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Thread: RandR 1.3 won't support multiple video cards - what do multimonitor users do?

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  1. #1
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    Question RandR 1.3 won't support multiple video cards - what do multimonitor users do?

    As some of you may know, X Server 1.6 will probably be released very soon, and it is due to include RandR 1.3.

    For a long time, those of us with multiple monitor (i.e., > 2 monitors) setups have been looking forward to RandR 1.3 because it was supposed to include support for multiple video cards. RandR 1.2 only supports one card per X session.

    However, I just found out from the X.org mailing list that RandR 1.3 will not include support for multiple video cards - see this post. Furthermore, it appears that the current radeon driver in Intrepid Ibex 8.10 breaks support for Xinerama on dual-head cards. If I try to enable Xinerama on a dual-head card with the radeon driver, X simply crashes (but it will work on two separate cards).

    This means that in 8.10, there is no way for radeon users to have more than two monitors in a Xinerama style setup. This is a huge step backwards.

    Questions:

    1) Am I correct about the problem? Or do people have Xinerama working in 8.10 with more than two monitors using the radeon driver?

    2) What is the fix for this? Is the problem due to a bug in the radeon driver? Obviously, waiting for RandR to support multiple cards is not an option...

  2. #2
    Join Date
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    Re: RandR 1.3 won't support multiple video cards - what do multimonitor users do?

    I am using x-server 1.6.0 rc1 in Jaunty Alpha 3 updated to two days ago. I have an integrated RS690 and a HD3450.

    Until the release a couple of days ago I had to install using the vesa driver and then switch over to the radeon driver later. I use xrandr to configure the two monitors I have on the HD3450 card (i.e. RS690 unused).

    Currently x-server configures the HD3450 to use radeon. I get some strange but minor layout issues using two monitors and xrandr but it works.

    I will be doing a fresh install with Jaunty Alpha 4 this weekend. It would be nice to use both video adapters since three screens would be nice.

  3. #3
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    Re: RandR 1.3 won't support multiple video cards - what do multimonitor users do?

    Could you say more about your "strange but minor layout issues using two monitors and xrandr"?

    I am using xrandr to handle two monitors attached to a Radeon X800, and the third monitor, attached to a Radeon X300, runs a separate X session.

    The problem I have with the xrandr setup is that windows maximize to fill both monitors, and dialog boxes pop up centered between the two monitors.

  4. #4
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    Re: RandR 1.3 won't support multiple video cards - what do multimonitor users do?

    Jaunty Alpha 4 cleaned up all my problems except 3.
    1. The initial install tries to use 1152x864 on my 1024x768 LCD
    2. My second monitor used to use 1280x1024
    3. Second card/3rd monitor not configured.

    mur@ubuntu2:~$ xrandr --version
    Server reports RandR version 1.3
    mur@ubuntu2:~$ xrandr --output VGA-0 --mode 1024x768
    mur@ubuntu2:~$ xrandr --output DVI-0 --mode 1152x864
    mur@ubuntu2:~$ xrandr --output DVI-0 --right-of VGA-0
    mur@ubuntu2:~$ xrandr -q
    Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 2176 x 864, maximum 2704 x 1050
    VGA-0 connected 1024x768+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 0mm x 0mm
    1152x864 60.0 + 60.0
    1360x768 59.8
    1024x768 60.0* 59.9
    800x600 60.3
    640x480 59.9
    HDMI-0 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
    DVI-0 connected 1152x864+1024+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 0mm x 0mm
    1152x864 60.0*+ 60.0
    1360x768 59.8
    1024x768 60.0 59.9
    800x600 60.3
    640x480 59.9

    I suspect I will have to manually add this to xorg.conf using BusID = "PCI:0:2:0"

    lspci -vvnn for second video card not found in Xorg.0.log

    00:02.0 PCI bridge [0604]: ATI Technologies Inc RS690 PCI to PCI Bridge (PCI Express Graphics Port 0) [1002:7913]
    Control: I/O+ Mem+ BusMaster+ SpecCycle- MemWINV- VGASnoop- ParErr- Stepping- SERR- FastB2B- DisINTx+
    Status: Cap+ 66MHz- UDF- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort- >SERR- <PERR- INTx-
    Latency: 0, Cache Line Size: 4 bytes
    Bus: primary=00, secondary=01, subordinate=01, sec-latency=0
    I/O behind bridge: 0000e000-0000efff
    Memory behind bridge: fde00000-fdefffff
    Prefetchable memory behind bridge: 00000000d0000000-00000000dfffffff
    Secondary status: 66MHz- FastB2B- ParErr- DEVSEL=fast >TAbort- <TAbort- <MAbort+ <SERR- <PERR-
    BridgeCtl: Parity- SERR- NoISA- VGA+ MAbort- >Reset- FastB2B-
    PriDiscTmr- SecDiscTmr- DiscTmrStat- DiscTmrSERREn-
    Capabilities: <access denied>
    Kernel driver in use: pcieport-driver
    Kernel modules: shpchp

  5. #5
    Join Date
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    Re: RandR 1.3 won't support multiple video cards - what do multimonitor users do?

    Have you been successful with 2 cards / 3 monitors yet? I am trying to get this to work in 9.04/xrandr 1.3, with no success. Any help would be appreciated!

  6. #6
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    Kubuntu Development Release

    Re: RandR 1.3 won't support multiple video cards - what do multimonitor users do?

    There are some big fat bugs since x-server 1.6 got introduced regarding multiple cards. It's not a problem of RandR! People are working on the several issues (which is basically a bug during graphics BIOS initialization of the second, third, ... card).

    If you have two or more cards that work with the same BIOS you may have luck (otherwise CrossFire/SLI wouldn't work either) but as soon as you have two or more cards from different vendors (AMD, nVidia, Matrox, Intel, ...) you won't get any othe card to work as the first one.

    The bugs I'm talking about are here:
    http://bugzilla.kernel.org/show_bug.cgi?id=12168
    http://bugs.freedesktop.org/show_bug.cgi?id=18160
    http://bugs.freedesktop.org/show_bug.cgi?id=20816
    http://bugs.freedesktop.org/show_bug.cgi?id=20817

    I hope those problem get fixed soon and that the Ubuntu package maintainers update fast.


    Greetz,

    C]-[aoZ

    P.S.: There is no workaround!

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