Video issues with S3 resume

2003-2006, Pavel Machek

During S3 resume, hardware needs to be reinitialized. For mostdevices, this is easy, and kernel driver knows how to doit. Unfortunately there’s one exception: video card. Those are usuallyinitialized by BIOS, and kernel does not have enough information toboot video card. (Kernel usually does not even contain video carddriver – vesafb and vgacon are widely used).

This is not problem for swsusp, because during swsusp resume, BIOS isrun normally so video card is normally initialized. It should not beproblem for S1 standby, because hardware should retain its state overthat.

We either have to run video BIOS during early resume, or interpret itusing vbetool later, or maybe nothing is necessary on particularsystem because video state is preserved. Unfortunately differentmethods work on different systems, and no known method suits all ofthem.

Userland application called s2ram has been developed; it contains longwhitelist of systems, and automatically selects working method for agiven system. It can be downloaded from CVS atwww.sf.net/projects/suspend . If you get a system that is not in thewhitelist, please try to find a working solution, and submit whitelistentry so that work does not need to be repeated.

Currently, VBE_SAVE method (6 below) works on mostsystems. Unfortunately, vbetool only runs after userland is resumed,so it makes debugging of early resume problemshard/impossible. Methods that do not rely on userland are preferable.

Details

There are a few types of systems where video works after S3 resume:

  1. systems where video state is preserved over S3.
  2. systems where it is possible to call the video BIOS during S3resume. Unfortunately, it is not correct to call the video BIOS atthat point, but it happens to work on some machines. Useacpi_sleep=s3_bios.
  3. systems that initialize video card into vga text mode and wherethe BIOS works well enough to be able to set video mode. Useacpi_sleep=s3_mode on these.
  4. on some systems s3_bios kicks video into text mode, andacpi_sleep=s3_bios,s3_mode is needed.
  5. radeon systems, where X can soft-boot your video card. You’ll needa new enough X, and a plain text console (no vesafb or radeonfb). Seehttp://www.doesi.gmxhome.de/linux/tm800s3/s3.html for more information.Alternatively, you should use vbetool (6) instead.
  6. other radeon systems, where vbetool is enough to bring system backto life. It needs text console to be working. Do vbetool vbestatesave > /tmp/delme; echo 3 > /proc/acpi/sleep; vbetool post; vbetoolvbestate restore < /tmp/delme; setfont <whatever>, and your videoshould work.
  7. on some systems, it is possible to boot most of kernel, and thenPOSTing bios works. Ole Rohne has patch to do just that athttp://dev.gentoo.org/~marineam/patch-radeonfb-2.6.11-rc2-mm2.
  8. on some systems, you can use the video_post utility and ordo echo 3 > /sys/power/state && /usr/sbin/video_post - which willinitialize the display in console mode. If you are in X, you can switchto a virtual terminal and back to X using CTRL+ALT+F1 - CTRL+ALT+F7 to getthe display working in graphical mode again.

Now, if you pass acpi_sleep=something, and it does not work with yourbios, you’ll get a hard crash during resume. Be careful. Also it issafest to do your experiments with plain old VGA console. The vesafband radeonfb (etc) drivers have a tendency to crash the machine duringresume.

You may have a system where none of above works. At that point youeither invent another ugly hack that works, or write proper driver foryour video card (good luck getting docs :-(). Maybe suspending from X(proper X, knowing your hardware, not XF68_FBcon) might have betterchance of working.

Table of known working notebooks:

Modelhack (or “how to do it”)
Acer Aspire 1406LCole’s late BIOS init (7), turn off DRI
Acer TM 230s3_bios (2)
Acer TM 242FXvbetool (6)
Acer TM C110video_post (8)
Acer TM C300vga=normal (only suspend on console, not in X),vbetool (6) or video_post (8)
Acer TM 4052LCis3_bios (2)
Acer TM 636Lcis3_bios,s3_mode (4)
Acer TM 650 (Radeon M7)vga=normal plus boot-radeon (5) gets textconsole back
Acer TM 660???[1]
Acer TM 800vga=normal, X patches, see webpage (5)or vbetool (6)
Acer TM 803vga=normal, X patches, see webpage (5)or vbetool (6)
Acer TM 803LCivga=normal, vbetool (6)
Arima W730avbetool needed (6)
Asus L2400Ds3_mode (3)[2] (S1 also works OK)
Asus L3350M (SiS 740)
Asus L3800C (Radeon M7)s3_bios (2) (S1 also works OK)
Asus M6887Nevga=normal, s3_bios (2), use radeon driverinstead of fglrx in x.org
Athlon64 desktop prototypes3_bios (2)
Compal CL-50???[1]
Compaq Armada E500 - P3-700none (1) (S1 also works OK)
Compaq Evo N620cvga=normal, s3_bios (2)
Dell 600m, ATI R250 Lfnone (1), but needs xorg-x11-6.8.1.902-1
Dell D600, ATI RV250vga=normal and X, or try vbestate (6)
Dell D610vga=normal and X (possibly vbestate (6) too,but not tested)
Dell Inspiron 4000???[1]
Dell Inspiron 500m???[1]
Dell Inspiron 510m???
Dell Inspiron 5150vbetool needed (6)
Dell Inspiron 600m???[1]
Dell Inspiron 8200???[1]
Dell Inspiron 8500???[1]
Dell Inspiron 8600???[1]
eMachines athlon64 machinesvbetool needed (6) (someone please getme model #s)
HP NC6000s3_bios, may not use radeonfb (2);or vbetool (6)
HP NX7000???[1]
HP Pavilion ZD7000vbetool post needed, need open-source nvdriver for X
HP Omnibook XE3 athlon versionnone (1)
HP Omnibook XE3GCnone (1), video is S3 Savage/IX-MV
HP Omnibook XE3L-GFvbetool (6)
HP Omnibook 5150none (1), (S1 also works OK)
IBM TP T20, model 2647-44Gnone (1), video is S3 Inc. 86C270-294Savage/IX-MV, vesafb gets “interesting”but X work.
IBM TP A31 / Type 2652-M5Gs3_mode (3) [works ok withBIOS 1.04 2002-08-23, but not at all withBIOS 1.11 2004-11-05 :-(]
IBM TP R32 / Type 2658-MMGnone (1)
IBM TP R40 2722B3G???[1]
IBM TP R50p / Type 1832-22Us3_bios (2)
IBM TP R51none (1)
IBM TP T30 236681A???[1]
IBM TP T40 / Type 2373-MU4none (1)
IBM TP T40pnone (1)
IBM TP R40ps3_bios (2)
IBM TP T41ps3_bios (2), switch to X after resume
IBM TP T42s3_bios (2)
IBM ThinkPad T42p (2373-GTG)s3_bios (2)
IBM TP X20???[1]
IBM TP X30s3_bios, s3_mode (4)
IBM TP X31 / Type 2672-XXHnone (1), use radeontool(http://fdd.com/software/radeon/) toturn off backlight.
IBM TP X32none (1), but backlight is on and video istrashed after long suspend. s3_bios,s3_mode (4) works too. Perhaps that getsbetter results?
IBM Thinkpad X40 Type 2371-7JGs3_bios,s3_mode (4)
IBM TP 600enone(1), but a switch to console andback to X is needed
Medion MD4220???[1]
Samsung P35vbetool needed (6)
Sharp PC-AR10 (ATI rage)none (1), backlight does not switch off
Sony Vaio PCG-C1VRX/Ks3_bios (2)
Sony Vaio PCG-F403???[1]
Sony Vaio PCG-GRT995MPnone (1), works with ‘nv’ X driver
Sony Vaio PCG-GR7/Knone (1), but needs radeonfb, useradeontool (http://fdd.com/software/radeon/)to turn off backlight.
Sony Vaio PCG-N505SN???[1]
Sony Vaio vgn-s260X or boot-radeon can init it (5)
Sony Vaio vgn-S580BHvga=normal, but suspend from X. Console willbe blank unless you return to X.
Sony Vaio vgn-FS115Bs3_bios (2),s3_mode (4)
Toshiba Libretto L5none (1)
Toshiba Libretto 100CT/110CTvbetool (6)
Toshiba Portege 3020CTs3_mode (3)
Toshiba Satellite 4030CDTs3_mode (3) (S1 also works OK)
Toshiba Satellite 4080XCDTs3_mode (3) (S1 also works OK)
Toshiba Satellite 4090XCDT???[1]
Toshiba Satellite P10-554s3_bios,s3_mode (4)[#f3]_
Toshiba M30
  1. xor X with nvidia driver using internal AGP
Uniwill 244IIO???[1]

Known working desktop systems

MainboardGraphics cardhack (or “how to do it”)
Asus A7V8XnVidia RIVA TNT2 model 64s3_bios,s3_mode (4)
[1](1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17) fromhttps://wiki.ubuntu.com/HoaryPMResults, not surewhich options to use. If you know, please tell me.
[2]To be tested with a newer kernel.
[3]Not with SMP kernel, UP only.