[ubuntu] Alienware m9700 SLI video issues in Ubuntu 9.04 after installing nVidia drivers

[evoblade]

I posted this in a another forum, but I didn't get any replies. Hopefully I will have better luck this time.

I have an Alienware Aurora m9700 laptop with dual GeForce Go 7900 GS in SLI. When I install the restricted nvidia drivers from Ubuntu 9.04's restricted drivers manager and reboot I get no graphics. I think the difficulty is that it's not configuring itself right. Here is my /var/log/Xorg.0.log

X.Org X Server 1.6.0
Release Date: 2009-2-25
X Protocol Version 11, Revision 0
Build Operating System: Linux 2.6.24-23-server i686 Ubuntu
Current Operating System: Linux gaspar 2.6.28-11-generic #42-Ubuntu SMP Fri Apr 17 01:57:59 UTC 2009 i686
Build Date: 09 April 2009  02:10:02AM
xorg-server 2:1.6.0-0ubuntu14 (buildd@rothera.buildd) 
    Before reporting problems, check http://wiki.x.org
    to make sure that you have the latest version.
Markers: (--) probed, (**) from config file, (==) default setting,
    (++) from command line, (!!) notice, (II) informational,
    (WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown.
(==) Log file: "/var/log/Xorg.0.log", Time: Wed May 20 20:11:43 2009
(==) Using config file: "/etc/X11/xorg.conf"
(==) No Layout section.  Using the first Screen section.
(**) |-->Screen "Default Screen" (0)
(**) |   |-->Monitor "Configured Monitor"
(**) |   |-->Device "Configured Video Device"
(==) Automatically adding devices
(==) Automatically enabling devices
(WW) The directory "/usr/share/fonts/X11/cyrillic" does not exist.
    Entry deleted from font path.
(==) FontPath set to:
    /usr/share/fonts/X11/misc,
    /usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi/:unscaled,
    /usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi/:unscaled,
    /usr/share/fonts/X11/Type1,
    /usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi,
    /usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi,
    /var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TrueType,
    built-ins
(==) ModulePath set to "/usr/lib/xorg/modules"
(II) Cannot locate a core pointer device.
(II) Cannot locate a core keyboard device.
(II) The server relies on HAL to provide the list of input devices.
    If no devices become available, reconfigure HAL or disable AllowEmptyInput.
(II) Loader magic: 0x3bc0
(II) Module ABI versions:
    X.Org ANSI C Emulation: 0.4
    X.Org Video Driver: 5.0
    X.Org XInput driver : 4.0
    X.Org Server Extension : 2.0
(II) Loader running on linux
(--) using VT number 9

(!!) More than one possible primary device found
(--) PCI: (0@6:0:0) nVidia Corporation GeForce Go 7900 GS rev 161, Mem @ 0xf9000000/16777216, 0xa0000000/268435456, 0xf8000000/16777216, I/O @ 0x0000ac00/128, BIOS @ 0x????????/131072
(--) PCI: (0@7:0:0) nVidia Corporation GeForce Go 7900 GS rev 161, Mem @ 0xfd000000/16777216, 0xc0000000/268435456, 0xfc000000/16777216, I/O @ 0x0000bc00/128, BIOS @ 0x????????/131072
(II) Open ACPI successful (/var/run/acpid.socket)
(II) System resource ranges:
    [0] -1    0    0xffffffff - 0xffffffff (0x1) MX[B]
    [1] -1    0    0x000f0000 - 0x000fffff (0x10000) MX[B]
    [2] -1    0    0x000c0000 - 0x000effff (0x30000) MX[B]
    [3] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x0009ffff (0xa0000) MX[B]
    [4] -1    0    0xffffffff - 0xffffffff (0x1) MX[B]
    [5] -1    0    0x000f0000 - 0x000fffff (0x10000) MX[B]
    [6] -1    0    0x000c0000 - 0x000effff (0x30000) MX[B]
    [7] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x0009ffff (0xa0000) MX[B]
    [8] -1    0    0xffffffff - 0xffffffff (0x1) MX[B]
    [9] -1    0    0x000f0000 - 0x000fffff (0x10000) MX[B]
    [10] -1    0    0x000c0000 - 0x000effff (0x30000) MX[B]
    [11] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x0009ffff (0xa0000) MX[B]
    [12] -1    0    0xffffffff - 0xffffffff (0x1) MX[B]
    [13] -1    0    0x000f0000 - 0x000fffff (0x10000) MX[B]
    [14] -1    0    0x000c0000 - 0x000effff (0x30000) MX[B]
    [15] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x0009ffff (0xa0000) MX[B]
    [16] -1    0    0x0000ffff - 0x0000ffff (0x1) IX[B]
    [17] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x00000000 (0x1) IX[B]
    [18] -1    0    0x0000ffff - 0x0000ffff (0x1) IX[B]
    [19] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x00000000 (0x1) IX[B]
    [20] -1    0    0x0000ffff - 0x0000ffff (0x1) IX[B]
    [21] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x00000000 (0x1) IX[B]
    [22] -1    0    0x0000ffff - 0x0000ffff (0x1) IX[B]
    [23] -1    0    0x00000000 - 0x00000000 (0x1) IX[B]
(II) "extmod" will be loaded by default.
(II) "dbe" will be loaded by default.
(II) "glx" will be loaded. This was enabled by default and also specified in the config file.
(II) "record" will be loaded by default.
(II) "dri" will be loaded by default.
(II) "dri2" will be loaded by default.
(II) LoadModule: "glx"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/extensions//libglx.so
(II) Module glx: vendor="NVIDIA Corporation"
    compiled for 4.0.2, module version = 1.0.0
    Module class: X.Org Server Extension
(II) NVIDIA GLX Module  180.44  Mon Mar 23 15:29:02 PST 2009
(II) Loading extension GLX
(II) LoadModule: "extmod"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/extensions//libextmod.so
(II) Module extmod: vendor="X.Org Foundation"
    compiled for 1.6.0, module version = 1.0.0
    Module class: X.Org Server Extension
    ABI class: X.Org Server Extension, version 2.0
(II) Loading extension MIT-SCREEN-SAVER
(II) Loading extension XFree86-VidModeExtension
(II) Loading extension XFree86-DGA
(II) Loading extension DPMS
(II) Loading extension XVideo
(II) Loading extension XVideo-MotionCompensation
(II) Loading extension X-Resource
(II) LoadModule: "dbe"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/extensions//libdbe.so
(II) Module dbe: vendor="X.Org Foundation"
    compiled for 1.6.0, module version = 1.0.0
    Module class: X.Org Server Extension
    ABI class: X.Org Server Extension, version 2.0
(II) Loading extension DOUBLE-BUFFER
(II) LoadModule: "record"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/extensions//librecord.so
(II) Module record: vendor="X.Org Foundation"
    compiled for 1.6.0, module version = 1.13.0
    Module class: X.Org Server Extension
    ABI class: X.Org Server Extension, version 2.0
(II) Loading extension RECORD
(II) LoadModule: "dri"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/extensions//libdri.so
(II) Module dri: vendor="X.Org Foundation"
    compiled for 1.6.0, module version = 1.0.0
    ABI class: X.Org Server Extension, version 2.0
(II) Loading extension XFree86-DRI
(II) LoadModule: "dri2"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/extensions//libdri2.so
(II) Module dri2: vendor="X.Org Foundation"
    compiled for 1.6.0, module version = 1.0.0
    ABI class: X.Org Server Extension, version 2.0
(II) Loading extension DRI2
(II) LoadModule: "nvidia"
(II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers//nvidia_drv.so
(II) Module nvidia: vendor="NVIDIA Corporation"
    compiled for 4.0.2, module version = 1.0.0
    Module class: X.Org Video Driver
(II) NVIDIA dlloader X Driver  180.44  Mon Mar 23 15:05:32 PST 2009
(II) NVIDIA Unified Driver for all Supported NVIDIA GPUs
(II) Primary Device is: 
(EE) No devices detected.

Fatal server error:
no screens found

Please consult the The X.Org Foundation support 
     at http://wiki.x.org
 for help. 
Please also check the log file at "/var/log/Xorg.0.log" for additional information.

 ddxSigGiveUp: Closing log

also, I don't know if this will help but here is my lspci results:

00:00.0 Memory controller: nVidia Corporation CK804 Memory Controller (rev a3)
00:01.0 ISA bridge: nVidia Corporation CK804 ISA Bridge (rev a3)
00:01.1 SMBus: nVidia Corporation CK804 SMBus (rev a2)
00:02.0 USB Controller: nVidia Corporation CK804 USB Controller (rev a2)
00:02.1 USB Controller: nVidia Corporation CK804 USB Controller (rev a3)
00:04.0 Multimedia audio controller: nVidia Corporation CK804 AC'97 Audio Controller (rev a2)
00:04.1 Modem: nVidia Corporation CK804 AC'97 Modem (rev a2)
00:06.0 IDE interface: nVidia Corporation CK804 IDE (rev f2)
00:07.0 IDE interface: nVidia Corporation CK804 Serial ATA Controller (rev f3)
00:08.0 IDE interface: nVidia Corporation CK804 Serial ATA Controller (rev f3)
00:09.0 PCI bridge: nVidia Corporation CK804 PCI Bridge (rev a2)
00:0b.0 PCI bridge: nVidia Corporation CK804 PCIE Bridge (rev a3)
00:0c.0 PCI bridge: nVidia Corporation CK804 PCIE Bridge (rev a3)
00:0d.0 PCI bridge: nVidia Corporation CK804 PCIE Bridge (rev a3)
00:0e.0 PCI bridge: nVidia Corporation CK804 PCIE Bridge (rev a3)
00:18.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] HyperTransport Technology Configuration
00:18.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] Address Map
00:18.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] DRAM Controller
00:18.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD] K8 [Athlon64/Opteron] Miscellaneous Control
01:06.0 FireWire (IEEE 1394): Ricoh Co Ltd R5C832 IEEE 1394 Controller
01:06.1 SD Host controller: Ricoh Co Ltd R5C822 SD/SDIO/MMC/MS/MSPro Host Adapter (rev 19)
01:06.2 System peripheral: Ricoh Co Ltd R5C592 Memory Stick Bus Host Adapter (rev 0a)
01:08.0 Multimedia controller: Philips Semiconductors SAA7131/SAA7133/SAA7135 Video Broadcast Decoder (rev d1)
01:0a.0 Ethernet controller: Atheros Communications Inc. Atheros AR5001X+ Wireless Network Adapter (rev 01)
05:00.0 Ethernet controller: Marvell Technology Group Ltd. 88E8055 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller (rev 12)
06:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation GeForce Go 7900 GS (rev a1)
07:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation GeForce Go 7900 GS (rev a1)

Any ideas?

[venomgyz]

Replace your 'Section "Device"' with these.
As you can see, you need to specify your BusID with the xorg server that ubuntu 9.04 uses. Something new in 9.04 broke the default SLI settings. But these will work. The other issue you may end up noticing is some pretty bad graphics performance. I don't think the nvidia drivers have caught up yet. But good luck, post here if you have any problems or questions and I'll try to help.

Section "Device"
Identifier "Device0"
Driver "nvidia"
VendorName "NVIDIA Corporation"
BusID "PCI:6:0:0"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Device1"
Driver "nvidia"
VendorName "NVIDIA Corporation"
BusID "PCI:7:0:0"
EndSection

Under 'Section "Screen"' add
Option "SLI" "on"

[evoblade]

Well, I appreciate your reply and it seems your solution would fix my problem, but now ubuntu won't install my nvidia drivers again.

[spyrosebastos]

Same prob.

Got 9.04 all set-up and customized..add a second Nvidia card and login screen goes tty1: black.

I have had NO luck trying to install Nvidia driver(s) more than once in any Ubuntu. You'll probably have to reinstall 9.04, hoping here that your important files are on a separate partition.

has anyone been successful using dual/tri-nvidia graphics card by editing the X conf? Everytime I've tried editing this myself it never goes right (invalid options or parsing errors. It seems like any one person's x.conf file is unique to their comp (obviously some options should be different cause people are using different moniters/g.cards, etc. But if people are using the same OS or same version of Ubuntu the options should be universal.

X.conf options that are invalid:
Resolution
Horisync
Dot Clock..
Vertrefresh...? Cant really remember all, using liveCD right now for GUI and firefox cant open tabs on the live CD so it's difficult to post the links for the info i've tried.

trying editing the x.conf from options in post #2

[spyrosebastos]

Vemongyz:

in your first post, under BusID are the lines: "PCI 6:0:0.."-[whatever] and PCI 7:0:0. Are those specific to your hardware setup. That your PCI cards are in slots PCI[e] 6 and 7 or is that just to identify them?

[evoblade]

They look like they are specific to mine. I tried to modify my Xorg.conf and it got farther than before. New problem: since the nvidia driver failed to install correctly for some reason I have a bastardized setup where the xorg glx module is loading and causing the nvidia stuff to crash. If anyone knows how to reinstall the nvidia drivers I think it might fix my problems. I tried purging the linux-restricted-modules package and reinstalling but that didn't appear to do anything.

[dagrump]

You need to use one of those device sections only, that is to tell the box which is the primary card. So, if the one doesn't work edit the BusID line to the other slot & you're good. You might want to try "SLI" "SFR" in place of "SLI "on". SFR is split frame rendering, there are other options too.
Good luck.

[evoblade]

Would it help if I disabled SLI? After I get the driver reinstalled that is. I really don't care about 3d performance so much as just getting the nvidia driver working so I can use my system again. Really dont want to reinstall.

[blueblob11]

Hey, I have the same problem you have, I also have an aurora m9700. I just found out that SLI for laptops on linux is not yet supported according to:

http://us.download.nvidia.com/XFree8...hapter-25.html

so I think the idea of adding the pci info for just one of the devices should work, but I'm not at my pc to try it.

[evoblade]

Does anyone know how to reinstall the nvidia binary driver? Until I can get a clean driver install nothing else is going to help.