by one, puppy should always search it's own partition first, then other partitions!


From readme.txt inside initrd.gz.

Some significant files in the init world:
=========================================

vmlinuz:
This is the Linux part of Puppy Linux, usually referred to as the Linux kernel.
...

initrd.gz:
This contains the Puppy files that form the RAM based filesystem that is in place when init runs.
...

puppy...sfs:
This is the main Puppy file, containing most, if not all, the software that is in the current Puppy.

...

zdrv...sfs:
This contains kernel modules(device drivers), and firmware files matching the kernel in vmlinuz.
Without this file, Puppy will usually still boot, but some devices will either not work or not work properly.

fdrv...sfs:
This contains firmware files. It can be used to override the contents of zdrv...sfs.
This file is present in only some Puppies.

ydrv...sfs:
Notionally a patch file. It can be used to override the contents of puppy...sfs.
It is usually not present.

adrv...sfs:
Notionally an application file. It overrides the contents of all other sfs files.
It is usually not present.


Overview of how it works:
=========================

* A typical frugal install of Puppy is a directory containing the above files.
* So init begins by establishing the location of this directory,
by looking for the puppy...sfs file.
* In the absence of any indication as to it's location, init searches throughout
the partitions of the system until it finds it.

Doesn't puppy know which partition it booted up from?

If puppy doesn't know which partition it booted up from, it could search for a dummy file, that exist only in it's own partition.

[bigpup]

If the boot loader being used, does not have location info in the entry that is booting the Puppy version, it does do a wider search for files.

Example:
I use Grub4dos boot loader.
Typical entry in it's menu.lst, gives location info for the files needed to boot.

Code: Select all

title Puppy xenialpup64 7.0.8.5 (sdc3/xenialpup647085uefi)
  uuid 24a14d90-6d75-4276-a6a0-ef026f8d07cf
  kernel /xenialpup647085uefi/vmlinuz   psubdir=xenialpup647085uefi pmedia=usbflash pfix=fsck
  initrd /xenialpup647085uefi/initrd.gz

If the entry has pmedia=cd. it will look more aggressively, because it thinks it is running from a CD. One of the options, running from a CD, is to put the save and main Puppy sfs on the computers hard drive.
Those could be placed anywhere on the drive.
So, it searches the hard drive until it finds them.

[rufwoof]

Another grub4dos menu.lst example (for my Tahr boot)

Code: Select all

title Tahr64
find --set-root /Tahr/puppy_tahr64_6.0.5.sfs
kernel /Tahr/vmlinuz pmedia=ataflash psubdir=Tahr pfix=fsck pupsfs=sda2:/Tahr/puppy_tahr64_6.0.5.sfs zdrv=sda2:/Tahr/zdrv_tahr64_6.0.5.sfs
initrd /Tahr/initrd.gz

You can alternatively use (hd0,2) type prefixes as helpful pointers (disk (counting from zero), slice/partition).

title xxxx
root (hd0,2)
....

[gyro]

Doesn't puppy know which partition it booted up from?

No.
When the "init" script starts, a "vmlinuz" and an "initrd.gz" have been loaded into memory with no indication where they came from. And there is no partition mounted to provide a clue.

So either the "init" script goes searching, or you tell it where you installed it.
Why do we always tell the boot loader exactly where the "vmlinuz" and "initrd.gz" files are, but can't be bothered to provide the same information to "init".

How do you do this?
Use the "pupsfs=" boot paramter to inidicate the partition, using either a partition name, label or uuid.
Use the "psubdir=" boot parameter to indicate the subdirectory within that partition.
If you want to store your save folder on a different partition use the "psave=" boot parameter.

Here is an example grub4dos entry using partition labels:

Code: Select all

title Puppy slacko 6.9.6.7 (sda3/slacko)
  uuid d304ea0b-d87a-415f-93e7-44275ade4a77
  kernel /puppy/slacko/vmlinuz pmedia=atahd pupsfs=Linux psubdir=/puppy/slacko psave=Work:/pups/slacko/ pfix=fsckp,trim,nocopy
  initrd /puppy/slacko/initrd.gz

gyro

[foxpup]

I am using/testing Xenialpup64 7.0.8.5 on a new lenovo ideapad for quite a while now. I did some reporting around 2 june.
I have no big issues; XP runs really fast and nice... except I have an Optimus machine, with 2 graphic cards and XP always runs on the lesser. There is an internal Intel card and an external nVidia card; XP only uses the Intel card.
There was no support for an Optimus-2gc-system in Linux as in latest Windows, until recently. Read this:
https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2329171
https://devtalk.nvidia.com/default/topi ... onization/

But it needs Xorg 1.19
Hence my question, or suggestion to step up from xorg 1.18 to 1.19 for XP.
Would that be possible?
It would make XP more attractive to use on modern machines.

[bigpup]

Has anyone used the bugfix (icon on desktop) and it worked OK?
No problems with Xenialpup64, after using bugfix, and letting it install stuff?

[artsown]

@bigpup

Bugfix on 7.0.8.5 doesn't appear to download anything. It simply
reports "no fixes yet". I just tried this on a new frugal without a
save file. If something is actually downloaded it happens too
quickly to see.

Art

[Bird Dog]

My bug fixes keeps saying it hasn't installed any bug fixes yet so I just assumed nothing needed to be fixed. Anyone downloaded Thunderbird tar.gz from the mozilla site and it worked okay in Xenialpup64 without having to compile or anything. Is there anything that must be done to the tar.gz file in order to get it to work. I downloaded the deb file from the Skype for Linux website and it works great without doing anything in Tahrpup64. Made a folder in the Network section and everything. Anyone tried the Skype for Linux deb file in Xenialpup64?

Thanks
Bird Dog

[Lassar]

I noticed a improvement in xenialpup64 over tarhpup64.

Xenialpup64's nouveau drivers crash less then tarhpup64's nouveau drivers.

They still crash, but takes a lot longer to crash.

Has anyone tested xenialpup64 with the latest nouveau drivers?

[Bird Dog]

Hi Lassar switch your video card to an ati or even intel and you'll never crash using Palemoon. I paid $50 for an old pci express 2 ati video card which are all compatible with the original pci express and I haven't crashed in a month with a computer that constantly crashed using an nvidea card. My other computers with ati video cards have never crashed with Palemoon. From my experience with Puppy and Linux I would never buy or build a computer with an nvidia card unless I knew there were drivers included in puppy that wouldn't crash the browsers. I don't think Linus Torvalds liked Nvidea very much.

Thanks
Bird Dog

[bigpup]

Nouveau driver is a open source, general Nvidia hardware driver.
It is not perfect.

You can install the correct Nvidia driver for your hardware.

This is how to do it.
http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=110611

[Lassar]

The reason I asked about the nouveau driver is that it looks like it might be
a lot smaller then the nvidia driver.


Okay I read this in the forum nvidia how to:

Installing a Nvidia driver run package

Will need following items:
1.Nvidia driver run package
2.Puppy version DEVX SFS package
3.Puppy version kernel source SFS
4.Getnvidia program

I checked out http://shinobar.server-on.net/puppy/opt/pup64/, and the getnvidia package looks old. (23-Oct-2013)

So where do I find the Getnvidia pet?

I want to make the nvidia sfs on a computer that does not have nvidia graphics on it.

Then install this nvidia sfs on a computer that does has nvidia graphics on it.

[bigpup]

I checked out http://shinobar.server-on.net/puppy/opt/pup64/, and the getnvidia package looks old. (23-Oct-2013)

In Puppy, the age of when a program package was made, has nothing to do with it working.
If it works, do not try to fix it.

That link I posted is the getnvidia pet package you want.

About making the Nvidia driver on a different computer, than the one you want to use it on.
You are still going to have to boot that computer with Xenialpup64 version you have.
Load the devx and kernel sources sfs's
Install Getnividia.

The big reason is the Nvidia driver has to be made for the specific Linux kernel that the version of Xenialpup is using.
The driver has to be compiled for that specific kernel and it will only work on that specific kernel.

It would be easier to just do it all on the computer you want it on.
All that is needed is an internet connection.
Could download all needed files on another computer and copy them onto the final computer.

Also, understand there is no one Nvidia driver that supports all Nvidia hardware.
That is why you have to check their web site to see what the specific hardware needs.
Right now there are about 4 or 5 drivers that will cover most Nvidia hardware.
All drivers are different.
A specific driver supports a specific group(S) of hardware.

[bigpup]

I noticed a improvement in xenialpup64 over tarhpup64.

Xenialpup64's nouveau drivers crash less then tarhpup64's nouveau drivers.

They still crash, but takes a lot longer to crash.

Has anyone tested xenialpup64 with the latest nouveau drivers?

Crash how?
What happens?
Specific details!

[Lassar]

To use Getnvidia:
Well, install it.
Download the Nvidia run package, place in /mnt/home

I am having trouble finding /mnt/home

I don't think there is such a place in xenialpup.

[Lassar]

What happens?
Specific details!

When I was using a addon in kodi, the screen faded to white.

And kodi froze up. I think xenialpup crashed.

[foxpup]

I am having trouble finding /mnt/home

I don't think there is such a place in xenialpup.

You run puppy with a pupsave?
If you run puppy pfix=ram (without pupsave) there is no /mnt/home/. So shotdown and make a pupsave if you want /mnt/home/. It will be offered to you on first shutdown.

[Lassar]

I was getting errors in the creation of the sfs.

So I gave up and downloaded nvidia-glx-304.135-k4.9.15-xenial64.sfs from
https://archive.org/download/Puppy_Linu ... river_Repo

The nvidia 173.14.39 driver should be a lot smaller.

Could someone compile NVIDIA-Linux-x86_64-173.14.39-pkg2.run
for the 4.9.15 kernel?

[foxpup]

Could someone compile NVIDIA-Linux-x86_64-173.14.39-pkg2.run
for the 4.9.15 kernel?

Lassar,
You better ask this is the "Nvidia drivers" thread.

This probably needs patches because the kernel is too recent for the old driver. So it is not easy to do, perhaps impossible. The recent xorg in xenialpup can be a problem for the old driver too.
Also, does this driver support your graphic card? Did you check?