XFree Update

Support knowledgebase (wessels_xfree)
Applies to

SuSE Linux: Versions since 7.0
XFree86: Versions since 4.0

Situation

You want to install the latest XFree version.

Procedure

Warning: Install these files at your own risk! In case of difficulties, our installation support desk will not be able to help you solve the big diversity of problems that might arise. For problems concerning an XFree update, you can contact our Advanced Support service Monday through Friday, 0900 - 1700h, at the following chargeable phone numbers:

From Germany, please dial 0190 862 804 (EUR 1.86/minute).

From Austria, please dial 0900 470 114 (EUR 1.80/minute).

From Switzerland, please dial 0900 700 714 (sFR. 3.13/minute).

From Great Britain, please dial 0906 666 0014, (£ 1.50/minute).

From the Netherlands, please dial 0900 202 2164, (EUR 0.70/minute).

From Dutch-speaking Belgium, please dial 0903 41024 (EUR 1.11/minute).

From French-speaking Belgium, please dial 0903 41034 (EUR 1.11/minute).

If your graphics card is old, check first whether the new packages support it or not. This can be verified at the XFree home page or under http://www.xfree.org/#news. The link "driver status document" always takes you to the latest version and to an overview of the manufacturers.

The newest drivers are not necessarily the best. In few cases, it might be necessary to the XFree to obtain a stable graphic driver for old graphics cards.

Checking the Chipset of a Graphics Card

You can use a variety of commands to find out the chipset used by your graphics card. First, you execute

sax2 -p

This command produces all relevant information on your graphic card, for example:


Chip: 0  is -> ATI Rage 128 RF         01:00:0 0x1002 0x5246 AGP r128

Here an explanation of the output details:


Chip: 0             = First encountered graphics chipset.

ATI Rage 128 RF	    = Graphics card model.

0x1002 0x5246       = Manufacturer and card number.

AGP                 = This is an AGP card.

r128                = The driver module SaX starts with if
                      no other parameters are assigned.

In addition, you can use the command


/sbin/lspci | grep VGA

which also provides detailed information on your graphics card. Linux systems do not read the name of your graphics card, but the chipset!

If you download the packages with Linux, create a new directory (/tmp/xfree86) in which to save all packages. Directories are created under Linux with the command:


mkdir directory_name

For example, the command:


mkdir /tmp/xfree86

creates the directory xfree86 at /tmp.

Download

  1. You can download the files from our FTP server or any of its mirrors. The XFree86 packages are available at:

    
    ftp://ftp.gwdg.de/pub/linux/suse/ftp.suse.com/suse/i386/supplementary/X/XFree86/
    
    

    The latest version of SaX2 is available at:

    
    ftp://ftp.gwdg.de/pub/linux/suse/ftp.suse.com/suse/i386/supplementary/X/XFree86/SaX2/
    
    

    You can update the XFree86 files by downloading the whole content of the current directory (approx. 56 MB).

Package Installation

Installation from the CD-ROM

Installation from a ZIP Drive

  1. Load the kernel module for your ZIP drive with

  2. 
    modprobe ppa
    
    

    or

    
    modprobe imm
    
    
  3. Then mount the ZIP drive with:

  4. 
    mount /dev/sda4 /mnt
    
    

    (this is designated as hdX4 in IDE ZIP drives, where X must be replaced with the drive letter) and change to the corresponding directory to install the files. The following article provides additional information on attaching a ZIP drive

    "IOMEGA ZIP drive" (http://sdb.suse.de/en/sdb/html/mantel_1.html)

  5. Install the packages as described above.

Start SaX2

Once the packages have been installed, activate SaX2 to start the X configuration.

For detailed information about the configuration with SaX2, refer to

"X Server Configuration with SaX2" (http://sdb.suse.de/en/sdb/html/wessels_sax2.html)
Keywords: XFREE86, UPDATE, NVIDIA, MATROX, ATI, INSTALLATION, GEFORCE2, TNT, 2MX, RADEON, FURYMAXX, MOBILITY, VOODOO, GRAPHIC, STARTX, X11, GEFORCE3, GEFORCE4, KYRO2

SDB-wessels_xfree, Copyright SuSE Linux AG, Nürnberg, Germany - Version: 15. Apr 2002
SuSE Linux AG - Last generated: 16. Mai 2002 by ip (sdb_gen 1.40.0)