OpenChrome Version 0.4.0 Release Note (March 30th, 2016) -------------------------------------------------------- OpenChrome is an open source implementation of x.org X Server DDX (Device Dependent X) graphics device driver for VIA Technologies UniChrome and Chrome9 IGPs (Integrated Graphics Processor). Please note that OpenChrome does not support VIA Technologies IGPs that are related to Trident Microsystems (i.e., Apollo MVP4, PLE133, and KLE133) or S3 Graphics (i.e., KM266). Here is the project home page for OpenChrome. http://www.freedesktop.org/wiki/Openchrome/ Please note that VIA Technologies does not support OpenChrome in any way. Supported Chipsets ------------------ - CLE266 - KM400 / KM400A / KN400 / P4M800 - K8M800 / K8N800 - PM800 / PN800 / PM880 / CN333 / CN400 - P4M800 Pro / VN800 / CN700 - CX700 / VX700 - P4M890 / VN890 / CN800 - K8M890 / K8N890 - P4M900 / VN896 / CN896 - VX800 / VX820 - VX855 / VX875 - VX900 Supported Features ------------------ - VGA - DVI from an integrated TMDS transmitter (CX700, VX700, and VX900 chipsets) - LVDS flat panel (i.e., laptop LCD flat panel) - EXA acceleration (RENDER acceleration) - Xv and XvMC - Dual screen (Screen clone mode only. No extended screen support at this point.) Unproven Features ----------------- - Standby (ACPI S1 and S3 State) resume - TV out - KMS support (Kernel Mode Setting; requires the use of VIA Technologies IGP DRM module supporting KMS. See "Where to Obtain OpenChrome Source Code" chapter for more details.) Unimplemented Features ---------------------- - Extended screen support - Hardware cursor support for CLE266, KM400, KM400A, KN400, and P4M800 chipsets - DVI via VT1632A TMDS transmitter (functionality is currently disabled) - DVI via Silicon Image SiI 164 TMDS transmitter - External HDMI transmitter (i.e., Jetway J7F5M-VHE-LF motherboard, VIA Embedded EPIA-P720 motherboard, etc.) - DisplayPort and HDMI support for VX900 chipset (Might work with the experimental DRM module that supports KMS. See "Where to Obtain OpenChrome Source Code" chapter for more details.) What's New for OpenChrome Version 0.4.0 --------------------------------------- OpenChrome Version 0.4.0 is a major break from the past versions where configuring the display resources were done manually. Now the displays are detected mostly automatically, although a few manual options still remain. These will be retired in the near future. Besides that, two alternative mode setting options were discontinued (VBE mode setting and "legacy" mode setting), in order to simplify the code. A regression affecting those with DVI to VGA adapter, which appeared in OpenChrome Version 0.3.x, is fixed. More importantly, devices that were not registered with a known device table (a table that is located internally inside the code) used to crash at boot time, but since this table was removed completely, this bug does not appear anymore. - Removal of VBE (VESA BIOS Extension) mode setting (removal of VBEModes and VbeSaveRestore options) - Removal of "legacy" mode setting (removal of ModeSwitchMethod option) - Removal of ActiveDevice option - Removal of ForcePanel option - Removal of PanelSize option - Removal of a known device table internally - Mostly automatic display detection - Fix for a regression affecting those with DVI to VGA adapter - Fix for a boot time crash for devices that were not on the known device table - Fix for a possible OLPC XO-1.5 detection issue (untested) - Fix for various small compilation warnings / errors Known Bugs for OpenChrome Version 0.4.0 --------------------------------------- Please note that the developers are committed to fixing every one of these bugs eventually, but due to time and resource issues, these bugs remain in the code currently. * The computer will fail to boot if RCA composite Video is used This was observed with the following motherboard. - VIA Embedded EPIA-M motherboard (CLE266 chipset) * Resume from ACPI S3 State or Suspend to RAM (STR) will cause a hang This was observed with the following motherboards. - VIA Embedded EPIA-CL motherboard (CLE266 chipset) - VIA Embedded EPIA-M motherboard (CLE266 chipset) - Foxconn 400M01-G-6L motherboard (KM400 chipset) - VIA Embedded EPIA-M830 motherboard (VX800 chipset) - Quanta IL1 laptop (VX800 chipset) * Resume from ACPI S3 State or Suspend to RAM (STR) will not cause a hang, but LVDS flat panel screen is lost or gets messed up If VGA still works, you might still be able to partially operate the computer. This was observed with the following computer. - Sylvania gnet 13001 netbook (VX700 chipset) - Epic Learning Epic 1314 laptop (MSI VR321 laptop equivalent, VN896 chipset) * There is no cursor on the screen in Lubuntu 10.04 This bug affects CLE266, KM400, KM400A, KN400, and P4M800 chipsets. It is related to the lack of hardware cursor support in OpenChrome code for these chipsets at the present time. This bug does not affect Ubuntu 10.04 LTS. * Window title for LXTerminal is not displayed correctly in Lubuntu 10.04 This bug likely affects every supported chipset. * DVI does not work DVI coming out of VT1632A DVI transmitter chip is currently broken, so the code to initialize it is currently disabled. Another possibility is that DVI is coming out of Silicon Image SiI 164 TMDS transmitter. SiI 164 is not supported by OpenChrome at this time. * DVI and flat panel does not work simultaneously in clone mode This has been observed with Sylvania gnet 13001 netbook (i.e., laptops based on VIA Technologies NanoBook reference design). * GUI screen will crash when the screen resolution is changed via a utility This bug has been observed in Lubuntu 12.04, but likely affects other OSes. How to Contact OpenChrome Developers ------------------------------------ Please visit these OpenChrome mailing lists. http://lists.freedesktop.org/mailman/listinfo/openchrome-users http://lists.freedesktop.org/mailman/listinfo/openchrome-devel openchrome-users mailing list is meant for casual, non-technical users asking questions about how to use OpenChrome, etc. openchrome-devel mailing list is for discussing OpenChrome development issues. Where to File a Bug Report -------------------------- In order to file a bug report, please visit http://bugs.freedesktop.org. When you file the bug, file it against "xorg." When specifying the component, please select "Driver/openchrome." This allows a message to be sent to openchrome-devel mailing list, so that developers can be notified of the bug. It is highly recommended to file the bug report over at http://bugs.freedesktop.org rather than sending a message to openchrome-devel mailing list. Also, filing a bug report against the Linux / BSD distribution you are using (i.e., Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, etc.) will likely be a waste of your time since the developers for those distributions do not directly work on developing OpenChrome. Where to Submit a Patch ----------------------- In order to submit a patch to improve OpenChrome, please visit http://bugs.freedesktop.org. Open a bug report and upload the patch there. When you file the bug, file it against "xorg." When specifying the component, please select "Driver/openchrome." This allows a message to be sent to openchrome-devel mailing list, so that developers can be notified of the bug. Where to Obtain OpenChrome Source Code -------------------------------------- The OpenChrome source code repository is located at. http://cgit.freedesktop.org/openchrome/xf86-video-openchrome/ The experimental DRM (Direct Rendering Manager) module that supports KMS (Kernel Mode Setting) is located at. https://cgit.freedesktop.org/openchrome/drm-openchrome/tree/drivers/gpu/drm/via If You See a Bug ---------------- If you see a bug, please don't be surprised. OpenChrome has been in development for more than 10 years. In that process, there were many different developers that wrote the code in varying ways. Due to the fact that OpenChrome is a unified graphics device driver that supports every UniChrome and Chrome9 IGP (even the VIA Technoloiges in house unified graphics device driver does not support the number of devices OpenChrome does), and UniChrome and Chrome9 IGPs tend to rely heavily on many different external encoders and transmitters. As a result, it is very difficult to get the code right for every possible configuration. Starting with OpenChrome Version 0.4.0, the project is under new management, and moving forward, the emphasis will be on device driver reliability, and code maintainability. (End of this document.)