Problems when Closing XFree86 Using a S3Virge/Gx

Yet Another Anonymous Coward asks: "I am using a S3Virge/GX video card to run XWindows. I am running Red Hat 6.0. I was able to get Xwindows running but when I close the Xsession, my display is shifted. I have tried using F86_SVGA and XF86_S3V servers but I continue to have the same problem. Any suggestions???"

Same Here - I Think

[Splat]

I experience the same problem .. maybe. I don't know what your definition of "shifting" is, but when I close my KDE session, and kdm pops up it momentarily gets kinda scrambled at the top of the screen but kdm seems to reset it back. It's really not a problem other than midly annoying. I have a Diamond Stealth 3D 2000 2MB PCI Video card. When I was using the S3V Server I didn't encounter this problem. I currently use the SVGA server because I find the performance better for my card. I'm not sure if what you're describing is a more severe problem then mine, but I hope I helped.

Virge/VX

[metasim]

I've got a crappy Virge/VX card that came with my Pentium Pro Gateway computer, and I have had major problems with it causing the whole computer to lock-up when leaving an X session and going back to the xdm/gdm/kdm process while using the S3V server. I don't have the problem with the SVGA server, so I use that (even though it is much slower).

S3 Trio 3D has problems too.

[mcse4life]

I know trio 3d is only very recently supported, but the problems I am having are very irritating. I have tried three different distributions so I know it is something with X. Suse 6.2 and Caldera 2.3 would work on a fresh install but caldera's screws up (locks machine) if you exit to console and try to start X back up. Suse won't work for any other user than root and if you changed the config it wouldn't work for anyone. I hope redhat has fixed the problem because they are next.

Re:Older S3Virges

[mabinogi]

I've tried using a Virge/GX2 and that would cause my system to freeze solid periodically if i used 24 bit color, and i also have not had any luck with a Trio3D, but my old 4meg PCI S3virge (86c325) works perfectly.

another X related problem

[emmons]

moderators, please don't kill my karma of 1.

Ok, here's my system... DLD 6.0.1 (german linux distrubutoin) with kernel 2.2.10, xfree 3.3.3.1, kde 1.1.1. I am new to linux. I have a TNT2 and just downloaded and installed the drivers (v1 for glibc) from nVidia's site. X with KDE works fine, i can do 1028x768x32 no problem, everything looks great... except the small fact that I have no mouse curser. I had one before I installed the new drivers. (but then I couldn't set resolution very high) I also get one for an instant if I try do drag a link from netscape. When x loads it says something along the lines of 'using RIVATNT2 hardware curser' (I can't remember exactly as I am at a friends computer writing this)

Anyone have any ideas? Trying to navigate without knowing where the mouse points to is becoming annoying.

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Re: Problems with XFree86 and S3Virge/GX

[Anonymous Coward]

I had the same problem. The only solution at the moment is to use the framebuffer support for text mode and the S3V server for XFree86. The Framebuffer HOWTO warns that you might still have a problem with the S3V server resetting the screen and if that is the case you will have to use the unaccelerated XF86FB_dev server. I have been using the S3V server for about three months now and have had no problems. Support for these cards is in the works, so use the framebuffer until then (you might like it so much that you will stay with it, I know I am). Hope this helps.

Older S3Virges

[rwa2]

You might want to search through http://www.linuxhardware.net/ [linuxhardware.net] to see what other S3Virge owners have had so say. There have always been problems with console corruption with these cards, and I've heard of people using everything from setfont to SVGATextmode to cope.

As for me, I have a plain old S3V (86C325) card that isn't even VESA 2.0 compliant, so using a framebuffer console is kind of out of the question for me. On the other hand, it's the only card I have that can drive this big old fixed-frequency monitor that my roommate found. I haven't figured out how to set the video timings for the console, so I only use it for X. I've found that newer X servers greatly reduce the likelihood of console corruption, though, so perhaps your best recourse is just waiting for the next version...

s3v bug in hardware

[lubricated]

some of the s3v don't go back to text mode correctly this is a hardware bug. There are so many s3v chips out there. "S3 makes the everybody else makes the boards". Seams like if you are running xdm gdm or kdm it shouldn't matter. Some of the s3v cards need to be run with XFree S3v server instead of SVGA because it just works better. Furthermore if you have the s3v framebuffer in the kernel or just a generic 16 color console driver and you have setup the console to use that frambuffer than it shouldn't be a problem going back and forth between text and nontext because even when you go to text it really stays in graphics mode.