SubscribeLinux (Fedora 20) on Dell Precision M6800
This post describes the issues and some solutions for using Linux on a Dell Precision M6800, the one described in the previous post. This probably largely applies to Precision M4800 too.
TL;DR: Don’t buy it for now if you’re not ready to tweak stuff. Otherwise you may consider. Personally I am quite happy and expect some things to improve in the future.
This exact model has an i7-4800MQ, 16GB of RAM, Nvidia Quadro K3100M and a 512GB SSD.
I have updated the bios to version A05, which was published just a few days ago. It seems likely that Dell will publish further updates too, as the hardware is relatively new.
I’m using Fedora 20. It boots up fine and installs fine, no surprises there. Altough it’s kind of a mess to try to figure out how to layout the two disk drives. I recommend using only the SSD and leaving the HDD for backups or alternate OSes or something. It also booted up with some recent version of Ubuntu, but it had an old kernel so I decided to try something else.
WLAN
This model comes with a Dell Wireless 1550 WiFi+Bluetooth card. It basically doesn’t work on Linux, as it uses the BCM4352 chip; neither with Broadcom’s proprietary driver (it works a bit and then doesn’t), nor any open source drivers (they don’t even try). I inserted a BCM4311 card that I already have in one of the extra slots (the WWAN slot; an ancient Intel card didn’t work in it) and it works with Linux 3.12′s built-in b43 driver… mostly. It has some problems too (dies under heavy load until reboot) but those probably aren’t related to the M6800.
(The proprietary driver claims to support BCM4311 too, but causes some kind of an error in the kernel’s built-in 80211 stuff requiring a reboot… go figure. If someone is interested, I can provide logs.)
The Nvidia Quadro K3100M
When I started writing this post, I didn’t have this working the way I wanted to. However, I decided to retry still once more and now got it working.
So, I now have an apparently working bumblebee + nvidia configuration on a Dell Precision M6800. It’s mostly set up like this; the non-nouveau way: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Bumblebee. I manually ran /usr/sbin/bumblebee-nvidia on the command line without Xorg being running. Maybe that affects something, maybe not. Also it needed some library paths to be set up. Maybe.
Also make sure to not have nouveau installed at all; many drivers include their own blacklists and whatever directives in random places and ultimately nothing will work if more than one is installed. I have also heard that nouveau won’t work on a K3100M at all, or at least not with bumblebee.
It looks like the GPU will throttle down heavily when running on battery; leading to a difference of running smoothly at 60fps vs. running clearly not smoothly at maybe 15fps. That’s in Kerbal Space Program that I’m testing this with.
If you fail to install working bbswitch, you get constant 30W idle power consumption, which will lead to fans spinning constantly and battery life being limited to 3 hours.
ACPI
I have put manually into use the kernel parameter acpi_backlight=vendor, which changes the exact namings and details in /sys/class/backlight, and added the following into /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/10-device.conf:
Section "Device" Identifier "Haswell Integrated Graphics" Driver "intel" Option "Backlight" "intel_backlight" EndSection
I also experimented with a bunch of custom acpid actions for backlight and volume, and ended up leaving the backlight in there but doing volume control using shortcuts keys in IceWM. Your mileage will vary, and all this is dependent on your desktop environment, display manager and whatever. Most of them try to do much of this by themselves, to various degree of success.
Sound (ALSA)
I added some quite agressive power saving set-up scripts, and it turned out you shouldn’t set up any power-saving for the snd_hda_intel module, as it will disconnect the signal from the headphone jack when being automatically shut down. If it’s connected to a badly grounded audio amplifier and speakers, mains electricity noise and popping noise will be heard. Talk about random issues. 8)
Touchpad
By default the touchpad doesn’t allow clicking or dragging by tapping (either due to itself or due to changes in Xorg). I’m not sure if I like that; I’ll have to experiment. It’s configurable with various tools and Xorg’s configuration though.
Stability?
…Aand there it goes. I was running Kerbal Space Program on an another workspace with optirun while writing this, and suddenly X went completely black (only mouse was visible and moveable) and I had to kill it in a virtual console. So there clearly is some unstability here – dunno if it would have worked better if I hadn’t been switching workspaces, or if SELinux wouldn’t have prevented Xorg from doing something, or… yeah. I’ll amend this when I get to know the stability of things better. I have played a lighter game (not Minetest!) using integrated graphics for many hours already though, and I’ve experienced zero crashes with that. So clearly something does work.
Power Consumption
If everything is correctly configured, the laptop will take about 17W at idle from the battery at a low-ish screen birghtness, and about 44W when running Minetest with integrated graphics, and about 58W when running Minetest using discrete graphics. The performance difference between those when the AC adapter is removed is very small though, and I can’t measure how much the K3100M takes when running on external power. Still, the fans don’t come out that loud with such load. You can compare those numbers to the 99Wh capacity of the battery.
I need to figure out if it’s possible to let the K3100M run faster from the battery. If I run something using optirun, it’s not like I want to save battery in the first place. I can just use the integrated GPU in that case, saving a lot of power.
The HDD
My M6800 came with a 750GB hard disk drive. It’s fairly useless as I can fit everything I need on the 512GB SSD, but the drive is quite loud and doesn’t spin down automatically. Put this into /etc/systemd/system/boot_setup_hdd.service and run systemctl start boot_setup_hdd && systemctl enable boot_setup_hdd:
[Unit] Description=Setup HDD powersave (By c55) [Service] Type=oneshot RemainAfterExit=yes ExecStart=/usr/sbin/hdparm -B 1 -S 5 -y /dev/sda [Install] WantedBy=multi-user.target
This will make the HDD spin down immediately when it is run, and if the HDD is accessed, 25 seconds after not being used anymore.
kernel
Linux localhost.localdomain 3.12.5-302.fc20.x86_64 #1 SMP Tue Dec 17 20:42:32 UTC 2013 x86_64 x86_64 x86_64 GNU/Linux
lspci (including my BCM4311 that didn’t come with the M6800):
lspci -nnk 00:00.0 Host bridge [0600]: Intel Corporation Xeon E3-1200 v3/4th Gen Core Processor DRAM Controller [8086:0c04] (rev 06) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] 00:01.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation Xeon E3-1200 v3/4th Gen Core Processor PCI Express x16 Controller [8086:0c01] (rev 06) Kernel driver in use: pcieport 00:02.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation 4th Gen Core Processor Integrated Graphics Controller [8086:0416] (rev 06) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: i915 00:03.0 Audio device [0403]: Intel Corporation Xeon E3-1200 v3/4th Gen Core Processor HD Audio Controller [8086:0c0c] (rev 06) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel 00:14.0 USB controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family USB xHCI [8086:8c31] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: xhci_hcd 00:16.0 Communication controller [0780]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family MEI Controller #1 [8086:8c3a] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: mei_me 00:19.0 Ethernet controller [0200]: Intel Corporation Ethernet Connection I217-LM [8086:153a] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: e1000e 00:1a.0 USB controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family USB EHCI #2 [8086:8c2d] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: ehci-pci 00:1b.0 Audio device [0403]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset High Definition Audio Controller [8086:8c20] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: snd_hda_intel 00:1c.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #1 [8086:8c10] (rev d4) Kernel driver in use: pcieport 00:1c.3 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #4 [8086:8c16] (rev d4) Kernel driver in use: pcieport 00:1c.4 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #5 [8086:8c18] (rev d4) Kernel driver in use: pcieport 00:1c.6 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #7 [8086:8c1c] (rev d4) Kernel driver in use: pcieport 00:1c.7 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #8 [8086:8c1e] (rev d4) Kernel driver in use: pcieport 00:1d.0 USB controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family USB EHCI #1 [8086:8c26] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: ehci-pci 00:1f.0 ISA bridge [0601]: Intel Corporation QM87 Express LPC Controller [8086:8c4f] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: lpc_ich 00:1f.2 SATA controller [0106]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family 6-port SATA Controller 1 [AHCI mode] [8086:8c03] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] Kernel driver in use: ahci 00:1f.3 SMBus [0c05]: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family SMBus Controller [8086:8c22] (rev 04) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd] 01:00.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: NVIDIA Corporation GK104GLM [Quadro K3100M] [10de:11b6] (rev ff) 07:00.0 Network controller [0280]: Broadcom Corporation BCM4311 802.11a/b/g [14e4:4312] (rev 01) Subsystem: Hewlett-Packard Company Broadcom 802.11a/b/g WLAN [103c:1361] Kernel driver in use: b43-pci-bridge 10:00.0 SD Host controller [0805]: O2 Micro, Inc. Device [1217:8520] (rev 01) Subsystem: Dell Device [1028:05cd]
lsusb:
Bus 002 Device 003: ID 0a5c:5800 Broadcom Corp. BCM5880 Secure Applications Processor Bus 002 Device 002: ID 8087:8000 Intel Corp. Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub Bus 001 Device 003: ID 0c45:64d0 Microdia Bus 001 Device 002: ID 8087:8008 Intel Corp. Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub Bus 004 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub Bus 003 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
lsmod:
Module Size Used by cpufreq_stats 13469 0 fuse 82701 3 nf_conntrack_netbios_ns 12665 0 nf_conntrack_broadcast 12527 1 nf_conntrack_netbios_ns ipt_MASQUERADE 12880 1 ip6t_REJECT 12939 2 bnep 19704 2 xt_conntrack 12760 42 bluetooth 366020 5 bnep ebtable_nat 12807 0 ebtable_broute 12731 0 bridge 110618 1 ebtable_broute stp 12868 1 bridge llc 14045 2 stp,bridge ebtable_filter 12827 0 ebtables 30758 3 ebtable_broute,ebtable_nat,ebtable_filter ip6table_nat 13015 1 nf_conntrack_ipv6 18738 24 nf_defrag_ipv6 34595 1 nf_conntrack_ipv6 nf_nat_ipv6 13213 1 ip6table_nat ip6table_mangle 12700 1 ip6table_security 12710 1 ip6table_raw 12683 1 ip6table_filter 12815 1 ip6_tables 26808 5 ip6table_filter,ip6table_mangle,ip6table_security,ip6table_nat,ip6table_raw iptable_nat 13011 1 nf_conntrack_ipv4 14808 20 nf_defrag_ipv4 12702 1 nf_conntrack_ipv4 nf_nat_ipv4 13199 1 iptable_nat nf_nat 20712 5 ipt_MASQUERADE,nf_nat_ipv4,nf_nat_ipv6,ip6table_nat,iptable_nat nf_conntrack 91283 11 nf_conntrack_netbios_ns,ipt_MASQUERADE,nf_nat,nf_nat_ipv4,nf_nat_ipv6,xt_conntrack,ip6table_nat,nf_conntrack_broadcast,iptable_nat,nf_conntrack_ipv4,nf_conntrack_ipv6 iptable_mangle 12695 1 iptable_security 12705 1 iptable_raw 12678 1 bbswitch 13943 0 snd_hda_codec_realtek 56591 1 snd_hda_codec_hdmi 41070 1 vfat 17411 1 fat 60886 1 vfat arc4 12608 2 b43 387900 0 bcma 45511 1 b43 mac80211 579060 1 b43 cfg80211 478020 2 b43,mac80211 iTCO_wdt 13480 0 ppdev 17635 0 iTCO_vendor_support 13419 1 iTCO_wdt x86_pkg_temp_thermal 14162 0 coretemp 13435 0 dell_wmi 12681 0 sparse_keymap 13584 1 dell_wmi kvm_intel 142832 0 kvm 430555 1 kvm_intel crct10dif_pclmul 14289 0 crc32_pclmul 13113 0 crc32c_intel 22079 0 dell_laptop 18168 0 ghash_clmulni_intel 13259 0 rfkill 21979 5 cfg80211,bluetooth,dell_laptop uvcvideo 80968 0 snd_hda_intel 48171 7 dcdbas 14885 1 dell_laptop videobuf2_vmalloc 13163 1 uvcvideo snd_hda_codec 179279 3 snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_intel videobuf2_memops 13161 1 videobuf2_vmalloc videobuf2_core 38899 1 uvcvideo snd_hwdep 13554 1 snd_hda_codec videodev 132922 2 uvcvideo,videobuf2_core snd_seq 60752 0 joydev 17332 0 microcode 44087 0 i2c_i801 18135 0 snd_seq_device 14136 1 snd_seq nouveau 952573 0 media 20840 2 uvcvideo,videodev serio_raw 13413 0 snd_pcm 98141 3 snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_intel sdhci_pci 18927 0 e1000e 254311 0 sdhci 38255 1 sdhci_pci snd_page_alloc 18268 2 snd_pcm,snd_hda_intel mxm_wmi 12865 1 nouveau ssb 65906 1 b43 ttm 79787 1 nouveau snd_timer 28698 2 snd_pcm,snd_seq mmc_core 116378 3 b43,ssb,sdhci mei_me 18421 0 ptp 18725 1 e1000e snd 75313 23 snd_hda_codec_realtek,snd_hwdep,snd_timer,snd_hda_codec_hdmi,snd_pcm,snd_seq,snd_hda_codec,snd_hda_intel,snd_seq_device lpc_ich 21080 0 mei 76906 1 mei_me shpchp 37032 0 soundcore 14491 1 snd pps_core 19130 1 ptp mfd_core 13182 1 lpc_ich parport_pc 28048 0 parport 40425 2 ppdev,parport_pc i915 701832 12 i2c_algo_bit 13257 2 i915,nouveau drm_kms_helper 50287 2 i915,nouveau drm 283349 5 ttm,i915,drm_kms_helper,nouveau i2c_core 38302 7 drm,i915,i2c_i801,drm_kms_helper,i2c_algo_bit,nouveau,videodev wmi 18804 3 dell_wmi,mxm_wmi,nouveau video 19104 2 i915,nouveau
April 18th, 2014 at 15:26
It’s ironic that sushi podrido [editor's note: refers to deleted spam comment] would comment on celeron55′s spelling in a post that also contains grammatical errors. :/
celeron55, appreciate your post. I’m considering the M6800, and putting Linux on it. Your post is helpful.
June 2nd, 2014 at 23:13
Thanks, good work.
Any updates?
I’ve had one *HECK* of a struggle getting my M6800 going as a triple-booted sys (W8.1 as supplied, F20, U1404). I guess I should blog it somewhere. Some of the bugs are real show-stoppers with no acceptable work-around. F20, when running Gnome, goes into an ‘inescapably trapped in screensaver’ state instead of a normal screensaver that you can escape from. The only fix is power cycle. I couldn’t get Centos65 to install at all, altho I gave up after a lot less effort than that which eventually prevailed on Fedora and Ubuntu. Also, the latest update to Ubuntu seems to have broken the wifi. The Live-CDs worked fine – it’s the on-disk fully installed and updated situation that manifests. It’s as if the OS goes “numb” to events, maybe interrupts not being caught right.
September 5th, 2015 at 12:33
Small update:
This M6800 using the described Fedora setup is still working just fine. I recently updated it to Fedora 22 with really no new issues at all. It’s a solid workhorse just as it is designed to be.
I have noticed, additionally to the post, that sometimes, for whatever reason, the USB subsystem stops working and I can’t use external mice or keyboards until I wiggle around with suspends and module reloads and maybe a reboot. It’s weird and rare and I don’t really care. I usually don’t use external keyboards or mice anyway. But you might want to keep this in mind if you’re considering one.
January 28th, 2018 at 14:56
This iѕ diverse іn dell precision m2800 mobile workstation pdf‘s Precision M4800.