problem installing on Toshiba C855

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hi,

I am trying to install and run FreeBSD 11.2 (upgraded to 11.2-4) on a Toshiba C855 laptop (bought new in June 2012).

so far I have not been able to resolve the following problems:

- vidcontrol does nothing. no screen blanking, no modes offered. using the command with '-i mode' returns an empty table, '-i adapter' tells me about an "inappropriate" ioctl for the device, and '-i active' always returns '1'.

- the keyboard (UK map): all regular keys work as expected, except shift-3. in vi it inserts a two character sequence, on the shell prompt it does what 'Ctrl-A' does in Linux -- goes to the begin of the line.
(this one I really do not understand)

I have grep'd my way through the mailing list archives for 'mobile', 'acpi', and 'questions', but have not found anything useful. there was a discussion cf bugs in the 'acpi_toshiba' kernel module in 2012 but that appeared to be resolved.

on 'acpi_toshiba' and 'acpi_video'. running with either, or both, or none -- there's no discernable difference. the "tunables" mentioned in the man page do not show up.

the only clues I get from dmesg are:
Code: 
  pcib0: _OSC failed: AE_BUFFER_OVERFLOW
  atrtc0: Warning: Couldn't map I/O.
as a new-to-FreeBSD user, I'd appreciate help and advice.

(this is the second time posting, the first .. appears to have gotten lost :-))
 
hi,

a follow up.

after installing from usb memory stick, I ran 'fetch' + 'install' as per handbook 23.2.2, followed by the 'rebuilding world' instructions in section 23.6, and an installation of the X Windows system as per section 5.

however, the problems persist. the '£' (shift-3) key still does not work correctly -- from the console it appears to insert a go to begin of line control code, in a "proper" xterm it does nothing, and when connected via ssh it logs me out. all other regular keys work correctly, no luck though with the "special" function key stuff (like display brightness), the acpi_toshiba(4) module does not appear to do anything, and no 'toshiba' variables in the sysctl output.

the following shows all sysctl entries for 'kern.vt' and '.acpi.'

Code: 
kern.vty=vt
kern.vt.splash_cpu_duration=10
kern.vt.splash_cpu_style=2
kern.vt.splash_ncpu=0
kern.vt.splash_cpu=0
kern.vt.kbd_panic=0
kern.vt.kbd_debug=1
kern.vt.kbd_reboot=1
kern.vt.kbd_poweroff=1
kern.vt.kbd_halt=1
kern.vt.suspendswitch=1
kern.vt.deadtimer=15
kern.vt.debug=0
kern.vt.enable_bell=1
kern.vt.enable_altgr=1

hw.acpi.battery.info_expire=5
hw.acpi.battery.units=1
hw.acpi.battery.state=0
hw.acpi.battery.time=-1
hw.acpi.battery.life=100
hw.acpi.acline=1
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0._TSP=100
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0._TC2=10
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0._TC1=2
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0._ACx=-1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0._CRT=125.1C
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0._HOT=-1
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0._PSV=82.1C
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0.thermal_flags=0
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0.passive_cooling=0
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0.active=-1
hw.acpi.thermal.tz0.temperature=36.1C
hw.acpi.thermal.user_override=0
hw.acpi.thermal.polling_rate=10
hw.acpi.thermal.min_runtime=0
hw.acpi.cpu.cx_lowest=C2
hw.acpi.reset_video=0
hw.acpi.handle_reboot=1
hw.acpi.disable_on_reboot=0
hw.acpi.verbose=0
hw.acpi.s4bios=0
hw.acpi.sleep_delay=1
hw.acpi.suspend_state=S3
hw.acpi.standby_state=NONE
hw.acpi.lid_switch_state=NONE
hw.acpi.sleep_button_state=S3
hw.acpi.power_button_state=S5
hw.acpi.supported_sleep_state=S3 S4 S5

I'm fairly certain that there's an ACPI problem of sorts, but do not have the technical know-how. help please.

and, lastly, my (current) gripe regarding "the handbook": the index is lousy. no entries for 'keyboard' or 'timezone'. </sigh>
 
tingo said:
Does your keyboard have an AltGr (or right side Alt) key? What happens if you try AltGr+3?
Click to expand...

in a "proper" xterm still nothing. on the console (TERM=xterm) I get a '#'. logged in via ssh I get the Ctrl-A equivalent.

thanks.
 
Well, if you log in via ssh, the keyboard on your laptop isn't involved (unless you do 'ssh localhost' but that is not an interesting exercise for this problem).
So, if you have keyboard / character set problems when you ssh to this machine from another machine, you should look at different things for the problem. Like what kind of machine and operating system are you ssh'ing from? Are you using ssh, or another tool (like putty)?
 
hi,

tingo said:
Well, if you log in via ssh, the keyboard on your laptop isn't involved (unless you do 'ssh localhost' but that is not an interesting exercise for this problem).
So, if you have keyboard / character set problems when you ssh to this machine from another machine, you should look at different things for the problem. Like what kind of machine and operating system are you ssh'ing from? Are you using ssh, or another tool (like putty)?
Click to expand...

seems that in my eagerness to provide complete info, I sowed confusion. :-( sorry about that.

to recap, the (laptop's) keyboard is known to be sound. from that keyboard, on the command-line, Shift 3 (either left or right shift key) inserts a control code which causes the cursor to go to the beginning of the line (like Ctrl-A on a Linux box), and AltGr 3 inserts a '#' (with and without either shift key); from ssh (from a Linux machine) both Shift 3 and AltGr 3 insert the same control code (begin of line), again regardless of shift keys.

when I type the key in a vi buffer, it inserts two digit hex sequences: c2+a3 for shift 3, c2+b3 for AlfGr 3.

from the command-line in a real xterm, all key combinations above do nothing at all (as if dead key).

hope that clarifies. fwiw, both keyboard + "mouse" (touchpad) work fine otherwise[*], and the various logfiles hold no direct clues.

[*] except the "special" function keys like display brightness. loading the acpi_toshiba(4) appears to make no difference.
 
another follow up.

the keyboard "issue" is resolved, cured by setting the LANG environment variable.

wrt the vidcontrol problem, I remember having problems (years ago, different machine etc) getting a framebuffer device because the VESA module had been compiled into the kernel. that in mind, under Linux, I would (re)compile the kernel using a configuration which excludes VESA (and other unused, like RAID support) but includes the i915kms code + its dependencies. can I do the same in FreeBSD? any provisos?

somewhat related, when I specify, in /etc/make.conf, the CPUTYPE to be 'sandybridge', will that get picked up and replace the 'HAMMER' cpu definition in the custom GENERIC file?
 
So you have solved one issue - great.
For unrelated (or "somewhat related") issues, please start a new thread (one per issue) in the correct subforum.
 
tingo said:
So you have solved one issue - great.
For unrelated (or "somewhat related") issues, please start a new thread (one per issue) in the correct subforum.
Click to expand...

I wasn't sure how (whether!) to reply, but here goes.

if it was relevant still, I'd argue different. the initial post set out two problems concerning one install. as you say "solved one", but not all. hence I'd have continued here.

however, about three weeks during which fewer than 200 of the .. knowledgeable community took a look a my difficulties and not one actually contributed. back to Linux its is, a shame really since I'd looked forward to building up a BSD system from base. in the words of Douglas Adams: "So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish"
 
Well, the FreeBSD community has a lot fewer people than Linux. Sad or not, it's the truth.
So people wanting to learn FreeBSD must be highly motivated, and able to pass more hurdles (compared to say, Linux) if they want to succeed.

Also, as with anything new anybody wants to learn (as opposed to just wanting to do something for showing off in a YouTube video or somesuch) that person has to put in enough effort and time to learn this new thing. If not, they fail.

Linux works, I use it all the time. FreeBSD also works, I use it all the time too (typing this post on my FreeBSD workstation).
 
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