Linux on alienware-m11x?

[thegh0sts]

hey there,

i am interested in installing ubuntu 11.04 via wubi and wondering about what i am to expect in terms of issues is concerned.

i have the R2 core i7 640um, 8gb RAM, 335m, etc.

[tahnok]

I created a setup guide for those interested in getting things working on an m11x R1

http://blog.tahnok.me/post/109694640...-on-an-m11x-r1

Let me know if I missed anything!

[juanoleso]

I might be a slowpoke here, but I was able to get bumblebee working with the M11x R1 on Ubuntu 10.04.
I installed bumblebee and its dependencies from the ppa:

ppa:bumblebee/stable

and restarted but I was getting errors as referenced at this link:

https://github.com/Bumblebee-Project/Bumblebee/issues/73


I uninstalled nvidia-current and then added this repo:

ppa:ubuntu-x-swat/x-updates

and reinstalled nvidia-current, restarted, but bumblebee still didn't work.
I then uninstalled bumblebee from the ppa and installed Bumblebee from the git @

https://github.com/Bumblebee-Project/Bumblebee

I think I just restarted the bumblebee service and then it worked. All said and done, I have bumblebee installed from the git source, I have the "virtualgl" package from the bumblebee ppa, and my nvidia driver (looks like 285.05.09) is from the ubuntu-x-swat ppa. I don't have a way to test this from a fresh install, because my wife will be up and want to use the computer in about an hour and I've actually been working on this for a couple mornings. I hope this helps someone.

Here are a couple more links I looked at as well:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/alie...ml#post7894582

https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php...enware_M11x_R1

http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showtopic=39212

[tahnok]

Bumblebee is for laptops with Optimus graphics switching and the R1 doesn't have the technology for graphics switching...

[juanoleso]

It works. I have the R1, take a look at the screenshot. The su7300 is only in the R1's. I jumped into starcraft this morning with the same framerate I get while in windows.

[Sub101]

Did anyone else lose sound on the 11.10 upgrade?

[Evernoob7]

Hey all, I'm still fairly new to linux and I just got an M11x yesterday. I plan to use the original OS in virtualbox to control all those windows only features on the laptop, but I noticed that my 32-bit Linux 11.10 is only recognizing 2.4GB of 4 GB RAM. I wouldn't mind if it only saw 3.9, but 2.4 is half of what I should have access to!

Can anyone help me figure out how to access more of my RAM? I'd prefer to stick with 32-bit Ocelot for stability, and also because I've done a TONE of tweaking to this OS and would hate to go through all my changes again (I've got to start documenting the changes I make for reinstalls :/)


SOLVED: I found the solution, so for others, here it is... If you are using Linux 9.10 or above, open terminal and input:

$ sudo apt-get install linux-generic-pae linux-headers-generic-pae

Then reboot. Bam, your OS can see as much RAM as a 64 bit OS.

[gene simmons]

hi all,i dont mean to hijack this thread,i just got a screamin deal on a mx11x.i upgraded from a acer one netbook so this is pretty sweet for me haha.i ran all kinds of distros on my acer and to me they all ran as good if not beter than windows.the mx11 is diferent in many ways.i am trying out pinguy 64 11.10 and lininux 11.11 on usb.they both work fine but both run hot,after reading all the pages inthis thread i am still confused on how to switch the gpu to gain battery savings.also is installing juputer any good for this pc.on windows i can get near 7 hours of batter but on both distros i can barely get 3.is there a btter distro for this pc i should try,i prefer linux over windows anyday but u have to admit that windows works well with this pc for its options.again sorry to hijack,any help or tips would be great thanx.

[rs3]

hi all,i dont mean to hijack this thread,i just got a screamin deal on a mx11x.i upgraded from a acer one netbook so this is pretty sweet for me haha.i ran all kinds of distros on my acer and to me they all ran as good if not beter than windows.the mx11 is diferent in many ways.i am trying out pinguy 64 11.10 and lininux 11.11 on usb.they both work fine but both run hot,after reading all the pages inthis thread i am still confused on how to switch the gpu to gain battery savings.also is installing juputer any good for this pc.on windows i can get near 7 hours of batter but on both distros i can barely get 3.is there a btter distro for this pc i should try,i prefer linux over windows anyday but u have to admit that windows works well with this pc for its options.again sorry to hijack,any help or tips would be great thanx.

I don't think you're going to find a better distro for the m11x. The battery life issues will persist across all distros and the hardware support for the m11x in 11.04 and 11.10 is about as good as you are going to find. Sad but true; if you need battery life, you might as well roll with Windows. If you can deal with the power consumption issues in Ubuntu, it is otherwise going to run quite well.

I can't speak to Jupiter, don't know what it is. Cheers!

[juanoleso]

if you haven't tried acpi_call to turn off the GPU, you should look into it. I was able to turn off the GPU in my m11xr1 and it runs cool enough after that that the fan doesn't need to come on. I'm not sure about battery life, though, as I keep mine plugged in almost all the time.

http://linux-hybrid-graphics.blogspot.com/ for info on The Bumblebee Project and acpi_call.