Before I Install Arch on My Laptop...

I have a couple of questions. I have a Dell 1420 that I take onto campus for notes in class and something to do between classes. I've gotten Arch working beautifully on my Desktop with FVWM finally all set. But I'd like to be sure that everything (at least almost certainly) work before I go to the trouble of resizing the windows partition and setting everything up. So, here are my questions:
1) I know this question is kind of ridiculous, but my university has these instructions for XP (https://hdc.tamu.edu/reference/document … ion_id=729) for connecting to the on campus wireless network. I've had difficulty in the past connecting to those networks with Ubuntu and Fedora because of the need for a username and password. I've never really known how to configure everything to make things work. So, will wicd (which I really like) support the correct configuration? Or will I need to find a new wireless network tool?
2) I have an Intel 3945 wireless card in the laptop, and the on campus network is WPA2, are both of those pretty well supported?
3) Is suspend/resume supported pretty well on the laptop? I've had (unresolved) difficulties with it on my desktop, and it's much more important on the laptop.
thanks,
progrock

1) Check out netcfg (in core) http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Netcfg
2) The 3945 card works fine here.
3) http://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Suspend_to_Disk shows you a couple options to try (pm-utils takes the least setup). I've had problems getting an ATI video card to work coming back from a suspend to disk on a desktop, but none of the laptops I've tried have problems suspending (I'm just lucky?)

Similar Messages

Install arch on emachine laptop

Hello,
Here is my problem. I am trying to install arch on an emachines amd64 laptop. The 0.6 install disc boots a working 2.6 kernel from which I can get networking started. If I then install a 2.6 kernel, it freezes loading the kernel at the point where the dmesg says: "NET" Registered protocol family 2". If I install a 2.4 kernel it will boot fine after adding acpi=off and agp=try_unsupported parms. However, I cannot get networking to work with the 2.4 kernel. The modules will load but I will always timeout during network start. I've run network start using bash -x and I am getting the correct parms to dhcpd. It just doesn't want to work. So my question is this. How do I get a 2.6 kernel to boot? I know it will work because install uses it. Is there a way to use the install kernel? Should I try to build a kernel during install and how do I do this?
Thanks,
Jason

Ok, Got the 2.6.3 kernel working. There is an excellent resource here.
The 3 things which helped me were:
1.) Using the config file listed on the page linked above as a basic guide.
2.) Using ext3 as my filesystem.
3.) Adding "pci=noacpi noapic psmouse.proto=imps" to my kernel boot parms.
Also on the page linked above there are links to 2 other resources. "thither's page" and a gentoo forum link. Thither's page is worth checking out and the gentoo forum is a long read but provides some background on the problems.
The link also provides misc patches. I have not tried those yet.
As far as I know the wireless card does not have working drivers yet and the ati card will not run 3d due to lack of drivers. If I find solutions to either I will post here.
p.s. Sorry about the OT in the posts above I am the only person I know who can get OT in a dsicussion with themself.
Thanks,
Jason

Before I install Arch w/XFCE on my old computer...

I'm installing Arch on an older computer and I want to keep it kind of lean. The computer is a PIII @ 1Ghz w/512MB RAM, so it isn't old-old; but it's just old enough that I don't want a lot of extra junk, which is precisely why XFCE was my choice of DE.
I'm doing my homework and read the Arch XFCE wiki and saw a package called "xfce-goodies." What is in that package?
Also, this computer has a wireless internet connection, so two questions:
1: Will I be able to connect to the web before I need to install xorg and networkmanager?
2: Will nm-applet work on the xfce-panel, or will I have to do tricks to get it to work. I know it works in Xubuntu, but that doesn't mean it works in default xfce.

pogeymanz wrote:Actually, my #1 question was the other way around from how you answered it. I know that I need to be online to get xorg, but I was asking if I will be able to GET online without installing netcfg2/whatever. And now that I think about it, probably not... I will just need to plug into the network for a few hours and then move back to where it belongs I guess.
A package called wireless_tools is included in the install CD which allows you to use the CLI to configure a wireless network. See the 'connect manually' section in this gentoo wiki article: http://gentoo-wiki.com/HOWTO_Wireless_C … nd_Startup
AFAIK this should be enough to get your wireless going.
[edit: Tigrmesh is right, the netcfg package is in core now, so get the new iso's]
Last edited by dyscoria (2008-03-27 23:39:43)

Questions before I install Arch

Hi everyone. I decide to try Arch after using Ubuntu for almost a year. After reading the installing guide, I find the wireless network is the big problem. I am using wireless, and I can easily get connected with it by wicd. But installing Arch needs a wireless under command line, so I try that in terminal:
# ifconfig wlan0 up
# iwlist wlan0 scan ( and I see my target wireless network is there)
# iwconfig wlan0 essid "My_Network" key 0123456789
# dhclient wlan0
But it did not work. What I was sure was I managed to connect to this network with this key in Ubuntu Network Manager, or wicd, if using GUI. I later searched for this problem and it seemed that iwconfig recognized the key as hex by default. If using ascii, it should be:
# iwconfig wlan0 essid "My_Network" key s:0123456789
But even that I failed too. So I am just wondering how to get a hex key out of it? Is there any algorithm for this...?
I have downloaded the core version of Arch. But I am wondering if I need the internet by installing X windows and fluxbox, using pacman... If not, I can go directly with it and grab a GUI network manage like wicd and I will have no problems.
Thank you very much.
Last edited by shva (2009-04-25 15:51:59)

Does it post the same error? Try messing about with the different combinations of quotation marks taking them off both the key and network name, and then try with them on both the key and the network name.
iwconfig wlan0 essid "My_Network" key "0123456789"
iwconfig wlan0 essid My_Network key 0123456789
Last edited by jack.mitchell (2009-04-25 17:25:30)

Installing arch on old laptop without internet

i've been playing around with linux for the past month, mostly using mandriva and for a very short time slack and ubuntu. mandriva works well and was definitely a smooth change for a long time windows user. due to a dying harddisk i even learend some of the basics pretty damn fast . now my machine is back up and running with w2k, mandriva and (soon) arch.
i have an old laptop (hp omnibook with a 600 mHz celeron, 10 gb hdd, 128 mb ram, s3 graphics card and no internet connection). it's being used as an OFFLINE INFOSYSTEM (which is a simple but quite extensive webpage) for my clients, running mandrake 10.1 for the past year without problems. the only drawback is the long boot time and the bad font rendering. to speed things up i'd like to try arch.
in short: i need a fast booting system with basically only a webbrowser running my webpage offline. NOTHING ELSE! would you recommend arch for that? remember, i can't update any packages online, because there's no possibility to connect that laptop to the internet.
what do you suggest? what packages do i have to install from the cd to get a small, fast system? obviously the base system and xorg. but then what, and is everything to be found on that cd?

Larch LiveCD construction kit mat give you a way to do what you want.
To use it normally it requires downloading via the internet so you probably would have to use another machine to create the LiveCD with larch. The parameters loaded would have to fit your laptop and it requires kernel26beyond to be functional.
The details are in USER CONTRIBUTIONS forum if you are inclined to study it.
The download of Larch 0.9.9 or later includes verbose readme files. It would seem you could build it on another machine and use it on the laptop assuming your laptop is i686 compliant.
Best to you...

Problems after installing Arch [SOLVED]

Hello,
I attempted to follow the installation instructions to install Arch Linux. I followed those since they are faster than the Beginners Guide and didn’t meet some of my needs.
For example, I was also wanting to install an LVM partition (and I'll backup and set up dm-crypt+LUKS later after I get this issue solved), which the Beginner Guide didn't mention and there were a few other minor tweaks I wanted.
In my partition layout I have a 400MB boot (extra room for other kernels). followed by an LVM volume, which has one volume group with 4 logical partitions, these are: /, /home, /tmp, and /var.
The problem:
GRUB is not working, or at least it's not installed and configured correctly. When I boot up my computer, it says exactly, "GRUB", in the top-left corner of my screen and nothing happens. I have a poor understanding of the init/bootloader process in computers, which I am trying to learn slowly but steadily. I was re-reading the instructions for GPT specific partitions, which is what I use, and it says here:
http://www.gnu.org/software/grub/manual … stallation
That I'm supposed to have a "BIOS partition". This is interesting because I have no idea what this is for. Something came to mind when I was using cgdisk or gdisk, it would automatically allocate the first 2000-ish sectors (instead of 34 like the documentation was hinting), so this probably means something.... I don't know.
And then I read that the BIOS installation for GPT is supposed to be done before you install Arch Linux. Whoops! So can I fix this without having to reinstall Arch? I can probably mount all of my directories and chroot inside again after creating the BIOS partition so GRUB can be configured and reinstalled correctly. Maybe I can fix this. I don't know.
So I am trying to troubleshoot this problem, but is there anything I am understanding wrongly here? Is there some other reason why GRUB won't boot up? I tried Super GRUB 2 disk and that didn't work, there was just a blank screen when booting from grub.cfg. Any help or suggestions?
I am using x86_64 Arch Linux with the installed 3.6.4-1-ARCH Linux kernel.
Last edited by mrrhq (2012-11-08 22:31:49)

mrrhq wrote:In my partition layout I have a 400MB boot (extra room for other kernels). followed by an LVM volume, which has one volume group with 4 logical partitions, these are: /, /home, /tmp, and /var.
Be aware that logical partitions are a construct of the Master Boot Record (MBR) partitioning system; however, the title of your thread, and some of the specifics, suggest that you're using the GUID Partition Table (GPT) system, which doesn't use logical partitions. If you're certain you used gdisk or cgdisk, and not fdisk or cfdisk, then you're using GPT and I'd simply accept your use of the word "logical" as an error. If there's any doubt in your mind about this, though, you should investigate further, since some of the issues and solutions depend greatly on which partitioning system you used.
That I'm supposed to have a "BIOS partition". This is interesting because I have no idea what this is for.
The BIOS Boot Partition holds a portion of the GRUB code. It's used on GPT disks but not on MBR disks -- on MBR, the equivalent code goes in an officially-unallocated area immediately after the MBR. The BIOS Boot Partition can sometimes be just a few kibibytes in size, but it's usually either 1MiB or 2MiB. (I've seen reports that some configurations now require over 1MiB, but I haven't investigated this claim.)
Something came to mind when I was using cgdisk or gdisk, it would automatically allocate the first 2000-ish sectors (instead of 34 like the documentation was hinting), so this probably means something.... I don't know.
No, these are unrelated issues. Most partitioning tools today, including gdisk and its siblings, align all partitions on 2048-sector (1MiB) boundaries so as to avoid performance penalties that can be incurred on Advanced Format disks, SSDs, and some types of RAID arrays. See this article I wrote on the topic some time ago.
That said, if you have nowhere else to put it, you could try creating a BIOS Boot Partition in that space. You'd need to change the alignment policy in gdisk or cgdisk to align on 1-sector boundaries to do so, although an 8-sector alignment would be safer for future changes if you've got an Advanced Format disk. The BIOS Boot Partition isn't really greatly affected by the alignment issues, so I wouldn't worry about leaving it unaligned. OTOH, if GRUB wants more then 1MiB on your system, this space would be too small, so it might be better to resize a partition to make room for the BIOS Boot Partition.
WonderWoofy wrote:From what I understand (I have not tried this though) grub2 is actually lvm aware. So you can put all partitions within the lvm, including boot. If this is the case, I see no reason why you would not also be able to put the 2MB bios boot partition in there as well.
GRUB 2 is LVM-aware, and it is possible to put your Linux /boot directory inside the LVM. If you want to do this, though, there's really no point to split /boot off into a separate logical volume (the LVM equivalent of a partition); you might as well just make it a normal directory off of the root (/) filesystem. I'm pretty sure it is not possible to put the BIOS Boot Partition inside the LVM. That's because the code to parse the LVM data structures is contained within the BIOS Boot Partition, thus creating a chicken-and-egg situation if you were to attempt it. Furthermore, the code to write to the BIOS Boot Partition looks for the partition type code in the disk's partition table, and there's no equivalent to that in the LVM data structures. (All this said, in principle you might be able to get something like this to work, but the result would be something similar, but not identical, to a BIOS Boot Partition.)
Although GRUB 2 can read a kernel from within an LVM, I still prefer to keep a separate /boot partition. The reason is that you might not always use GRUB 2. If you wanted or needed to switch to another boot loader in the future, it might not be LVM-aware, and might need /boot to be on a true partition, not in an LVM. (This is true of every EFI boot loader except for GRUB 2, for instance.) In fact, I routinely create two or three smallish partitions on my computers so that I can create multiple /boot partitions for multi-boot configurations or to help transition to a new installation should the need arise. This can help simplify things when the time comes to start fresh.

Install Arch with dual graphics laptop

Hey everybody,
So a few months ago I bought a new laptop, and ASUS X750JN. After I have my new laptop on my hands the first thing was install Arch Linux, but I came across an problem with graphics, probably a bad configuration and because I needed the computer for the university, I keep Windows for a while. Now that I have some time, I want to return to my beloved Arch but I have a serious question, the computer has 2 graphics cards, on-board Intel and an Nvidia and my question is, how can I install Arch and use Nvidia for some games like ETS, CS:GO and Guns of Icarus? When I tried installing before, the VGA was the Intel and not the Nvidia.
I know that Hybrid Graphics aren't full supported in Linux, but is there a way to use Arch with the Nvidia, even if only uses Nvidia.
Thanks in advance,
Have a nice Christmas and a Happy 2015,
Hugo Rodrigues.
Last edited by Hugao (2014-12-24 13:47:26)

Hey,
Sorry for the time but I'm was busy and only today I have the change to install Arch.
mrunion wrote:
Have you looked in our Wiki? We have these for starters:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Bumblebee
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Optimus
When I was research I look it up on the second link but not on the first one.
So, like I said above, today I have installed Arch with Bumblebee and so far so good, but I just have a question, how I run games using optirun throw Steam?
Issa wrote:
Hey Huago, I'm not sure if will help you as I don't know too much about your configuration, but I'm also experiencing some issues while configuring arch on my lenovo T420s. I have so far succeeded in starting a simple x session after installing the drivers for intel and nvidia (xf86-video-intel xf86-video-nouveau) (see my thread here but my current problem is, that I can't start gdm
I'll work on this and opened a new thread here - maybe we can assist each other until everything is up and running.
update: I got it - maybe it works for you too? (very short description of what i did):
install drivers for integrated and discrete graphics card
launch gdm as root
I have an Asus X750JN and I just install the integrated and discrete graphics and enabled gdm service.

[SOLVED] Installed Arch on IBM A22m laptop, startx fails

I installed arch on this old laptop IBM A22m and I am trying to get XFCE4 or LXDE working on it.
When i start xfce4 i get "server terminated with error(1)" and same thing with lxde but this time i get to see panel and wallpaper for 2 seconds before it crashes.
I tried exec openbox-session and it wont crash until I open browser from terminal.
Here is xorg.0.log i get from crashed openbox-session: http://pastebin.com/SK9Vvunp
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation 440BX/ZX/DX - 82443BX/ZX/DX Host bridge (rev 03)
00:01.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 440BX/ZX/DX - 82443BX/ZX/DX AGP bridge (rev 03)
00:02.0 CardBus bridge: Texas Instruments PCI1450 (rev 03)
00:02.1 CardBus bridge: Texas Instruments PCI1450 (rev 03)
00:03.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation 82557/8/9/0/1 Ethernet Pro 100 (rev 0c)
00:03.1 Serial controller: LSI Corporation LT WinModem (rev 01)
00:05.0 Multimedia audio controller: Cirrus Logic CS 4614/22/24/30 [CrystalClear SoundFusion Audio Accelerator] (rev 01)
00:07.0 Bridge: Intel Corporation 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 ISA (rev 02)
00:07.1 IDE interface: Intel Corporation 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 IDE (rev 01)
00:07.2 USB controller: Intel Corporation 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 USB (rev 01)
00:07.3 Bridge: Intel Corporation 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 ACPI (rev 03)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] Rage Mobility AGP 2x Series (rev 64)
Here is hwinfo: http://pastebin.com/wWePzduM
uname -r 3.16.4-1
I am using xf86-video-mach64 driver.
Help needed =P
Last edited by sahtimonni (2014-10-13 15:16:02)

This is a bit outside my experience - but did you follow the advice and cautions in the wiki for that driver:
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Mach64

While trying to update Adobe Reader XI 10.0.06 to 10.0.07 on my laptop running W7 Home Premium x 64, I get error message 2203. The same occurs if I try to uninstall before manually install the new version. Can you please help?

Hello,
While trying to update Adobe Reader XI 10.0.06 to 10.0.07 on my laptop running W7 Home Premium x 64, I get error message 2203. The same occurs if I try to uninstall before manually install the new version. Can you please help?
PS.- Thank you very much for your Support in trying to solve a problem created by yourselves.
Message was edited by: Juan Verano

Is there anything else beside the number 2203?
Try removing the current Reader using http://labs.adobe.com/downloads/acrobatcleaner.html, then install 11.0.07 from http://get.adobe.com/reader/enterprise/

Install Arch over Mint on laptop

So I decided to dabble with Arch in Virtualbox and now I've decided that I want to install my .iso of Arch over my Mint partition. So I know there is a tutorial on the wiki on how to make my version into an .iso which shouldn't be an issue for me, but I just want to verify with you folks if I'll be doing this right on my laptop.
I have 3 partitions right now on a 750GB HDD:
500(ish)GB Windows 7 partition (sadly, it can't be shrunk anymore)
15GB to a recovery partition for Windows
then 100(ish)GB remaining for Linux Mint 16
My thoughts are to back up any data I want to keep and should I just load up my .iso from a flash drive and install Arch like I would have in a VM? Would cfdisk show all my partitions and give me the chance to just erase my current Linux partition? Not sure how I should go about all of this...or would it be best just to redo the process from scratch? All I have installed really is the base Arch install, alsa, and XFCE.
EDIT:
Edited to avoid confusion on my 100GB Linux partition
Last edited by stratacast1 (2014-01-06 23:00:38)

karol wrote:You can just use the stock Arch iso.
How are you expecting to have 2 Linux systems on one partition? I don't recall our wiki saying you could do anything like this :-) Create a new partition, format it and install arch in there.
Okay I'll do that! I meant to say that I'll be reformatting my Linux Mint partition and putting Arch there instead I could have sworn I read something like that, or at least somewhere on the internet..but either way, I think I'll just do what you said! I think it'd be great to try installing Arch for the 4th time haha! Helps me memorize how to use the OS better!
Since I'll be running Arch on the actual machine rather than a VM, will I eventually have to install drivers for my wireless NIC? I was thinking I'd install Arch on a wired connection so I didn't have to worry about my slow download speeds

Dual boot, installing arch before xp

Hi! I'm just wondering, how I can enable dualboot. I've heard that there is a way to enable dualboot even though I've installed archlinux before I installed xp. But now I cant choose whether I would like to use arch or xp. Any suggestions on how, or even an guide to enable dualboot?:P

well, if u have problem and for those who wonder what zenlord said...
boot to arch linux install CD.
when it loads and gives u a set of instructions. U wanna boot with this parameter.
root=/dev/sdxx
where xx is the partion of arch install. This will load the kernel from arch install CD and mount the file system on your HD. Once it loads u will have a CLI, login and then issue the command
grub-install /dev/sdx
x = the HD MBR u would want grub to be installed too.
then edit /boot/grub/menu.lst as u see fit to get windows working.
Last edited by jacko (2008-01-13 13:11:06)

Computer freezes before BIOS after arch linux install

This is my first time installing arch linux, I followed the beginners install guide word for word. However, after the install, my computer gets stuck before the BIOS. It identifies the RAM, GPU, and harddrive (all Diagnostic lights are ok on my MOBO). Before the install it booted fine, but now when I boot it up it wont go to the BIOS screen no matter how many times I press delete. However, when I remove the harddrive it boots to the arch linux install screen on my USB drive perfectly.
I know it is not my hardware because I did many different tests (mem-test, swapped out harddrives, tried 1 stick of RAM in different slots, etc). More importantly, my harddrive is brand new so I know it isn't dead because I could partition it when I was installing arch linux.
Computer specs:
AMD Athlon 64 Processor 3700+
DFI LANPARTY nf4-d
ATI Radeon x800
2 GB DDR RAM
160 GB SSD
I have no idea what the problem is, I must have screwed something up with the bootloader or something. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Try clearing the CMOS settings either by removing the motherboard battery for some minutes or by using the relevant jumper on the motherboard. Check the manual of your motherboard for details.
Last edited by Foucault (2013-07-03 16:19:41)

I am new to LR and before I install it I want to know if it can be installed on an external drive which would allow me to us it on both a desktop and laptop (both Macs) as needed.

My thinking is that if both the program and the library are on the same external drive it's easy for me to use the desktop when at home, and use the laptop when away from home. All I need to do is take the external drive with me. Is this possible? Are there any watch outs or downsides to doing this?
MTIA

You can store the images and the LR catalog on an external drive, yes. But you would need to have the LR application installed on both the laptop and desktop machine and just move the drive with the images and catalog back and forth. That's pretty common...

Trying to install Arch Linux on a HP-dv2000 laptop

I am able to start up from, the CD no problem. I get the Arch Linux menu. What I think is the problem is maybe a resolution issue because as I go to install it, the screen looks wonky and I can't see the command line properly. I know when I install Ubuntu for example, the installation screen looks off to one side. Only after installing the nvidia driver after successfully installing Ubuntu does the screen look the way it supposed to.
I think the same think is happening here when trying to install Arch Linux. Any suggestions on how I can resolve this? This is a big deal for me because for the first time, I think I am going to learn a ton of stuff about Arch Linux. I am willing to take the plunge following the beginner's guide along the way.
Thanks for the help!!

ArchLinux is designed to run whether in VirtualBox or on a real machine.
If you have a TV connector plugged in it will chop some regular lines at the bottom to make up for the difference in TV resolution.
There are a couple of packages related to nvidia hardware, nouveau is one of them. Just do a pacman -Ss nvidia for possibilities of things you might need to install. Your nvidia hardware is a little newer, so probably nvidia is the package you'll need instead of nouveau.
Are you using X? When you install the proper xf86-video-* driver it shouldn't have any problems with X. If modesetting is turned off, then some resolutions may not be made available (especially in Gnome), so it is best to keep it turned on if at all possible (kernel default).
Last edited by nomorewindows (2012-03-12 17:19:55)

Install Arch Before Windows?

My profession requires that I triple boot Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows. I have purchased a Macbook Pro and know this is possible. I want to do anything possible to avoid Vista and have decided to download the Windows 7 RC this coming Tuesday. I would like to start making my Arch system right now, however. I know it is more than advised you install Windows first, but does anyone know how I could install Arch, then Windows, and not have a big mess on my hands?

If you want to dual/triple boot on a mac you need to boot from the EFI bootloader first, and most people install rEFIt. From there you can boot into your OS's. Remember your partition table will be a dual gpt/mbr, so you can only have four primary partitions.
Also, I don't see how the order of installing the OS's would matter at all.
Last edited by Stythys (2009-05-01 22:32:43)

Before I Install Arch on My Laptop...

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