Kubuntu 8.10 boot problems on Acer Revo

[arends]

Hi there

Purpose: Have a small quite working LinuxMCE MD

Have got a Acer Aspire Revo 3600, windows version, 1Gb/160Gb. Under windows things work
ok, HDMI video/audio works perfectly. Noice levels (also under HD playback) are praktically zero !!


In order to get my (7.04 Fiire-based) LinuxMCE  gear at home up and running with the Revo
I decided to go for the 8.10 version. LinuxMCE beta is due any moment now.
Kubuntu 9.04 apperantly boots OK  (See Howto install ubuntu and boxee on Acer Revo)
but I need 8.10 in order to install lateron LinuxMCE 8.10 (correct )

Prerequisite is booting/installing Kubuntu 8.10.

From this forum I learned (see Re: Kernel panic) that
I could boot from USB -> I  succeeded in that no problem  

Once the boot sequence starts, it stops without giving any messages
Again from this forum (Re: Kernel panic) I learned that this
there might be Wifi problems and/or ACPI problems, I was not able to resolve this
since the bios does not anable Wifi turn off and ACPI boot parameters did not help  
I need advice how to retrieve messages, since I do not see much (ALt-F1 does not work once halted)

Others seem to have solved the booting problem since they talk about which LinuxMCE version
they should use and what drivers they shold disable when using a PXE based MD boot sequence
from within a LINUXMCE Core.
Could they post instructions how they managed to get Kubuntu 8.10 installed, thx in advance

Regards Paul


PS There is a direct link with the kernel Panic thread
I do get the message [   31.948131] Kernel panic - not syncing. Attempting to kill init 

[colinjones]

For a start off, you don't install anything on an MD, much less Kubuntu. MDs boot from the network, and require no hard drive.

Just set your MD to PXE boot, and turn it on. It will build itself from the core. However, if you have already been messing around with that machine as an MD on your core, then you will probably have to clean the mess up on your core first to ensure it thinks it is seeing the MD for the first time again.

Please ensure that you are running LMCE 0810 on your core to minimise any hardware compatibility issues with the Revo. And research Totallymaxed's comments on how to get them working.

[simon_b]

Purpose: Have a small quite working LinuxMCE MD

Have got a Acer Aspire Revo 3600, windows version, 1Gb/160Gb. Under windows things work
ok, HDMI video/audio works perfectly. Noice levels (also under HD playback) are praktically zero !!

Hi Paul!

Are you sure about that - Acer Revo "quiet"?!?!

I have one in my living room and the fan noise is far more than quiet... the Asus eee b202 is much quieter... or am I doing something wrong with the bios settings?!

Oh yes, and the Acer is "loud" under Win and Linux...

[totallymaxed]

Purpose: Have a small quite working LinuxMCE MD

Have got a Acer Aspire Revo 3600, windows version, 1Gb/160Gb. Under windows things work
ok, HDMI video/audio works perfectly. Noice levels (also under HD playback) are praktically zero !!

Hi Paul!

Are you sure about that - Acer Revo "quiet"?!?!

I have one in my living room and the fan noise is far more than quiet... the Asus eee b202 is much quieter... or am I doing something wrong with the bios settings?!

Oh yes, and the Acer is "loud" under Win and Linux...

Hmmm...well we have a number of these installed now and we dont think they are any noisier in operation under Linux than the Eee Box. This is based on 'human ear' tests by us in a quiet room and also by judging feedback from customers too. Maybe you have a faulty fan speed control sensor on your unit.

All the best

Andrew

[simon_b]

...Maybe you have a faulty fan speed control sensor on your unit.

All the best

Andrew

Hi Andrew!

Well could be just my feeling, could be my ear, could be (surely also) the room configuration (I never tried both in the same room), so...

Faulty fan speed control - is also possible, bit since i hear "up and downs" are there, when turning on, etc., that should be ok (the Revo is much noisier right after startup and then he gets quieter - but like said, for my ear and for my room configuration (when just sitting in the dark and quiet room  ) it is a little too loud. But surely this is my personal feeling - nevertheless the Revo and Eee are both great MD's!

[totallymaxed]

...Maybe you have a faulty fan speed control sensor on your unit.

All the best

Andrew

Hi Andrew!

Well could be just my feeling, could be my ear, could be (surely also) the room configuration (I never tried both in the same room), so...

Faulty fan speed control - is also possible, bit since i hear "up and downs" are there, when turning on, etc., that should be ok (the Revo is much noisier right after startup and then he gets quieter - but like said, for my ear and for my room configuration (when just sitting in the dark and quiet room  ) it is a little too loud. But surely this is my personal feeling - nevertheless the Revo and Eee are both great MD's!

Dark rooms will do it everytime ;-)

Andrew

[arends]

For a start off, you don't install anything on an MD, much less Kubuntu. MDs boot from the network, and require no hard drive.

Just set your MD to PXE boot, and turn it on. It will build itself from the core. However, if you have already been messing around with that machine as an MD on your core, then you will probably have to clean the mess up on your core first to ensure it thinks it is seeing the MD for the first time again.

Please ensure that you are running LinuxMCE 0810 on your core to minimise any hardware compatibility issues with the Revo. And research Totallymaxed's comments on how to get them working.

Colin

I have got A Revo, a Fiire station (hybrid, ergo with SSD) and a FiireEngine 12TB. The Fiire stuff have never been operational in a client/server sense. (delivered in March just before....) All machines have disks, hence I
wanted to take a short cut and go for a local disks as boot medium instead of the core network drive.
I still think performance wise this is more optimal. (faster and marginally noisier)
Besides, I sense that -IF- a MD can boot from PXE, -THAN- it should be relatively easy to boot from local disk. I can install an OS with network disabled in the bios, for example.
So I thought in order to get things operational with brand new hardware and a relatively old OS (2008)
it should be easier booting from local disk.


Regards Paul

Once I have Kubuntu things solved I intend to use PXE for LinuxMCE.
Since my kids are Windoze infected, I probally go the old dual boot way
so XP from disk and LinuxmCE from PXE.
If I get really bold I would like to try Xen, having windoze and LinuxmCE at
the say time. (VMware has work for me for years)

[arends]

Purpose: Have a small quite working LinuxMCE MD

Have got a Acer Aspire Revo 3600, windows version, 1Gb/160Gb. Under windows things work
ok, HDMI video/audio works perfectly. Noice levels (also under HD playback) are praktically zero !!

Hi Paul!

Are you sure about that - Acer Revo "quiet"?!?!

I have one in my living room and the fan noise is far more than quiet... the Asus eee b202 is much quieter... or am I doing something wrong with the bios settings?!

Oh yes, and the Acer is "loud" under Win and Linux...

Hi Simon

All things are relative. Compared to my other gear I can not hear the Revo.
Having only the Revo on, I still hear only the fan of my heating system.
On start up it makes a bit of nois, but that the fan speeds decreases almost
immediately.
So its is fine for me

Paul
PS Have no experience with the EEE box

[arends]

...Maybe you have a faulty fan speed control sensor on your unit.

All the best

Andrew

Hi Andrew

Did you ever try to install Kubuntu 8.10/9.04  locally on the Revo's disk
If yes, what did it take
If not, do you expect additional problems

One item I thought of is that you remove on the core the ATH drivers, hence the MD PXE-boots using an OS without these. Doing a boot from local disk implies that I have to build and install a tweaked Kubuntu version
without these drivers on a USB stick.