Slipstream ubuntu/Fedora/SuSE/Xandros graphics driver on Debian?

Although Mint and therefore Ubuntu run on my VIA vx900 Thin Client, Debian will only install and work with Terminal and Webmin over LAN.
VIA offers drivers for the OS's listed above, and Debian drivers for their previous chipset.

I've already done newb things in Grub's video line and XFCE4 and goodies installled. It just seems to be the driver that's lacking.
So if you put in "startx" the hard drive chatters (got a SATA hooked up) for a little bit and then black screen.

Claimer: I tried for a couple days before "giving-up" and going back to Mint XFCE on 32G USB stick. But if I try again, no worries if you've got an experimental way or something. Everything is backed-up and no worries if something goes askew or awry.

I tried many bootable Linux flavors and truth be told I really like Debian and want to stick with it. But VIA graphics drivers aren't for the faint of heart, and I'm in fact faint of heart :-D

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-= Cloud 9 =-

hi Joe

you will get some decent information if you look at the var.log you will see output from the X11 server and this should give you some information to share and hopefully get a resolution.

Cheers

Thanks! I see i have a deficit where the drivers meet the metal, here and with the wireless issue a while back. I'll start checking var.log on good systems too and get acquainted with what's healthy and what's not.

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-= Cloud 9 =-

@JoeyPogoPlugE02 - I've had my experiences with VIA, and I'm not a fan. My desktop PC has VIA USB3 and it's very unreliable ... and I bought a VIA USB3 card that basically didn't work ... found out afterwards NEC is the way to go for USB3, lesson learnt ... anyway, enough complaining !

Something I've come to realise is that Linux distributions are very similar, Ubuntu and Debian are very very similar, with Ubuntu being based on Debian.

I had a look at the VIA Linux download site. I see that for Ubuntu they supply both precompiled installer version and source code. Basically for the compiled version it'll be a case of getting the config correct and the .so files in the right place. For the source code, a little more involved, you'd have to get the build environment setup and then get the .so files in the right place and config files correct.

Options :

1. Try to see if you can install the Ubuntu package (may require some "hacking"). Obviously backup your system first, so you can easily revert if it doesn't work out ...
2. Compile the source code, and install "manually" ?

As I don't personally own the hardware, it's hard to say exactly what you'd need to do. However I do feel that it should be possible to utilise the Ubuntu drivers on Debian, probably with very little effort. Sorry I can't help more than that.

Cheers

Great insight Don, thanks a million. A good cautionary tale for anyone else who goes to a thrift store and sees a Thin Client with two monitor jacks and 6 USB and thinks they've got a desktop computer for $7.00!

And VIA chips, you've jogged my memory that's a brand I don't have particular fond memories in other places. I can easily see a company committed to a finite life cycle using those chips over a company who doesn't care if nVidia creates it's own user account and uses more hard drive space than my first hard drive!

Hey you guys thanks a lot for helping me find where I most need to focus. Like I told the nurse "you make heart disease fun" LOL

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Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/03/2015 04:19PM by JoeyPogoPlugE02.

YW Joey ... if you do manage to get it working, then do share in case someone else out there wants to do the same thing ...

Cheers

Don Charisma ... because anything is possible with Charisma

My blog - http://DonCharisma.org
Our commercial site - http://DonCharisma.com