HOWTO: adding webcam support for skype and adobe flash

A

aleksey14

Note these works only with i386.
To set up your webcam to work with skype and flash you should do the following:
1.Download the long hoped-for patch from here.
Copy it into /usr.
Next patch, compile, install the kernel.

2. Install from the ports:
multimedia/webcamd
multimedia/linux-f10-libv4l
net/skype

3. in /boot/loader.conf add
Code: 
cuse4bsd_load="YES"
in /etc/rc.conf add the line
Code: 
webcamd_enable="YES"
and, of course, do not forget to set permissions on /dev/video0
in /etc/devfs.rules add lines
Code: 
[system = 10]
add path 'video *' mode 0666
in /etc/rc.conf add
Code: 
devd_enable="YES"
devfs_system_ruleset="system"

Skype should run with the script

Code: 
#!/bin/sh 
export LD_PRELOAD=/usr/lib/libv4l/v4l2convert.so 
/usr/local/share/skype/skype --resources=/usr/local/share/skype $@

Well, that's easy enough.
And by the way, check the flash player here.
If you don't have installed flash please see this forum thread.

If I wrote something in sufficient detail, do not hesitate to notice me that.
I'll be pleased to hear your questions and criticism.

P.S. Sorry for my poor English. You know, I'm traveling down the river, finished MGIMO and all that. :e
 
Hello.

I'm very new to FreeBSD and I want to make my webcam work in Skype. I have FreeBSD 8.2 and my arch is i386. I have skype-2.0.0.72 already installed and working, but if I go to Skype -> options -> video device, and click the 'Test' button for my webcam, it doesn't show nothing it stays all black no stream, even if I see that 'video device' points correctly in skype to '/dev/video0'. If I really need to patch my kernel like you say in your message, can you please tell me how can I patch, configure and install the kernel?? I really will appreciate to have video working on skype.

The following is the current configuration I already had made, and my webcam is working great but only in pwcview I can see video on my webcam, but I cannot see any video on skype. Please, can you or anyone help me?.

This is what I got:
Code: 
[root@kim /etc]# kldstat
Id Refs Address    Size     Name
 1   13 0xc0400000 bd97b4   kernel
 2    1 0xc0fda000 2d998    linux.ko
 3    1 0xc1008000 7520     snd_atiixp.ko
 4    2 0xc1010000 56794    sound.ko
 5    1 0xc1067000 48f8     cuse4bsd.ko

Code: 
[root@kim /usr/ports/distfiles]# cat /boot/loader.conf 
kern_maxfiles=25000
sem_load="YES"
linux_load="YES"
snd_atiixp_load="YES"
cuse4bsd_load="YES"
pwc_load="YES"

Code: 
[root@kim /usr/ports/distfiles]# ls -l /dev | grep video0
crw-rw-rw-  1 webcamd  webcamd     0,  83 Jul 14 08:36 video0

Thanks in Advanced.
 
A small update for people who found this thread: My Linuxolator V4L2 patch has been committed to 9.0-current (r221426) and to 8.2-stable in the meantime (r222914), so if you run either of those it should work already. And if you run a -release (8.2) then the skype ports now depend on multimedia/linux_v4l2wrapper-kmod which is an implementation of the patch as a kld that can be loaded as: # kldload linux_v4l2wrapper or added to /boot/loader.conf.
The result of loading that kld will be the same as patching your kernel.

And finally, two notes:

a) the net-im/skype-devel port doesn't seem to work with V4L2 (video) on FreeBSD, and
b) the net-im/skype port uses linux-alsa compat packages for oss output as described in the port's pkg-message that can be displayed like this: $ pkg_info -D skype\* |less
For mic input to work that alsa oss input code needs another one-line patch that was committed after 8.2-release (r221388 for 9.0-current and r221583 for 8.2-stable, the latter commit was on on May 7 2011): http://lists.freebsd.org/pipermail/freebsd-multimedia/2011-April/012024.html - link to standalone patch: http://svnweb.freebsd.org/base/head...view=patch&r1=221388&r2=221387&pathrev=221388
(and the net-im/skype20 port doesn't need this patch since it still supports oss natively, but the distfile for that is no longer public.)

I hope this clears up any remaining confusions. :)

PS: compiling a custom kernel is explained in the handbook: http://www.freebsd.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/kernelconfig-building.html - and you can also patch and rebuild just the sound.ko by doing: # cd /usr/src && fetch -o - 'http://svnweb.freebsd.org/base/head/sys/dev/sound/pcm/dsp.c?view=patch&r1=221388&r2=221387&pathrev=221388' |patch -p1
# cd sys/modules/sound/sound && make DEBUG_FLAGS=-g && make install DEBUG_FLAGS=-g
(and then reload it resp. your sound driver that depends on it, or reboot.)
 
SIFE said:
Does multimedia/webcamd port support usb2 webcam now?
Click to expand...
I'd be surprised if not, or rather if it doesn't it would be unlikely that usb2 is the reason, more likely the Linux v4l/dvb tree that webcamd uses doesn't have a driver for it. (Which one is it anyway and can you post # usbconfig dump_device_desc output for it?)
 
For your information:
After binary upgrading to FreeBSD8.1-p3, skype did not start again.
Code: 
freebsd-update fetch
freebsd-update install
I had to remove the updates and then skaype working again with support for webcam.
Code: 
freebsd-update rollback

I have skype 2.0.0.72,1
 
serjsk8 said:
For your information:
After binary upgrading to FreeBSD8.1-p3, skype did not start again.[...]
I have skype 2.0.0.72,1
Click to expand...

8.1-p3?? It works for 8.2-STABLE and only since r221583, as it's been announced here. Anyway give skype 2.1 a try. I had problems on 8.2 with skype 2.0 and 2.1 works pretty well
 
8.1-p3?? It works for 8.2-STABLE and only since r221583, as it's been announced here. Anyway give skype 2.1 a try. I had problems on 8.2 with skype 2.0 and 2.1 works pretty well
Click to expand...
Yes, I know!
But my skype 2.0.0.72,1 + webcam works on FreeBSD8.1-RELEASE-p2 after installing multimedia/linux_v4l2wrapper-kmod. I just wanted to say that after upgrading to FreeBSD8.1-RELEASE-p3 skype 2.0 not run! I do not use STABLE on my home PC. I'll try Skype 2.1 after the upgrade to 9-RELEASE.
 
serjsk8 said:
Yes, I know!
But my skype 2.0.0.72,1 + webcam works on FreeBSD8.1-RELEASE-p2 after installing multimedia/linux_v4l2wrapper-kmod. I just wanted to say that after upgrading to FreeBSD8.1-RELEASE-p3 skype 2.0 not run! I do not use STABLE on my home PC. I'll try Skype 2.1 after the upgrade to 9-RELEASE.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't be surprised if this was caused by the Linuxolator breakage in the original version of the UNIX socket address security fix, a revised version of that advisory is now available here: http://security.FreeBSD.org/advisories/FreeBSD-SA-11:05.unix.asc

Bottom line: just try using freebsd-update again. :)
 
I have, and yes, it worked.

EDIT:

While it did work for me previously, it's definitely not working now. If I test the video camera in the skype options, it works fine still. But I enable the video in an actual chat, the video doesn't actually display for some reason...
 
Pjoter said:
Could I ask if anyone made a Skype phone call with video enabled and did it work?
Click to expand...

of course, it works every time I use Skype, however one person reported problems with receiving video from me, while everything seemed ok at my side
 
My Skype is working with my webcam, but my flash was not. Now I found the problem: I need to create a symlink at /compat/linux/dev to /dev/video0. And now it works! Thanks!
 
Disappointing. It seems that there is still no way to run Skype on my system without polluting it with a bunch of Linux stuff.
 
I've been trying to get it to work for some time and I can't.
Video works, but no sound. Mixer shows:
Code: 
Mixer vol      is currently set to 100:100
Mixer pcm      is currently set to  92:92
Mixer speaker  is currently set to 100:100
Mixer line     is currently set to  75:75
Mixer mic      is currently set to 100:100
Mixer cd       is currently set to 100:100
Mixer rec      is currently set to  75:75
Mixer igain    is currently set to 100:100
Mixer ogain    is currently set to  50:50
Mixer line1    is currently set to  75:75
Mixer phin     is currently set to 100:100
Mixer phout    is currently set to 100:100
Recording source: mic
I use net-im/skype and 9.0-RELEASE. My webcam is Logitech C310HD, I followed the guide in here http://wiki.freebsd.org/WebcamCompat but it still doesn't work.
 
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