XFree Local Multi-User HOWTO
Svetoslav Slavtchev
<svetoslav (at) users.sourcefourge.net>
Aug 2004
Revision History
Revision 1.4 2004-08-14 Revised by: SS
add some info on the new IsolateDevice XFree/X.org, drop some stalled
comments about ruby-2.6 (a lot more must be removed - linux-2.6 is table now)
Revision 1.3 2003-11-11 Revised by: SS
Ruby-2.6 is working :) , sync to new BRuby, add config file paths for Gentoo
Revision 1.2 2003-09-17 Revised by: SS
Lots, lots of stuff. the most major things: XFree-PrefBusID v3, input.rc (and
exp. service ruby_init), add "Known Limitations"
Revision 1.1 2003-07-14 Revised by: SS
sync input agent with examples, a bit more about ruby, less Fix-Me's,
additions to video compatibility
Revision 1.0 2003-05-13 Revised by: TP
Initial release, reviewed by LDP.
This HOWTO explains one of the ways to get a working, multiple, local X user-capable PC system for up to 16 users. It is based on using a modified Linux kernel with support for multiple independent users . The second way is not covered here, but on the web page of it's author, the pioneer Miguel Freitas.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1. About Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby
1.2. About this document
1.3. Related Documentation
1.4. New versions of this document
1.5. Copyright and License
1.6. Disclaimer
1.7. Credits/Contributors
1.8. Feedback/Bug Reporting
2. Before we begin
2.1. Known Limitations
2.2. XFree configuration files
2.3. Reusing Xinerama configured XFree
2.4. Binary packages
3. Installing the kernel
3.1. Installing the Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby-2.6 kernel
3.2. Notes on building your own kernel
3.3. Creating needed device files
3.4. Notes on using multiple VT's & VGA console
3.5. Keyboard numbering(order of detection)
4. Setting up the X servers
4.1. Do I need a modified X server?
4.2. Installing and Configuring XFree-PrefBusID
4.3. Creating symbolic links
4.4. Using independent keyboards with XFree
4.5. Using independent mice with XFree
4.6. For graphic cards without DRI
4.7. Nvidia GLX & DRI
5. More on configuring input devices
5.1. Finding the real devices
5.2. Using hotplug with input.agent and input.rc
5.3. Using XFree with event interface support
5.4. Using the "Phys" descriptor and USB devices
6. Configuring display managers
6.1. Configuring xdm and kdm
6.2. Configuring gdm
7. Tweaking it
7.1. Using independent sound cards
7.2. Customising the login screen
7.3. 1st X server configuration file
7.4. Number X servers started by Display managers
7.5. Dynamically switching the number of X servers
8. Known problems
8.1. Hardware problems
8.2. Software problems
9. Special notes on some distributions
9.1. Mandrake
9.2. Red Hat
9.3. Debian
9.4. SuSE
10. Final words
A. Video Compatibility list
A.1. Graphic card pairs/triples that work perfectly A.2. Graphic card pairs/triples that work, but with some glitches
B. Example configuration files
B.1. XFree86
B.2. Display managers
B.3. Configuration files for Input Agent
C. Scripts
C.1. hotplug: input.agent
C.2. hotplug: input.rc
C.3. hotplug & XFree supporting event devices: input.agent
C.4. Wrapper for starting X using Nvidia libGL.so
C.5. For installing Nvidia drivers for parallel use with DRI
D. Experimental Backstreet Ruby configuration Script/ Service
D.1. README.ruby_init explains how to configure and use the service. D.2. The global configuration file /etc/sysconfig/ruby.conf D.3. The ruby_init service /etc/init.d/ruby_init D.4. Modified hotplug input.agent /etc/hotplug/input.agent
Chapter 1. Introduction
1.1. About Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby
Backstreet Ruby is a kernel patch for the Linux kernel. It is a back port to Linux-2.4 of the Ruby kernel tree, which is developed by the Linux Console Project. The aim of the Linux Console developers is to enhance and reorganize the input, the console and the framebuffer subsystems in the Linux kernel, so they can work independent from each other and to allow multi-desktop operation. All this is done in the Ruby kernel tree which is based on the development Linux-2.5 kernel. The new Input subsystem and the new Framebuffer layer are already integrated in Linux-2.5 kernel, but as the main developer of the Linux Console Project, James Simmons, is too busy with completing the rewrite of the framebuffer layer in Linux-2.5, the multi-desktop operation will not be integrated in the next stable Linux kernel (Linux-2.6).
So Backstreet Ruby brings to the current stable Linux kernel (Linux-2.4) the enhanced input subsystem and the ability to use multiple graphic cards and multiple keyboards independently, in order to make multiple local XFree users on a single PC system possible.
You can have multiple independent graphic cards and multiple independent mice, but in order for multiple users to interact with the system, they do need independent keyboards as well. Multiple independent keyboards is the feature that Linux-2.4 (and in the future Linux-2.6) lacks, and this is what Backstreet Ruby adds to the stable Linux kernel Linux-2.4.
The entire work on back porting Ruby to Linux-2.4 is done by Aivils Stoss. < Aivils.Stoss (at) unibanka.lv>
Aivils got recently his hands on Ruby, and now Ruby is fully functional[1] too, so if you prefer the Linux-2.6 kernel you might use Ruby instead of Linux-2.4 + Backstreet Ruby.
Visit his web site for more information on the patch itself, on the current status, how to build a kernel using his patch or how to build modified XFree86 server.
You can find it here:[http://startx.times.lv/] http://startx.times.lv
There are also several mirrors
- in the United States:
[http://people.debian.org/~andreas/aivils/] http://people.debian.org/ ~andreas/aivils/
2. in Germany:
[http://www.schuldei.org/aivils/] http://www.schuldei.org/aivils/
3. in the United Kingdom:
[http://karlovo.demon.co.uk/~svetlio/aivils/] http://karlovo.demon.co.uk/ ~svetlio/aivils/
The address of the Linux Console Project is: [http://linuxconsole.sf.net] http://linuxconsole.sf.net
1.2. About this document
This document explains how to configure your system for multiple local XFree users using the enchanted console/input subsystem in the Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby-2.6 kernel .
I will use :
* "Backstreet Ruby" or "BRuby" to refer to the back port to Linux 2.4
* "Ruby" or "Ruby-2.6" to refer to the original Ruby kernel tree for Linux
2.6
Every mention of Backstreet Ruby should be replaceable by Ruby/ Ruby-2.6 unless else mentioned.
Note Note Currently it is not possible to set up systems for multiple console
users.
There are two ways of setting up multiple local XFree users:
- Modify the kernel to ignore input from USB keyboards and add the handling of USB keyboards to a modified Xserver. This solution was developed by Miguel Freitas. Visit his page on the topic at [http:// cambuca.ldhs.cetuc.puc-rio.br/multiuser/] http:// cambuca.ldhs.cetuc.puc-rio.br/multiuser/, for instructions on how to set up such a system.
- Use the Backstreet Ruby kernel which supports independent keyboards.
I'll concentrate on configuring a system for multiple local XFree users using the Backstreet Ruby kernel, but there are parts which can be used also on a system using the solution from Miguel Freitas.
Note Note This document is not intended to be a replacement of the existing
documentation on the Backstreet Ruby home page ([http://startx.times.lv
/] http://startx.times.lv), but rather, this is a HOWTO, explaining the
way to a working X multi-user PC system. If you encounter any problems
you'll probably need to consult the more detailed information there.
The document is based on the file system layout of the Mandrake-Linux
distribution, but I tried to make it distribution-independent by
including information about the differences to other mainstream
distributions like Debian, Red Hat and SuSE Linux.
1.3. Related Documentation
* The Linux Console Project
[http://linuxconsole.sourceforge.net] http://linuxconsole.sourceforge.net
* The Backstreet Ruby home page
[http://startx.times.lv/] http://startx.times.lv/
* XFree with support for the new input layer by Zephaniah Hull
(seems the patches are obsolated, and were removed from the site)
[http://people.debian.org/~warp/evdev/] http://people.debian.org/~warp/ evdev/
* Miguel Freitas' page on multiple local XFree users
[http://cambuca.ldhs.cetuc.puc-rio.br/multiuser/] http:// cambuca.ldhs.cetuc.puc-rio.br/multiuser/
* Russian multi-terminal project Gorinich
[http://www.ctc.msiu.ru/zg/main.html] http://www.ctc.msiu.ru/zg/main.html
* Step by step instructions by Jean-Daniel Pauget
[http://disjunkt.com/dualhead/] http://disjunkt.com/dualhead/
* Multi-seat XFree solution under Linux with framebuffers, by Frode Trydal
[http://www.itsopen.net/projects/x-hack/] http://www.itsopen.net/projects /x-hack/
1.4. New versions of this document
You can find the latest stable version of this How-To at The Linux Documentation Project web site:
[http://tldp.org/HOWTO/XFree-Local-multi-user-HOWTO/index.html] http:// tldp.org/HOWTO/XFree-Local-multi-user-HOWTO/
and the latest unstable version :
[http://karlovo.demon.co.uk/~svetlio/ruby-contrib/how-to/ XFree_local_multi-user-HOWTO/] http://karlovo.demon.co.uk/~svetlio/ ruby-contrib/how-to/XFree_local_multi-user-HOWTO/
1.5. Copyright and License
This document, XFree-Local-multi-user-HOWTO, is copyrighted (c) 2003 by Svetoslav Slavtchev.
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no Invariant Sections, with no Front-Cover Texts, and with no Back-Cover Texts. A copy of the license is available at [http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html] http:// www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html.
Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.
NVIDIA is a registered trademark of NVIDIA Corporation.
1.6. Disclaimer
No liability for the contents of this document can be accepted. Use the concepts, examples and information at your own risk. There may be errors and inaccuracies, that could be damaging to your system. Proceed with caution, and although this is highly unlikely, the author(s) do not take any responsibility.
All copyrights are held by their by their respective owners, unless specifically noted otherwise. Use of a term in this document should not be regarded as affecting the validity of any trademark or service mark. Naming of particular products or brands should not be seen as endorsements.
1.7. Credits/Contributors
In this document, I have the pleasure of acknowledging:
* James Simmons <jsimmons (at) transvirtual.com >
for working so hard on Linux console project, for developing the new framebuffer, VT/console subsystem
* Vojtech Pavlik<vojtech (at) suse.cz>
for rewriting the input subsystem and working hard on the Linux console project
* Aivils Stoss <Aivils.Stoss (at) unibanka.lv>
for back porting Ruby to linux-2.4 and providing his back port and experiences to the world
* Andreas Schuldei <andreas (at) schuldei.org>
for providing Debian packages, comments about Debian
1.8. Feedback/Bug Reporting
Feedback is most certainly welcome for this document. Send your additions, comments and criticisms to the following email address : <svetoslav (at) users.sourcefourge.net>.
In case you experiance troubles in configuring the system, feel free to contact me or the linuxcosnole mailing list.
Please send as much details as possible, the most important information would be (from a running Backstreet Ruby kernel):
* output from dmesg
* output from lsmod
* output from cat /proc/bus/console/*/*
* contents of /proc/bus/input/devices
* contents of /proc/bus/usb/devices
* contents of the XFree configuration file(s) /etc/X11/XF86Config(-4)
* contents of the XFree86 log files /var/log/XFree86.[n].log
Chapter 2. Before we begin
2.1. Known Limitations
XFree does not support DRI acceleration on multiple graphic cards. The only way to get multiple accelerated X sessions is to use Nvidia's closed source driver and GL library or a single card using DRI and multiple cards using Nvidia's closed source drivers. XFree extensions not dependent on DRI should work.
Most of the multiheaded graphic cards can be used only for a single user/ display. In order to start independent X servers the heads have to be explicitly addressable (which can not be done with most of the cards). It should be possible to use cards with explicitly addressable heads for independent displays, but this has not yet been tested.
In the following cases it might be possible to use a single multiheaded card for multiple independent displays :
* The card(s) have different PCI Bus ID's for the different heads
(for example Matrox MMS G200/G450)
* The card(s) register frame buffer device for each head (only with the
Linux-2.5/2.6 patch)
Have in mind that the XFree frame buffer driver does not support acceleration and most of the XFree extensions.
(for example Matrox G400DH, G450DH, G550DH)
Using/configuring independent devices for the independent screens/users is pretty hard or not explored. Exceptions are the input devices, graphic cards and sound thanks artsd. Some examples of such unexplored areas:
* External storage device (USB/Firewire hard disks, CD/DVD drives, ZIP/
Floppy drives, memory sticks, ....
* USB/Firewire printers, scanners, cameras ...
In case you succeed in configuring such devices for independent usage by multiple users, please share with us how you did it.
Note Note This doesn't mean that the devices won't work, but that every user will
have access to all devices.
Currently under Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby you can have a maximum of 16 Virtual Terminals (8 for Backstreet Ruby released before 7 Oct 2003). This means that without hotplug configured if you are using USB keyboards with fancy keys you are limited to maximum of 8 independent users ( for older versions Backstreet Ruby - 4 users). So do use hotplug if you are going to setup a system for more then 4 users ( even systems with 2 attached USB keyboards benefit from using hotplug).
If you are using hotplug the maximal number of independent users is 16 for Backstreet Ruby / Ruby-2.6 and 8 for older versions Backstreet Ruby.
2.2. XFree configuration files
You should configure each of your video cards to work properly with a single X server, which is actually beyond the scope of this document. You should refer to the documentation that came with your distribution, but some general hints couldn't hurt.
The easiest way would be to use the same kind of monitors & video cards, you could then configure only the first card/monitor pair, make copies of this configuration file for the number of video cards you have, and then only adjust the BusID "PCI:x:xx:x" field in the configuration file. You can do this with the help of lspci, XFree86 -scanpci -verbose , or other similar distribution-specific tools.
You could use a similar approach if you have only monitors or video cards of the same type.
Most modern distributions also have advanced tools for easier configuration of Xinerama. You can use these tools to set up the system for Xinerama and then use this configuration file for generating the configuration files for the different X servers. You can use an example configuration file, replacing video card and monitor section, by the corresponding sections from the Xinerama XFConfig-4 file.
Other useful resources:
* [http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/XFree86-HOWTO/index.html] The Linux XFree86
HOWTO
* [http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/XFree86-Video-Timings-HOWTO/index.html]
XFree86 Video Timings HOWTO
* [http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/XWindow-Overview-HOWTO/index.html] X Window
System Architecture Overview HOWTO
* [http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/XWindow-User-HOWTO/index.html] The X Window
User HOWTO
2.3. Reusing Xinerama configured XFree
If you have a system configured for Xinerama, you can easily adjust the XFree configuration file so you can use it for multiple users.
This will allow you to easily switch between a multi-user environment and a Xinerama multi-monitor environment.
What is Xinerama and how does the system configured using this HOWTO differ from a system using the Xinerama extensions in XFree?
The Xinerama extensions were introduced to the XFree86 system in version 4.0. Xinerama is an extension to XFree86 Release 6 Version 4.0 (X4.0) which allows applications and window managers to use the two (or more) physical displays as one large virtual display. In case Xinerama is not used, applications can only reside on one of the displays and can not be moved between the two. Window managers had to be specially written to support the two displays. With Xinerama, window managers and applications don't have to be specially written to support the larger "Virtual Desktop" Xinerama creates.
Just the opposite, the primary goal of a system configured according to this HOWTO is to offer multiple independent displays for several users on a single PC system.
For more information on Xinerama read:
* [http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Xinerama-HOWTO/index.html] Xinerama-HOWTO,
Using Xinerama to MultiHead XFree86 v.4.0+
2.4. Binary packages
Binary rpms of modified XFree servers are currently available for Mandrake 8.2/ 9/ 9.1/ 9.2, Red Hat 8/ 9, SuSE 8.1. If you're running other rpm-based distributions please help me to prepare and rebuild packages, so other users can get pre-compiled binaries. Currently the binary rpm packages are not mirrored and are only available from [http://karlovo.demon.co.uk/~svetlio/ ruby-contrib] http://karlovo.demon.co.uk/~svetlio/ruby-contrib.
Binary packages for Debian Sid are also available thanks to Andreas Schuldei at [http://www.schuldei.org/debian/bruby] http://www.schuldei.org/debian/ bruby, or as apt repository "deb http://www.schuldei.org/debian/bruby ./ ".
Chapter 3. Installing the kernel
Note The installation of Ruby-2.6 is not fully covered, partly because there
are almost no differences compared to the installation of Linux-2.6
kernel, partly because I have not gathered enough experience with
Ruby-2.6 yet, so any comments and questions are welcomed.
If you are going to use Ruby-2.6, please do install Linux-2.6 without
the Ruby-2.6 patch first and configure your system for it, in order to
avoid tracking "Ruby-2.6 Bugs" which are actually due to a not properly
configured system because of the Linux-2.4 -> Linux-2.6 changes. A good
starting point is probably [http://www.codemonkey.org.uk/docs/
post-halloween-2.6.txt] http://www.codemonkey.org.uk/docs/
post-halloween-2.6.txt" .
3.1. Installing the Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby-2.6 kernel
Now it's time to install the kernel.
The easiest way would be to pull an already prepared binary kernel; there are packages for some distributions (currently only Mandrake and Debian) or a source package, and rebuild it on your system.
If for some reason you cannot use them or have problems using them you can also build your own kernel with the Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby-2.6 patch. For more information how to do this visit the Backstreet Ruby page on building and installing the kernel: [http://startx.times.lv] http://startx.times.lv (or some of the mirrors) -> Documentation -> Quick Kernel.
(If you are new to Linux, reading "The Linux Kernel HOWTO", [http://tldp.org/ HOWTO/Kernel-HOWTO.html] http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Kernel-HOWTO.html, could be very helpful.)
You can find binary kernel packages for Mandrake at [http:// karlovo.demon.co.uk/~svetlio/ruby-contrib/] http://karlovo.demon.co.uk/ ~svetlio/ruby-contrib/.
Debian binary kernel packages are available at [http://www.schuldei.org/ debian/bruby] http://www.schuldei.org/debian/bruby, or as apt repository "deb http://www.schuldei.org/debian/bruby ./ "
Note Note * If you are going to use USB input devices, it's recommended to use the
hid driver instead of usbkbd/ usbmouse.
* Upon loading the hid driver, you might get the following error message:
[root@svetljo RPM] modprobe hid
modprobe: Can't locate module keybdev which is needed for hid
[root@svetljo RPM]
The reason is that in some version of the module-utils package this
dependency is hardcoded, but overrideable, so you should override it by
adding "above hid usbcore" to your /etc/modules.conf
3.2. Notes on building your own kernel
There are some things I would like to mention, although I won't go in details, as the Backstreet Ruby page on compiling the kernel discusses this topic.
- You have to follow this order: Input support Virtual Terminal support Console drivers
for all required options to be available/selectable.
2. You have to use built in input support:
Input device support --> Input devices (needed for keyboard, mouse,..) Input device support --> Mouse support
3. I would suggest you also include at least one keyboard (built in - not as
a module). You can also use modules, but I find it safer to be able to use a keyboard instead of trying to find a PC with ssh (or something similar) to load the required modules.
For AT/PS2 keyboards, turn on (not modules): Input device support --> Serial i/o support Input device support --> i8042 PC Keyboard controller Input device support --> Keyboards Input device support --> AT keyboard support
For a USB keyboard turn on (not modules): Input device support --> Keyboards USB support --> support for USB USB support --> USB Host Controller Drivers USB support --> USB Human Interface Device (full HID) support USB support --> HID input layer support
4. If you are new to Linux, do not try to patch an already patched kernel
(heavily patched kernels like the ones that ship with most distributions). Use a kernel from [http://www.kernel.org] www.kernel.org, and take a look at the [http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Kernel-HOWTO/] Linux Kernel HOWTO.
Note Note In Backstreet Ruby (the patch for a 2.4 Linux kernel) does not support
frame buffer devices , and for that reason is disabled.
In Ruby (the patch for 2.6 Linux kernel) if you want to disable/ change
to modules support for PS2 input devices, you have to first activate/
enable "General setup --> Remove kernel features (for embedded systems)"
3.3. Creating needed device files
If you are not using the devfs file system, you might need to create several device files needed for the new input sub-system in the Backstreet Ruby kernel:
Note Note Most current distributions should already provide the necessary device
files, so try booting Backstreet Ruby without creating the device files
and in case you don't miss input devices omit this section. Any
distribution that came with XFree-4.3.0 and linux-2.4.20 should provide
these device files.
cd /dev mkdir input.old mv mouse js? input.old mkdir input cd input mknod js0 c 13 0 mknod js1 c 13 1 mknod js2 c 13 2 mknod js3 c 13 3 mknod mouse0 c 13 32 mknod mouse1 c 13 33 mknod mouse2 c 13 34 mknod mouse3 c 13 35 mknod mice c 13 63 mknod event0 c 13 64 mknod event1 c 13 65 mknod event2 c 13 66 mknod event3 c 13 67 cd .. ln -s input/js0 js0 ln -s input/js1 js1 ln -s input/mice mouse
If you use devfs, all required devices will be created automatically by devfs.
Mandrake is an example of one distribution that uses devfs. Debian does not use devfs by default, but the kernel supports devfs; in order to activate devfs you have to add "devfs=mount" to the "append" line of your boot loader and install devfsd (the devfs demon). Distributions that do not use devfs are Red Hat and SuSE.
You can check whether devfs is used by issuing the following commands:
* To check whether support for devfs is enabled in your kernel
cat /proc/filesystems | grep devfs
* To check whether devfs is used/mounted
mount | grep devfs
If you get an empty string this means that devfs is not used; if you get something like the following output, devfs is activated: [root@mc contrib] cat /proc/filesystems | grep devfs nodev devfs nodev usbdevfs [root@mc contrib] mount | grep devfs none on /proc/bus/usb type usbdevfs (rw) none on /dev type devfs (rw) [root@mc contrib]#
3.4. Notes on using multiple VT's & VGA console
As the frame buffer layer is not back-ported to Linux-2.4, only the primary graphic card is initialized during the boot process. Secondary graphic cards can only be initialized by an X server, so under Backstreet Ruby you will have a single VGA text console on the primary graphic card.
Ruby for Linux-2.6 supports framebuffer devices and single framebuffer console (which takes over the VGA console), but support for multiple VT's through framebuffer consoles is not yet ready.
To keep VGA console properly working it is important first to be started the XFree instance which will drive the graphic card which is used for VGA console(the graphic card defined as primary in BIOS).
3.5. Keyboard numbering(order of detection)
In the following chapters you will read about 1st keyboard, 2nd keyboard and so on, so here I will explain what is meant by n-th keyboard.
When a keyboard device is found, it is bound to a free VT (given that there are free VT's). The first keyboard found will be bound to VT0 (tty1-tty16), the second to VT1 (tty17), the third to VT2 (tty18).
Note Note Older versions of the bruby patch (released before Oct 7 2003) use :
first keyboard found => VT0 (tty0-tty7)
second => VT1 (tty8-tty15)
third => VT2 (tty16-tty23)
The order of detecting the keyboards depends on the configuration of your kernel :
* If you are using kernel with integrated USB input the USB keyboard
devices will be registered first, then the AT/PS2 keyboards will follow when the modules are loaded
* If you are using kernel with integrated PS2 input the AT/PS2 keyboard
devices will be registered first, then the USB keyboards will follow when the modules are loaded
* If you are using kernel with integrated PS2 & USB input the AT/PS2
keyboard devices will be registered first, then the USB keyboards will follow
But there are some caveats:
Most USB keyboards represent themselves as more than one keyboard; it is common that the multimedia keys or the number-pad identify themselves as a different keyboard device. So if you are running a kernel with integrated USB input and have one USB keyboard with multimedia keys and one PS2 keyboard, the USB keyboard will be bound to VT0(real keyboard) and VT1(multimedia keys), the PS2 keyboard will be bound to VT2 (in case you have enough DUMB consoles).
There are several ways to work around these issues. Here I'll explain the easiest way to follow. It's definitely not the best one, but the shortest explanation, and I just want to make it clear to you that the problem is not that big. The better solutions will follow later in their own section.
All you need to do is to start the Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby kernel with dumbcon= n , where n is the sum of your AT/PS2 keyboards plus the sum of your USB keyboards multiplied by 2 (I suppose this is the maximum number of interfaces a USB keyboard registers), so all keyboards will be bound to a VT. Now you should find out which VT's the real keyboards are bound to (the keyboards excluding the multimedia keys) and start X using the appropriate tty ranges. Thanks to the proc interface integrated in Backstreet Ruby, you can easily find the assignment of keyboards to VT's. Each VT creates a file /proc/bus/ console/[n]/keyboard (n is the number of the VT, for VT0 n will be 00, for VT1 - 01, ... , for VT11 - 11); reading this file will give you the assigned keyboard.
[root@svetljo root]# cat /proc/bus/console/*/* usb-00:10.1-1.1/input0 usb-00:10.1-1.1/input1 isa0060/serio0/input0 tells us that:
* USB keyboard (real) is bound to VT0
* USB keyboard (multimedia keys) is bound to VT1
* PS2 keyboard is bound to VT2
Now we can start X on the VT's with real keyboards, in this case VT0 and VT2.
Of course in this simple example with only 2 keyboards (one USB and one PS2) the problem could be easily avoided by using a kernel with primary PS2 input support. The PS2 keyboard would be found first and bound to VT0, the USB keyboard would follow and it's real keyboard interface would be bound to VT1, so there is no need for additional dumb consoles (for the multimedia interfaces of USB keyboards).
Chapter 4. Setting up the X servers
Now its time to configure XFree.
4.1. Do I need a modified X server?
Note Note For some video cards you can skip this part. Before installing the
modified X server check the Video Compatibility list to determine
whether you need one. Currently there are reports for working
configurations without using a modified X server for Voodoo Graphics as
primary and Voodoo3 or Nvidia TNT2 as secondary.
"Why should a modified X server be used?" - The reason is that XFree is designed to serve a single user and this design requires a single X server to drive all available graphic cards. So when an unmodified X server starts, it disables access to graphic cards for other X servers. Hence we have to modify XFree to make it possible more then one X server to run at the same time.
* "The experimental way": you can use the "hackvideo"(ignoring pci_disable
XFree commands) feature of the Backstreet Ruby kernel. This will allow you to use the XFree server that came with your distribution (no need for installing modified XFree server).
Q: "Why experimental?"
- Well, you have to find out whether it works with your combination of graphic cards. There are some combination that works flawlessly, but the majority of tested combinations have problems with this setup.
* "The surer way": you have to install XFree server modified with the
Prefered Bus ID patch.
Q: "Why surer?"
- Because it works with all "supported graphic cards", solves a lot of stability problems and makes it possible to use VGA console on the primary graphic card.
If you decide first to try without installing a modified X server, follow these steps:
- To enable this feature you have to add this to your XFree configuration
- file
- Section "ServerFlags" ... Option "PciOsConfig" "1" ... EndSection
- and to inform the kernel to filter unnecessary PCI commands:
[root@mc contrib]#echo "1"> /proc/bus/pci/hackvideo
- If you want this to be done automatically on every boot you have to add :
if [ -x /proc/bus/pci/hackvideo ];then
/bin/echo "1"> /proc/bus/pci/hackvideo fi
to your init scripts, preferably somewhere at the end of /etc/rc.d/ rc.sysinit (so the command is executed before X is started)
4. If you want to disable this functionality you have to:
[root@mc contrib]# echo "0"> /proc/bus/pci/hackvideo
Note Note This functionality exists in the Backstreet Ruby kernel since 15. May
2003 and in Ruby-2.6 since 29. Sep 2003 , but will never be added to the
official linux kernel as it is a small hack to spare you installing
modified X server.
It is still recommended to install modified X server.
4.2. Installing and Configuring XFree-PrefBusID
- Install the modified XFree server.
+ Install an already built, but not packaged, modified X server and
create the necessary symbolic links. You can get such binaries from
the Backstreet Ruby home page, at [http://startx.times.lv] http://
startx.times.lv.
+ Help us (as well other people using your distribution) in building an
rpm or binary for your distribution (we lack systems installed with
all available distributions, so we are not able to build packages for
every distribution).
+ To patch and rebuild XFree from source using the instructions on the
Backstreet Ruby page. Go to the Documentation section, at [http://
startx.times.lv] http://startx.times.lv (or some of the mirrors) ->
Documentation -> Quick XFree.
2. Find the BusID of your graphic cards
Note Note For AGP cards, something similar to "1:0:0"
For PCI cards, something similar to "0:xx:0"
+ In most cases you will find the BusID already set in the device
section of the XFree configuration file.
(Virtually always in case XFree is configured for Xinerama.)
+ If it is missing you can use lspci, XFree86 -scanpci -verbose or
other similar tools that came with your distribution.
With lspci look for "VGA compatible controller" or other similar
tools that came with your distribution.
root@svetljo mnt] lspci | grep "VGA compatible controller"
00:0d.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV17 [GeForce4 MX 420] (rev a3)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: ATI Technologies Inc Radeon RV200 QW [Radeon 7500]
[root@svetljo mnt]
With XFree86 -scanpci -verbose , or in case XFree is already running
XFree86 :1 -scanpci -verbose and look for your graphic cards:
[root@svetljo mnt]# XFree86 :1 -scanpci -verbose
......
(0:13:0) unknown card (0x1462/0x8852) using a nVidia Corporation NV17 [GeForce4 MX 420]
......
(1:0:0) unknown card (0x1002/0x0f2a) using a ATI Technologies Inc Radeon RV200 QW [Radeon 7500]
3. Configure XFree-PrefBusID. You have the following choices with the same
- effect
+ Use the XFree config file option "SingleCard" , requires as argument
a boolean value(true/false), added in patch version 3
For use in multi-user environment set to true, for standard XFree
behavior(single X server allowed) to false or comment out/ delete the
line.
Note This functionality is inlcuded the xorg-x11 packages for
Mandrake and in Debian Sid XFree86 packages.
+ Use the XFree config file option "PrefBusID" , requires as argument a
valid BusID, added in patch version 2
For use in multi-user environment include the option with a valid
BusID, for standard XFree behavior(single X server allowed) comment
out or delete.
Note This functionality is inlcuded the xorg-x11 packages for
Mandrake and in Debian Sid XFree86 packages, but the option name
is changed to "IsolateDevice"
+ Use the XFree command line option -prefbusid x:x:x , requires as
argument a valid BusID, initial release of the patch
For use in multi-user environment pass the option with a valid BusID
to XFree at start-up, for standard XFree behavior(single X server
allowed) don't specify the option.
Note This functionality is inlcuded the xorg-x11 packages for
Mandrake and in Debian Sid XFree86 packages, but the option name
is changed to -isolateDevice x:x:x
Note Note * For Mandrake and Debian users:
the XFree configuration files are normally /etc/X11/XF86Config-4
* For Red Hat, Gentoo, SuSE users:
the XFree configuration files are normally /etc/X11/XF86Config
+ using the "SingleCard" option
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "X0"
Screen 0 "Screen0" 0 0
InputDevice "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
Option "SingleCard" "true"
EndSection
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "X1"
Screen 0 "Screen1" 0 0
InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
Option "SingleCard" "true"
EndSection
Note Note
The BusID have to be specified in the "Device" Section of the
XFree configuration file.
Section "Device"
Identifier "nv"
VendorName ""
BoardName ""
Driver "nvidia"
# Clock lines
# Uncomment following option if you see a big white block
# instead of the cursor!
# Option "sw_cursor"
Option "NoLogo" "On"
BusID "PCI:0:13:0"
EndSection
+ using the "PrefBusID/IsolateDevice" option (requires as argument a
valid BusID)
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "X0"
Screen 0 "Screen0" 0 0
InputDevice "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
Option "PrefBusID" "1:0:0"
EndSection
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "X1"
Screen 0 "Screen1" 0 0
InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
Option "PrefBusID" "0:13:0"
EndSection
or for Debian Sid's XFree86 and Mandrake's xorg-x11
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "X0"
Screen 0 "Screen0" 0 0
InputDevice "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
Option "IsolateDevice" "1:0:0"
EndSection
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "X1"
Screen 0 "Screen1" 0 0
InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
Option "IsolateDevice" "0:13:0"
EndSection
+ using the "-prefbusid" option at XFree start-up (requires as argument
a valid BusID)
or for Debian Sid's XFree86 and Mandrake's xorg-x11 use
"-isolateDevice" instead
Caution Caution
For the older(version 1) Preferred Bus ID XFree Server only
this choice is valid.
For example on command line
[root@svetljo mnt]# startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -prefbusid 1:0:0 vt7
, or from a display manager (gdm):
..............................
# Definition of the standard X server.
[server-Standard]
name=Standard server
command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -layout first-Xserver -deferglyphs 16 -ac -prefbusid 1:0:0 vt7
flexible=true
[server-Second]
name=Second server
command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -layout second-Xserver -deferglyphs 16 -prefbusid 0:13:0 vt17
flexible=true
..............................
and for xdm/kdm
:0 local /bin/nice -n -10 /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -deferglyphs 16 -prefbusid 1:0:0 vt7
:1 local /bin/nice -n -10 /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4.TNT2 -prefbusid 0:13:0 vt17
4.3. Creating symbolic links
The symbolic links are needed for properly starting several XFree instances, as well for properly exiting an X session. This applies for both starting X from console and the automatic starting of X by the display manager (kdm, gdm, xdm).
You need to create as many symbolic links to the modified X server binary (or to the original X server in case you do not need a modified one), as the number of your video cards/X sessions.
I assume that you will have to use a modified X server, but in case you do
not need it, use the following commands to create the links to your original
X server:
cd /usr/X11R6/bin/
ln -s XFree[modified] X0
ln -s XFree[modified] X1
ln -s XFree[modified] X2
In case you use the provided rpm packages, you'll only need this if you want more than 4 parallel running X servers/X sessions, as the rpm creates 4 symbolic links to the X server binary.
4.4. Using independent keyboards with XFree
Once you install the Backstreet Ruby/ Ruby-2.6 kernel and start it with dumbcon=n, you get n +1 independent consoles [1 VGA(or Framebuffer under Ruby-2.6) + n DUMB] . If you have enough keyboards connected to your PC, each of these consoles are associated with a given keyboard. This enables you to start multiple X servers on each of the consoles, using the keyboard associated with the corresponding console for input. Hence you get multiple independent X servers with independent keyboards, which in turn make it possible for one single PC to be used by several local X users simultaneously.
To start X on a given console (using a given independent keyboard) you pass it the argument vt[N], where N is a number from a given tty range.
* VGA(or Framebuffer for Ruby-2.6): tty1 to tty16
* DUMB1: tty17
* DUMB2: tty18
If you have 3 video cards, 3 keyboards, and you have started the Backstreet Ruby kernel with dumbcon=2, you can start 3 independent X servers for 3 simultaneous users with the following commands:
Note Note * For Mandrake and Debian users:
the XFree configuration files are normally /etc/X11/XF86Config-4
* For Red Hat, Gentoo, SuSE users:
the XFree configuration files are normally /etc/X11/XF86Config
Caution Caution
Have in mind that for the older Preferred Bus ID XFree Server
(version 1) you have to specify the desired graphic card with
parameter "-prefbusid x:x:x" where x:x:x is the Bus ID of the desired
graphic card. Just append "-prefbusid x:x:x" with the correct Bus ID
of the card you want to start right before the last argument vt[x].
If you omit this option the modified X server will act as a not
modified/ standard XFree server and you wont be able to run multiple
XFree instances at the same time.
For the 1st X server with the 1st keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4[for your 1st video card] vt7
For the 2nd X server with the 2nd keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4[for your 2nd video card] vt17
For the 3rd X server with the 3rd keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X2 :2 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4[for your 3rd video card] vt18
For the 1st X server you can skip the -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4[for your 1st video card] argument. In this case, the default configuration file, /etc/X11/XF86Config-4, will be used.
Note Note * VGA: tty0 to tty7
* DUMB1: tty8 to tty15
* DUMB2: tty16 to tty23
This means that you have to use different vt parameter for the
additional X servers.
For the 2nd X server with the 2nd keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4[for
your 2nd video card] vt8
For the 3rd X server with the 3rd keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X2 :2 -xf86config /etc/X11/XF86Config-4[for
your 3rd video card] vt16
You can also setup your display manager to start the independent X servers, once everything is properly configured. But don't rush to setup your display manager before the configuration is finished, because this could give you serious problems. When you are ready with the required configurations, you'll reach the section on configuring the display manager.
4.5. Using independent mice with XFree
To use an independent mouse for each of your independent X servers/sessions, you just have to modify the input section of the XFree configuration files to point to the proper device files.
Use /dev/input/mouse[n], where n is the number of your mouse starting from 0:
* 1st mouse --> /dev/input/mouse0
* 2nd mouse --> /dev/input/mouse1
* 3rd mouse --> /dev/input/mouse2
* 4th mouse --> /dev/input/mouse3
You shouldn't use /dev/input/mice because it merges the input from all mouse devices.
Here is my configuration before modifications:
# ********************************************************************** # Pointer section # **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1" Driver "mouse" Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/psaux" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection
After modifications for the first X server:
# ********************************************************************** # Pointer section # **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1" Driver "mouse" Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection
For the second X server:
# ********************************************************************** # Pointer section # **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1" Driver "mouse" Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse1" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection
and so on ...
4.6. For graphic cards without DRI
(or reusing Xinerama configured XFree)
There could be several reasons for not using DRI:
* As far I know only one graphic card in a system can use DRI.
* The Nvidia closed source driver does not support DRI.
In case one of this reasons applies to your system, you do not need different XFree configuration files for the different displays.
You can configure your system for Xinerama using the tools provided with your distribution and reading [http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Xinerama-HOWTO/ index.html] The Xinerama-HOWTO, so when the system is used by a single user, he/she could switch to Xinerama desktop and use all available displays for a bigger desktop.
Once configured for Xinerama, only small additions are needed to achieve multiple independent desktops. All you have to do is to add new layouts which use single screen definition and have independent input devices (well, this is actually needed only for the mouse devices, as the keyboard is managed through the vt[n] option).
If you have configured Xinerama in the following way: Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Simple Layout" Screen "Screen 2" Screen "Screen 1" RightOf "Screen 2" InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer" InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard" EndSection
To achieve multiple independent desktops you only have to add layout
definitions for a single screen :
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "first-Xserver" Screen "Screen 1" InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer" InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard" EndSection
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "second-Xserver" Screen "Screen 2" InputDevice "Mouse2" "CorePointer" InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard" EndSection
Which should result in these layout definitions: Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Xinerama" Screen "Screen 2" Screen "Screen 1" RightOf "Screen 2" InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer" InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard" EndSection
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "first-Xserver" Screen "Screen 1" InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer" InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard" EndSection
Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "second-Xserver" Screen "Screen 2" InputDevice "Mouse2" "CorePointer" InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard" EndSection
Now you can start a single X server with option -layout Xinerama and enjoy the Xinerama desktop, or
You can start 2 independent X servers using -layout first-Xserver for the first, and -layout second-Xserver for the second.
Since you will use a single XFree configuration file for all X servers,
* in order to use independent keyboards you have to use following command:
For 1st X server with the 1st keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -layout first-Xserver vt7
For 2nd X server with the 2nd keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -layout second-Xserver vt17
and if you want to use Xinerama:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X -layout Xinerama vt7
*
Note Note For older versions of Backstreet Ruby you have to use:
For 1st X server with the 1st keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 :0 -layout first-Xserver vt7
For 2nd X server with the 2nd keyboard:
$ startx -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 :1 -layout second-Xserver vt8
* also the mice must have different identifiers:
# ********************************************************************** # Pointer section # **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse2"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse1"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection
4.7. Nvidia GLX & DRI
Note Note Here you will learn how to configure your system for parallel use of
Nvidia's GLX and XFree's DRI. If you do not have Nvidia cards, or you
have only Nvidia cards, you do not need to read this section. In the
first case you do not need the Nvidia GLX at all, and in the second, you
can use the standard procedure for installing GLX.
Why Nvidia? Why closed source drivers?
A bit of a mixed up answer:
- With the open source driver it's almost impossible to bring up a secondary card, so we should use the closed source driver.
- Why the Nvidia card? Currently these are the only available, affordable PCI video cards with some acceleration.
- I tried to use DRI on 2 parallel X servers, but it didn't work. I posted emails to XFree, DRI and lkml list, but I only got a single answer with no valuable information on my problem. I tried to run DRI on a Matrox G550 DH AGP & SiS63xx PCI, but when enabled for both cards, I got AGP errors. When enabled only for one of the cards, I got DRI up and running. Please, someone confirm or prove me wrong!
I'll explain several ways to get configuration working for both Nvidia GLX and XFree86 DRI. There are probably a lot of other possibilities, and maybe these are not the simplest, but they are the ones I know to work.
The reasons why this is needed:
- Nvidia should use a different module path for xf86: the glx extension module from Nvidia is incompatible with the one from XFree86.
- Nvidia should use a different XF86Config file: because DRI should be disabled for Nvidia and enabled for others.
If you find a simpler way, please email it me and I'll include it.
Caution Caution
This can not be used as-is on SuSE Linux. In order to make it easy
for the user to switch between Mesa, XFree and Nvidia GL libraries,
SuSE uses a very complicated setup for the GL libraries. To use this
setup you have to switch your configuration to XFree86's GL
libraries.
4.7.1. Example 1
This is the configuration that I use on my system (ATI AIW Radeon 7500 AGP and Nvidia TNT2 M64 PCI) XFree configuration files:
- Create a directory /usr/X11R6/libNV:
mkdir /usr/X11R6/libNV
2. Create links to the original /usr/X11R6/lib:
cd /usr/X11R6/libNV
lndir -silent -ignorelinks ../lib
3. Install the Nvidia driver and libraries in /usr/X11R6/libNV.
4. Install Nvidia's libGLcore.so.1.0 [driver version], or better,
libGLcore.so.1, in /usr/lib. Make a symbolic link from /usr/X11R6/libNV/ libGLcore.so.1 to /usr/lib/libGLcore.so.1 (this will allow you to easily update your Nvidia drivers):
cd /usr/lib
ln -s ../X11R6/libNV/libGLcore.so.1 ./
Note: the Nvidia libGL.so is installed /usr/X11R6/libNV, so it's invisible to the system unless you tell the system about the existence of /usr/X11R6/libNV. For this setup, you must not do this, as it will break the standard X server start-up. But you can use the XFree GL libraries with the Nvidia graphic card and Nvidia closed source drivers, with a non-Nvidia graphic card, using XFree's DRI, which the GL library from Nvidia cannot do.
5. Add a line in the XFree configuration file for the Nvidia card to point
the X server to the right location of the library and module path: Section "Files"
.......... ModulePath "/usr/X11R6/libNV/modules" ..........
EndSection
6. Install the Nvidia kernel driver.
Now everything should be fine and you should be able to use DRI and Nvidia GLX at the same time. You will have a bit smaller performance in comparison to a setup which uses Nvidia's libGL & libGLcore, but the difference is not that big on my PC.
4.7.2. Example 2
This example will give you the full performance of both the Nvidia card(s), and the non-Nvidia card, since XFree's libGL is used for the non Nvidia card, and Nvidia's libGL is used for Nvidia cards. But this will require one more X server to be precise; a simple wrapper to add the path to the Nvidia libraries, and symbolic links to it for additional Nvidia cards.
It is almost the same as the previous scenario, with the difference that the X servers for the Nvidia cards should start with an environment where Nvidia's libGL is known, while the X servers for non Nvidia cards shouldn't know anything about the Nvidia libGL. This requires a wrapper to be used for starting the X servers driving Nvidia cards.
Install the Nvidia libraries and kernel driver like in the previous example. You may skip step 4. as libGLcore.so.1 is installed in /usr/X11R6/libNV, and we'll inform the X servers driving Nvidia cards about the proper path to the Nvidia libraries.
The missing part - the wrapper :
#!/bin/bash
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/X11R6/libNV
exec /usr/X11R6/bin/X0 $*
Copy these lines into your favourite editor and save the file as XNV. Make it executable:
chmod +x XNV
Copy the file to /usr/X11R6/bin and make symbolic links to it for additional Nvidia cards (for additional cards just add more links): cp XNV /usr/X11R6/bin cd /usr/X11R6/bin ln -s XNV Xnv0 ln -s XNV Xnv1 ln -s XNV Xnv2
Remember to use /usr/X11R6/bin/Xnv0, /usr/X11R6/bin/Xnv1 ..., instead of /usr /X11R6/bin/X0, /usr/X11R6/bin/X1 ... for your Nvidia cards while configuring the display managers in the next chapter, or when starting X on Nvidia card (s) from console.
4.7.3. Installing the Nvidia libraries easily
Using the new Nvidia installer (note, this is a work in progress, do not use if you don't understand what happens here. To-do: write a script to perform steps 1-4. Please provide some feedback on the script in Appendix->Scripts):
- Manually
-
- Make a backup of your XFree GL libraries: cd [XFree prefix]
On my Mandrake system I can use:
cd $OPENWINHOME
find lib -name "libGL." -o -name "libGLcore" -o -name "libglx.*" | xargs tar rpfv libGL-backup.tar
2. Then run the Nvidia installer:
./NVIDIA-Linux-x86-1.0-4349.run --no-opengl-headers --xfree86-prefix=/usr/X11R6NV --opengl-prefix=/usr/X11R6NV
3. Copy the installed files to /usr/X11R6/libNV:
cd /usr/X11R6NV/lib && tar cv * | tar xvC /usr/X11R6/libNV/
4. Restore the backed-up GL libraries:
cd [XFree prefix] tar xvfp libGL-backup.tar && ldconfig
Chapter 5. More on configuring input devices
Here you will find more details on configuring input devices and dealing with secondary keyboard interfaces found in USB multimedia keyboards.
If you feel comfortable under Linux, please review and test the experimental service ruby_init. The service, the configuration file and the README can be found in Appendix D. Any kind of feedback is highly appreciated. (Please, please drop a line with comments. :-) )
Note Note If you are configuring a system with two displays( 2 keyboards, 2 mice)
you probably can skip to Chapter 6 "Configuring display managers", but
if you want to use a single system for more users you will find really
useful information in this chapter.
5.1. Finding the real devices
We will need this information later on, to be able to assign a given keyboard /mouse to a given X-server/Display.
To find the PHYS ID's (the addresses) or the name(quite oft it differs from the one labeled on the device) of your input devices you have to read the file /proc/bus/input/devices.
Here is what I have:
[svetljo@svetljo How-To]# cat /proc/bus/input/devices
I: Bus=0011 Vendor=0002 Product=0002 Version=0034
N: Name="PS2++ Logitech Wheel Mouse"
P: Phys=isa0060/serio1/input0
H: Handlers=mouse0 ts0
B: EV=7
B: KEY=f0000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B: REL=103
I: Bus=0011 Vendor=0001 Product=0002 Version=ab02 N: Name="AT Set 2 keyboard" P: Phys=isa0060/serio0/input0 H: Handlers=kbd B: EV=120003 B: KEY=4 2000000 8061f9 fbc9d621 efdfffdf ffefffff ffffffff fffffffe B: LED=7
I: Bus=0003 Vendor=046d Product=c303 Version=0700 N: Name="Logitech USB Keyboard" P: Phys=usb-00:10.1-1.1/input0 H: Handlers=kbd B: EV=120003 B: KEY=10000 7f ffe00000 7ff ffbeffdf ffffffff ffffffff fffffffe B: LED=7
I: Bus=0003 Vendor=046d Product=c303 Version=0700 N: Name="Logitech USB Keyboard" P: Phys=usb-00:10.1-1.1/input1 H: Handlers=kbd B: EV=100003 B: KEY=1078 1800d100 1e0000 0 0 0
I: Bus=0003 Vendor=05fe Product=0011 Version=0000 N: Name="Cypress Sem. PS2/USB Browser Combo Mouse" P: Phys=usb-00:10.1-1.2/input0 H: Handlers=mouse1 ts1 B: EV=7 B: KEY=1f0000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 B: REL=103
Note Note * /proc/bus/input/devices will provide the needed information for all
devices except USB multimedia/office keyboards.
* For such USB multimedia/office keyboards you will have to gather
additional information, for example with the help of lsusb.
* Under Ruby-2.6 for usb devices it will look like "usb-0000:00:10.x"
not "usb-00:10.x"
* First we have to find the address of the USB keyboard:
[root@svetljo How-To]# lsusb Bus 004 Device 001: ID 0000:0000 Bus 003 Device 001: ID 0000:0000 Bus 003 Device 002: ID 0409:55ab NEC Corp. Hub [iMac kbd] Bus 003 Device 003: ID 046d:c303 Logitech, Inc. Bus 003 Device 004: ID 05fe:0011 Chic Technology Corp. Browser Mouse Bus 002 Device 001: ID 0000:0000 Bus 001 Device 001: ID 0000:0000
Here, my USB Logitech keyboard is Device 003 on Bus 003.
* Now we run lsusb with arguments -v -s [your USB keyboard device id in
form Bus:Device], in my case, lsusb -v -s 003:003.
........
Interface Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 4
bInterfaceNumber 0
bAlternateSetting 0
bNumEndpoints 1
bInterfaceClass 3 Human Interface Devices
bInterfaceSubClass 1 Boot Interface Subclass
bInterfaceProtocol 1 Keyboard
iInterface 0
........
Interface Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 4
bInterfaceNumber 1
bAlternateSetting 0
bNumEndpoints 1
bInterfaceClass 3 Human Interface Devices
bInterfaceSubClass 0 No Subclass
bInterfaceProtocol 0 None
iInterface 0
........
So my USB keyboard has two interfaces (see bInterfaceNumber); the first one
is the real keyboard (bInterfaceProtocol 1 Keyboard), the second
(bInterfaceProtocol 0 None) - the additional keys. Hence the real USB
keyboard is:
.....
N: Name="Logitech USB Keyboard"
P: Phys=usb-00:10.1-1.1/input0
H: Handlers=kbd
.....
The "P: Phys=" field (the physical descriptor/address) consorts of:
- Bus type: "usb"
- PCI function of the USB controller: "00:10.1 " ( for Ruby-2.6 "0000:00: 10.1")
- USB device id: "1.1"
- The string: "/input"
- Interface number: "0"
5.2. Using hotplug with input.agent and input.rc
Using the input.agent will allow you to manage input devices based on their PHYS ID.
The input.rc script will run the input.agent with appropriate arguments for drivers that are built in the kernel or are loaded before hotplug is available.
5.2.1. input.agent
The input agent uses 3 configuration files:
* /etc/hotplug/kbd.conf
* /etc/hotplug/mouse.conf
* /etc/hotplug/event.conf
Note Note The explanations here are using Backstreet Ruby ( usb devices have
PHYS_ID "usb-00:xx.x-..."), if you are running Ruby-2.6 for usb devices
you should have PHYS_ID "usb-0000:00:xx.x-...." , but you should be able
to use the same configuration files both under Backstreet Ruby and
Ruby-2.6 by specifying "usb-0*:xx.x-..." .
To configure the keyboards you have to adjust /etc/hotplug/kbd.conf
If I wanted to use the PS2 keyboard for the primary Display and for the VGA
console, I would have:
#
# keyboard configuration
#
# vt_name device_physicaly_location
VT0 isa0060/serio0/input0 VT1 usb-00:10.1-1.1/input0
Or, if I want to use the USB keyboard for the primary Display and for the VGA
console:
#
# keyboard configuration
#
# vt_name device_physicaly_location
VT0 usb-00:10.1-1.1/input0 VT1 isa0060/serio0/input0
you could also use "*." instead of the pci function of the USB controller:
#
# keyboard configuration
#
# vt_name device_physicaly_location
VT0 usb-
.*-1.1/input0
VT1 isa0060/serio0/input0
For mouse devices you have to edit /etc/hotplug/mouse.conf # # mouse device configuration # # sym_link device_physicaly_location
mouse0br usb-00:10.1-1.2/input0 mouse1br usb-*.*-2.7.*/input0 mouse2br isa0060/serio1/*
and adjust the XFree configuration file.
For the first mouse change
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5" ......
to :
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0br" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5" ......
For the second mouse change
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse1" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5" ......
to :
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse1br" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5" ......
and so on.
For Event devices edit /etc/hotplug/event.conf # # input event device config file # # symbolic_link device_physicaly_location
event0br isa0060/serio0/* event1br isa0060/serio1/input0 event2br usb-*.*-3/input0
and configure the applications which use them to use the symbolic links instead of the real devices
5.2.2. input.rc
If you are using input drivers built into the kernel please ensure that the input.rc script is started/executed at system start. In case the script is not executed you will find that hotplug could not configure these input devices.
Note Note This area requires user feedback. Currently I have information only
about Mandrake, where hotplug is not run as service.
If your distribution runs hotplug as service this will be done automatically.
If your distribution does not run hotplug as service you will have to modify your init scripts to run input.rc for you before XFree is started.
You may add this at the end of your /etc/rc.d/rc.sysinit if [[ -f /proc/bus/console -o -n tmp=`uname -r | sed -n 's:ruby::p'` ]]; then
if [ -x /etc/hotplug/input.rc ]; then
/etc/hotplug/input.rc start
if [ $? = 0 ]; then
action "Configuring cold plugged input devices" /bin/true
else
action "Configuring cold plugged input devices" /bin/false
fi
else if [ -f /etc/hotplug/input.rc ]; then
action "Input: input.rc installed, but not executable. Please check the file permissions." /bin/false
else
action "Input: Failed to configure cold plugged devices - input.rc missing" /bin/false
fi
fi fi
5.3. Using XFree with event interface support
This will allow you:
* if you have input devices with different names, to use them with the same
Xserver/screen wherever you plug or re-plug them.
* if you have input devices with the same names, to use them with the same
Xserver/screen according to the USB port where you plug or re-plug them.
* the ability to use wild cards such as "*" and "?".
Caution Caution
Currently hot-plugging doesn't seems to work properly. I have reports
that it works when using the "Dev Name" option, but my primary
purpose was to get it working with "Dev Phys" and this does not
currently seem to work. "Why "Dev Phys"?" - because if one wants to
setup a single system for 4,5 or more users it would be easier to get
4,5 or more pieces of the same keyboard/ mouse then to find the same
number keyboards or mice but from different manufacturer or with
different names, and i find configuring XFree for such number users
is simpler when "Dev Phys" is used.
Warning Warning
This section is somewhat abandoned and is not tested under Ruby-2.6
as it didn't work reliably for me.
For this to work you will have to use XFree with the patches for event interface support, developed by Zephaniah Hull. You can find them at the following url: [http://people.debian.org/~warp/evdev/] http:// people.debian.org/~warp/evdev/.
To build from source you will need the following patches :
* 029_lnx_evdev.diff : The evdev core patch.
* 030_lnx_evdev_mouse.diff : The mouse side of the patch.
* 031_lnx_evdev_keyboard.diff : The keyboard side of the patch.
The binaries for Debian include these patches.
For hot-plugging you will also need the /etc/hotplug/input.agent , which you can find under the above address and in Appendix Scripts
Then you have to configure XFree to use the event devices.
The configuration section for a mouse should look something like this: Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "evdev"
Option "Dev Name" "A4Tech USB Optical Mouse"
Option "Dev Phys" "usb-*/input0"
Option "Buttons" "9"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "6 7 8 9"
EndSection
The configuration section for a keyboard should look something like this: Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Keyboard1"
Driver "kbd"
Option "Protocol" "evdev"
Option "Dev Name" "SILITEK USB Keyboard"
Option "Dev Phys" "usb-*/input0"
Option "AutoRepeat" "250 30"
Option "XkbRules" "xfree86"
Option "XkbModel" "pc101"
Option "XkbLayout" "dvorak"
EndSection
For Dev Name and Dev Phys, the wildcats "?" and "" work, you MUST have at least one of the two, if you have both then the device must match on both, a non-existent entry is the same as one consisting of "".
5.4. Using the "Phys" descriptor and USB devices
Using the "Phys" descriptor of input devices simplifies a lot the configuration of input devices in XFree, especially when a bigger number of displays are used.
As USB devices are connecting in a tree form, you can really easy specify the way keyboard and mice devices are bound to a specified X display. You have to use one USB hub with number of ports equal(or bigger) to the number of the X displays, to this hub are connected smaller (2-4 port) hubs (or keyboards with integrated hub). To the first port of the smaller (integrated) hub are connected the keyboards, to the second the mice (in case there are free ports you can connect usb-audio devices to them :) ). This results in the following layout of the usb-id's in case the primary USB hub is the first USB device :
Note Note In the following explanations and examples I use for first device on the
secondary(integrated) hub keyboard device because my keyboard is
internally connected to the 1st port of the integrated hub. I assume
this will apply for most of the keyboards with integrated hub, but in
case the one you own uses different port you will have to make small
adjustments.
* on the 1st port of the primary hub
+ 1.1 USB hub (integrated)
+ 1.1.1 USB keyboard
+ 1.1.2 USB mouse
+ (1.1.3 usb-audio/other usb device)
* on the 2nd port
+ 1.2 USB hub (integrated)
+ 1.2.1 USB keyboard
+ 1.2.2 USB mouse
+ (1.2.3 usb-audio/other usb device)
* on the 3rd port
+ 1.3 USB hub (integrated)
+ 1.3.1 USB keyboard
+ 1.3.2 USB mouse
+ (1.3.3 usb-audio/other usb device)
* on the 4th port
+ 1.4 USB hub (integrated)
+ 1.4.1 USB keyboard
+ 1.4.2 USB mouse
+ (1.4.3 usb-audio/other usb device)
Based on this we can bind all devices connected to a specified USB port to a given X server.
5.4.1. ... with Input Agent
An example for a 4-user system using the "Phys" descriptor with Input Agent and USB input devices.
Note Note Here the PCI function of the USB controller is masked by *.* so it
should work both under Backstreet Ruby and Ruby-2.6 . If you use more
then one USB controller you'll have to use different mask ( for example
"usb-0*:xx.x-...") or specify the full PHYS_ID's : .
For Backstreet Ruby you should have PHYS_ID "usb-00:xx.x-..."
For Ruby-2.6 you should have PHYS_ID "usb-0000:00:xx.x-...."
We'll use the "vt[n]" parameter when starting X and the following configuration file for the keyboards(/etc/hotplug/kbd.conf ): # # keyboard configuration # # vt_name device_physicaly_location
VT0 usb-*.*-1.1.1/input0 VT1 usb-*.*-1.2.1/input0 VT2 usb-*.*-1.3.1/input0 VT3 usb-*.*-1.4.1/input0
For mouse devices the configuration file (/etc/hotplug/mouse.conf) will look
like this:
#
# mouse device configuration
#
# sym_link device_physicaly_location
mouse0br usb-*.*-1.1.2/input0 mouse1br usb-*.*-1.2.2/input0 mouse2br usb-*.*-1.3.2/input0 mouse3br usb-*.*-1.4.2/input0
and we have to adjust the XFree configuration files, so XFree uses the symbolic links instead of the actual devices. If you already configured independent mice you have only to append "br" to each of the mouse devices.
Change each "/dev/input/mouse[n]" to "/dev/input/mouse[n]br".
For the first display:
# ********************************************************************** # Pointer section # **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1" Driver "mouse" Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0br" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection ......
For the second display:
# ********************************************************************** # Pointer section # **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1" Driver "mouse" Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse1br" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection ......
and so on.
Or in case a single XFree configuration file is used:
# ********************************************************************** # Pointer section # **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1" Driver "mouse" Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse0br" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse2" Driver "mouse" Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2" Option "Device" "/dev/input/mouse1br" Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
Option "Emulate3Buttons" # Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection ......
5.4.2. ... with XFree with event interface support
Using the "Dev Phys" option of XFree with event device support and USB input devices enables us to use almost identical configuration of the input devices for all X servers. The only difference will be in the part of the usb-id, which reflects the port of the primary USB hub.
Note Note The examples below are for multiple XFree configuration files, if you
use a single XFree configuration file you have to adjust the
identifiers.
The configuration for the input devices for the 1st display would look
something like this:
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Keyboard1"
Driver "kbd"
Option "Protocol" "evdev"
Option "Dev Phys" "usb-*-1.1.1/input0"
Option "AutoRepeat" "250 30"
Option "XkbRules" "xfree86"
Option "XkbModel" "pc101"
Option "XkbLayout" "dvorak"
EndSection Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "evdev"
Option "Dev Phys" "usb-*-1.1.2/input0"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection
For the 2nd display something like this: Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Keyboard1"
Driver "kbd"
Option "Protocol" "evdev"
Option "Dev Phys" "usb-*-1.2.1/input0"
Option "AutoRepeat" "250 30"
Option "XkbRules" "xfree86"
Option "XkbModel" "pc101"
Option "XkbLayout" "dvorak"
EndSection Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1"
Driver "mouse"
Option