Ubuntu Fan thread

meetdilip · Nov 12, 2017

6pack said:
Why? Isn't the best driver installed by default? If its not installed,

I checked additional drivers nothing available for my Radeon card. Laptop is currently using onboard Intel GPU

6pack said:
This arch wiki is a really good source of knowledge for installing and verifying graphics drivers. I used this to install i965 or some driver (can't remember exact name) for my intel chip. It was not installed by default and graphics was really bad, like lots of screen tearing etc.

Some guys at AskUbuntu are saying that there is no driver support for many Radeon cards in 16.04. I am not sure what to do.

6pack said:
Mesa ppa for Ubuntu where you can get latest drivers:

What is Mesa ? I have heard the term here and there, but not sure what it does.

My laptop is a 2010 purchase. I really hope to find a driver for my graphics card.

6pack · Nov 13, 2017

post the output of "inxi -b". you can change host name if required before posting the output here.

forgot about mesa. Its an open source graphics drivers for intel, amd and nvidia. most systems use this mesa driver as default in their distro because it is stable and most importantly it supports older graphics cards very well. for cutting edge drivers from AMD and Nvidia you need to install radeon si or noveau. Intel has teamed up with Ubuntu developers to support the latest Intel graphics drivers in kernel. So to get the latest Intel driver you need to install the latest kernel which is bug free.

I've got mixed results with Intel drivers so its best to stay with default recommended kernel for system. If you get a kernel update go for it. I'm on the 4.10.0-38-generic x86_64 (64 bit) kernel. Intel graphics works very well in this with support for 1080p hevc hw decoding.

meetdilip · Nov 13, 2017

6pack said:
output of "inxi -b"

Code:

$ inxi -b
System:    Host: MyPC-Vostro-3550 Kernel: 4.4.0-98-generic x86_64 (64 bit)
           Desktop: Unity 7.4.0  Distro: Ubuntu 16.04 xenial
Machine:   System: Dell (portable) product: Vostro 3550
           Mobo: Dell model: 0PD77K v: A12 Bios: Dell v: A12 date: 02/18/2014
CPU:       Dual core Intel Core i5-2430M (-HT-MCP-) speed/max: 1995/3000 MHz
Graphics:  Card-1: Intel 2nd Generation Core Processor Family Integrated Graphics Controller
           Card-2: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] Whistler [Radeon HD 6630M/6650M/6750M/7670M/7690M]
           Display Server: X.Org 1.18.4 drivers: ati,radeon,intel (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
           Resolution: 1366x768@60.00hz
           GLX Renderer: Mesa DRI Intel Sandybridge Mobile
           GLX Version: 3.0 Mesa 17.0.7
Network:   Card-1: Realtek RTL8111/8168/8411 PCI Express Gigabit Ethernet Controller
           driver: r8169
           Card-2: Broadcom BCM4313 802.11bgn Wireless Network Adapter
           driver: wl
Drives:    HDD Total Size: 500.1GB (53.8% used)
Info:      Processes: 252 Uptime: 4:01 Memory: 2235.1/3857.3MB
           Client: Shell (bash) inxi: 2.2.35

6pack · Nov 13, 2017

Well, the onboard Intel graphics gpu has the latest drivers according to the output. The AMD drivers are already installed but not used since Intel is set as default. So its showing unloaded.

See this link for amd radeon cards in ubuntu 16.04+.

For switching between gpus - Ubuntu - hybrid graphics

meetdilip · Nov 13, 2017

6pack said:
AMD drivers are already installed but not used since Intel is set as default.

Can I use both ? If yes, how to ?

Thanks a lot for helping

I couldn't understand what those links are saying. Tried this command though

Code:

$ lspci -nn | grep -E 'VGA|Display'
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation 2nd Generation Core Processor Family Integrated Graphics Controller [8086:0116] (rev 09)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] Whistler [Radeon HD 6630M/6650M/6750M/7670M/7690M] [1002:6741] (rev ff)

6pack · Nov 14, 2017

I think you got that command from here: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RadeonDriver

That command only lists vga devices by name and connected display. Since you have two gpu's it shows Intel and Amd.

Unfortunately, since AMD has abandoned old cards there is no GUI to switch between cards. You need to use terminal to make a program use the AMD card.
See this link - https://askubuntu.com/questions/761091/ati-intel-hybrid-graphics-16-04-lts

Edit: you may have to search on ubuntu forums to see of they will help you to with this. On Reddit Ubuntu sub, they delete any questions asked and ask people to post in Ubuntu forums.

meetdilip · Nov 14, 2017

I did try AskUbuntu and UbuntuForums. They were not very helpful with their replies.

Maybe due to lack of my experience, is it possible to use both resources ? If yes, how ? This is the question I am stuck at now, and I am not able to understand further

6pack · Nov 14, 2017

meetdilip said:
is it possible to use both resources ? If yes, how ?

it was linked in my previous post.

you need to add "DRI_PRIME=1" before the application you want to run on amd gpu. example you have mpv installed and want it to use amd gpu, then in terminal type

Code:

DRI_PRIME=1 mpv name_of_video_file.mkv

Like I said, there is no gui way to easily switch between graphics cards. both your cards have drivers installed and both are working. think of it as amd gpu is on standby to save battery power.

If you have Gnome DE installed I think it allows to right click and use gpu according to this reddit thread. Not sure if your card is supported though.

Edit: seems like someone made an applet to easily switch between gpu's.
https://github.com/beidl/amd-indicator

It has deb file created - amd-indicator_0.9b6_all.deb
see if it meets all dependencies before installing.

meetdilip · Nov 14, 2017

6pack said:
you need to add "DRI_PRIME=1" before the application you want to run on amd gpu. example you have mpv installed and want it to use amd gpu, then in terminal type

Thanks. You mean we cannot permenantly set AMD to work with a single app ? I would be more than happy if the graphics cards work with Firefox all the time.

Update :

I tried this to use AMD graphics card with Firefox

Code:

$ DRI_PRIME=1 firefox
1510673828866    addons.webextension.87677a2c52b84ad3a151a4a72f5bd3c4@jetpack    WARN    Please specify whether you want browser_style or not in your browser_action options.
1510673828873    addons.webextension.{a0d7ccb3-214d-498b-b4aa-0e8fda9a7bf7}    WARN    Please specify whether you want browser_style or not in your browser_action options.
1510673828881    addons.webextension.{d10d0bf8-f5b5-c8b4-a8b2-2b9879e08c5d}    WARN    Please specify whether you want browser_style or not in your browser_action options.
Promise resolved after context unloaded
Promise resolved while context is inactive
Promise resolved while context is inactive

6pack said:
someone made an applet to easily switch between gpu's.
https://github.com/beidl/amd-indicator

I am using 16.04. I heard fglrx is not supported in it

For the deb file, dependencies are unmet due to lack of fglrx

Code:

$ sudo apt-get install fglrx python-appindicator
[sudo] password for MyPC:
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree   
Reading state information... Done
Package fglrx is not available, but is referred to by another package.
This may mean that the package is missing, has been obsoleted, or
is only available from another source

E: Package 'fglrx' has no installation candidate

6pack · Nov 15, 2017

fglrx goes by name fglrx-updates. What does driver manager show you?

microcode is of cpu. you should have fglrx-updates and another option below that for gpu drivers.

You can set amd gpu to work with FF permanently. All you have to do is edit the shortcut and add the DRI_PRIME=1 before the app launch string.

Edit: those errors are of extensions. try opening firefox with extensions disabled and see if that error comes again. To do that, go to Help menu > Restart with add-ons disabled.

meetdilip · Nov 15, 2017

Is that from Linux Mint ?

Additional Drivers shows this

Most resource consuming device on my laptop is Firefox and VLC. I try Inkscape at times as well

6pack said:
All you have to do is edit the shortcut and add the DRI_PRIME=1 before the app launch string.

Where is it available ?

booo · Nov 15, 2017

meetdilip said:
Where is it available ?

I think you have to install driconf gui from here https://apps.ubuntu.com/cat/applications/driconf/

meetdilip · Nov 15, 2017

booo said:
install driconf gui

Just installed. But, I have no idea what those options in it do. Or, how to use them.

6pack · Nov 15, 2017

yes, its from Linux mint XFCE edition. Just right click on firefox icon on desktop or in app menu and see if you can edit the command line options for it.

i used to use vlc first, but like you said it was resource hungry & used up > 80% of my cpu. plus it had too many problems playing hevc/h264 1080p files without dropping frames so i switched to mpv with ffmpeg base. mpv drops like just 5-10 frames max in an hour for same files and uses 20-30% cpu. its much much better than vlc imo. seems it has options to give madvr type quality of playback for dedicated gpu etc.

meetdilip · Nov 15, 2017

6pack said:
Just right click on firefox icon on desktop or in app menu and see if you can edit the command line options for it.

You mean, in launcher ? There is no option there

Does alloting Firefox with AMD Graphics card give any advantage ?

meetdilip · Nov 15, 2017

Tried this and VLC popped up. But, when I tried opening and playing a file through VLC, there was only black screen + sound. No video at all

Code:

$ DRI_PRIME=1 vlc
VLC media player 2.2.2 Weatherwax (revision 2.2.2-0-g6259d80)
[00000000014da148] core libvlc: Running vlc with the default interface. Use 'cvlc' to use vlc without interface.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
[00007ff8b4c0dca8] avcodec decoder: Using G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0 for hardware decoding.
QObject::~QObject: Timers cannot be stopped from another thread

6pack · Nov 15, 2017

meetdilip said:
You mean, in launcher ? There is no option there

Does alloting Firefox with AMD Graphics card give any advantage ?

Tried this and VLC popped up. But, when I tried opening and playing a file through VLC, there was only black screen + sound. No video at all

Is there no properties menu if you click on FF icon in side panel or launcher?

Only advantage would be in watching videos or playing games. It could be a disadvantage due to increased battery consumption vs integrated graphics.

The blank video means hw decoding is not properly set up. Probably missing vdpau drivers. Another reason is vlc video output is not set up properly in the settings.

what is the output of DRI_PRIME=1 vdpauinfo

meetdilip · Nov 15, 2017

6pack said:
Is there no properties menu if you click on FF icon in side panel or launcher?

None.

Under user/share/applications , there is some .desktop file where we can change icons. I will take a look at it as well. Can you give a sample, on how it looks.

Code:

$ DRI_PRIME=1 vdpauinfo
display: :0   screen: 0
API version: 1
Information string: G3DVL VDPAU Driver Shared Library version 1.0

Video surface:

name   width height types
-------------------------------------------
420    16384 16384  NV12 YV12
422    16384 16384  UYVY YUYV
444    16384 16384  Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8

Decoder capabilities:

name                        level macbs width height
----------------------------------------------------
MPEG1                          --- not supported ---
MPEG2_SIMPLE                    3  9216  2048  1152
MPEG2_MAIN                      3  9216  2048  1152
H264_BASELINE                  41  9216  2048  1152
H264_MAIN                      41  9216  2048  1152
H264_HIGH                      41  9216  2048  1152
VC1_SIMPLE                      1  9216  2048  1152
VC1_MAIN                        2  9216  2048  1152
VC1_ADVANCED                    4  9216  2048  1152
MPEG4_PART2_SP                  3  9216  2048  1152
MPEG4_PART2_ASP                 5  9216  2048  1152
DIVX4_QMOBILE                  --- not supported ---
DIVX4_MOBILE                   --- not supported ---
DIVX4_HOME_THEATER             --- not supported ---
DIVX4_HD_1080P                 --- not supported ---
DIVX5_QMOBILE                  --- not supported ---
DIVX5_MOBILE                   --- not supported ---
DIVX5_HOME_THEATER             --- not supported ---
DIVX5_HD_1080P                 --- not supported ---
H264_CONSTRAINED_BASELINE      --- not supported ---
H264_EXTENDED                  --- not supported ---
H264_PROGRESSIVE_HIGH          --- not supported ---
H264_CONSTRAINED_HIGH          --- not supported ---
H264_HIGH_444_PREDICTIVE       --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN                      --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_10                   --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_STILL                --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_12                   --- not supported ---
HEVC_MAIN_444                  --- not supported ---

Output surface:

name              width height nat types
----------------------------------------------------
B8G8R8A8         16384 16384    y  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 A4I4 I4A4 A8I8 I8A8
R8G8B8A8         16384 16384    y  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 A4I4 I4A4 A8I8 I8A8
R10G10B10A2      16384 16384    y  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 A4I4 I4A4 A8I8 I8A8
B10G10R10A2      16384 16384    y  NV12 YV12 UYVY YUYV Y8U8V8A8 V8U8Y8A8 A4I4 I4A4 A8I8 I8A8

Bitmap surface:

name              width height
------------------------------
B8G8R8A8         16384 16384
R8G8B8A8         16384 16384
R10G10B10A2      16384 16384
B10G10R10A2      16384 16384
A8               16384 16384

Video mixer:

feature name                    sup
------------------------------------
DEINTERLACE_TEMPORAL             y
DEINTERLACE_TEMPORAL_SPATIAL     -
INVERSE_TELECINE                 -
NOISE_REDUCTION                  y
SHARPNESS                        y
LUMA_KEY                         y
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L1        y
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L2        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L3        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L4        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L5        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L6        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L7        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L8        -
HIGH QUALITY SCALING - L9        -

parameter name                  sup      min      max
-----------------------------------------------------
VIDEO_SURFACE_WIDTH              y        48     2048
VIDEO_SURFACE_HEIGHT             y        48     1152
CHROMA_TYPE                      y 
LAYERS                           y         0        4

attribute name                  sup      min      max
-----------------------------------------------------
BACKGROUND_COLOR                 y 
CSC_MATRIX                       y 
NOISE_REDUCTION_LEVEL            y      0.00     1.00
SHARPNESS_LEVEL                  y     -1.00     1.00
LUMA_KEY_MIN_LUMA                y 
LUMA_KEY_MAX_LUMA                y

[DOUBLEPOST=1510748323][/DOUBLEPOST]

6pack said:
The blank video means hw decoding is not properly set up. Probably missing vdpau drivers

Works fine when I open VLC by clicking the icon.

6pack · Nov 16, 2017

I think its called launcher and not shortcut in linux. You put DRI_PRIME=1 before firefox %u in the command options.

meetdilip · Nov 16, 2017

Can I switch to AMD Graphics card as a whole ? I don't mind extra power usage. Will VLC and other work ? Or, will give a black screen as before ?[DOUBLEPOST=1510849813][/DOUBLEPOST]

6pack said:
View attachment 72772

I think its called launcher and not shortcut in linux. You put DRI_PRIME=1 before firefox %u in the command options.

I haven't seen anything like this in 16.04

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