# Is there any hope for this HP mini notebook? OpenChrome/WiFi



## cracauer@ (May 21, 2014)

I bought this HP mini notebook that has a VIA Chrome chipset because it has a nice keyboard in a tiny package.  However, both WiFi and X11 refuse to go.

*X11:*

The xorg openchrome driver segfaults
The xorg VESA driver blackscreens


```
vgapci0@pci0:1:0:0:     class=0x030000 card=0x3030103c chip=0x33711106 rev=0x01 hdr=0x00
    vendor     = 'VIA Technologies, Inc.'
    device     = 'CN896/VN896/P4M900 [Chrome 9 HC]'
    class      = display
    subclass   = VGA
[...]
X.Org X Server 1.12.4
282518.838] (II) Module openchrome: vendor="http://openchrome.org/"
[282518.838]    compiled for 1.12.4, module version = 0.3.3

[282519.924] (II) CHROME(0): KMSCrtcInit
[282519.924] (II) CHROME(0): VIAFreeRec
[282519.924] (II) CHROME(0): VIAUnmapMem
[282520.012] (II) CHROME(0): VIAFreeScreen
[282520.012] Segmentation fault at address 0x37c
[282520.012] 
Fatal server error:
[282520.013] Caught signal 11 (Segmentation fault). Server aborting
[282520.013] 
[282520.013]
```

Should I just toss it? Is anybody running OpenChrome? Is it worth going the backtrace and bug report route?

I'll put the WiFi stuff in a new post.

Logfiles, dmesg, `pciconf -lv` here:
http://wavehh.dyndns.org/via-chrome/


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## cracauer@ (May 21, 2014)

*Re: Is there any hope for this HP mini notebook? OpenChrome/*

WiFi doesn't work either:

The onboard WiFi has a broken hardware switch. This appeared under Windows, too, and the seller gave me a PC card which did work under Windows. I did the satisfying but unwise move of just wiping out Windows with FreeBSD.
The PC card never appears in `dmesg`, although Windows was using it successfully and it does appear in `pciconf`. I think it is cut off somewhere in PCIe land in FreeBSD
I then bought a USB WiFi stick that according to the Interwebz should have an Atheros chipset, but no go, what I got in the end just says 

```
ugen3.4: <BUFFALO> at usbus3
```
 and seems to be very unenthusiastic to attach any driver to it

Here are the two WiFi chips in `pciconf -lv`:


```
siba_bwn0@pci0:2:0:0:   class=0x028000 card=0x1370103c chip=0x431214e4 rev=0x02 hdr=0x00
    vendor     = 'Broadcom Corporation'
    device     = 'BCM4311 802.11a/b/g'
    class      = network
siba_bwn1@pci0:5:0:0:   class=0x028000 card=0x00681737 chip=0x432814e4 rev=0x03 hdr=0x00
    vendor     = 'Broadcom Corporation'
    device     = 'BCM4321 802.11a/b/g/n'
    class      = network
```

But the second one never appears anywhere else when attaching drivers.

Note that what is bwn1 below is the USB stick, the second PCIe chip never shows up.


```
/var/log(himi)22% dmesg | grep bw
siba_bwn0: <Broadcom BCM4312 802.11a/b/g Wireless> mem 0xfdffc000-0xfdffffff irq 24 at device 0.0 on pci2
siba_bwn0: unsupported coreid (USB 1.1 Host)
bwn0 on siba_bwn0
bwn0: WLAN (chipid 0x4311 rev 13) PHY (analog 4 type 2 rev 9) RADIO (manuf 0x17f ver 0x2050 rev 2)
bwn0: DMA (64 bits)
bwn0: firmware version (rev 410 patch 2160 date 0x751a time 0x7c0a)
bwn0: status of RF switch is changed to OFF
bwn0: please turn on the RF switch
siba_bwn0: <Broadcom BCM4312 802.11a/b/g Wireless> mem 0xfdffc000-0xfdffffff irq 24 at device 0.0 on pci2
siba_bwn0: unsupported coreid (USB 1.1 Host)
bwn0 on siba_bwn0
bwn0: WLAN (chipid 0x4311 rev 13) PHY (analog 4 type 2 rev 9) RADIO (manuf 0x17f ver 0x2050 rev 2)
bwn0: DMA (64 bits)
siba_bwn1: <Unknown> mem 0xfe9fc000-0xfe9fffff,0xfaf00000-0xfaffffff irq 28 at device 0.0 on pci5
siba_bwn1: warn: multiple PCI(E) cores
siba_bwn1: unsupported coreid (USB 1.1 Host)
bwn0: firmware version (rev 410 patch 2160 date 0x751a time 0x7c0a)
bwn0: status of RF switch is changed to OFF
bwn0: please turn on the RF switch
```

Toss or debug?


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## cracauer@ (Jun 29, 2014)

*Re: Is there any hope for this HP mini notebook? OpenChrome/*

Got a bit more info on that missing WiFi card now:

```
siba_bwn1: <Unknown> mem 0xfe9fc000-0xfe9fffff,0xfaf00000-0xfaffffff irq 28 at device 0.0 on pci5
siba_bwn1: warn: multiple PCI(E) cores
siba_bwn1: unsupported coreid (USB 1.1 Host)
```

It is really unclear to me why it is talking about USB 1.1.  It is a linksys wireless-N Expresscard.


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## wblock@ (Jun 29, 2014)

*Re: Is there any hope for this HP mini notebook? OpenChrome/*

ExpressCard and mini PCIe slots have both PCIe and USB connections, and some cards are actually USB cards.  But the way I fix wireless cards is by replacing them with Atheros cards.

If you're into Xorg driver debugging, it could be worth working on that OpenChrome driver.  Some searching just now did not find a lot going on with it.  Presumably by "toss" you mean "pass along to someone who will run a different operating system on it", right?


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## cracauer@ (Jun 29, 2014)

*Re: Is there any hope for this HP mini notebook? OpenChrome/*

Point is moot now.  I broke the ribbon cable to the keyboard when I tried to mechanically wiggle the wireless switch for the internal card.

I did buy that USB WiFI stick that was supposed to the Atheros but all I get from the product received is "BUFFALO".

Anyway, it's in the trashcan. Good riddance.


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## bsdkeith (Jun 30, 2014)

*Re: Is there any hope for this HP mini notebook? OpenChrome/*

That's a shame, I'm pretty sure Linux would have worked on it. Broadcom WiFi has become 'notorious' as being difficult to set up on some OS'es, but Linux seems to be best at getting them up & and running. You used to be able to download drivers for OpenChrome. Could you not offer it to someone else as a 'project' rather than just binning it?


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## cracauer@ (Jun 30, 2014)

*Re: Is there any hope for this HP mini notebook? OpenChrome/*

I'll send it to @wblock@ so it might be brought back alive  The onboard WiFi didn't even work under Windows either, that is why I dived in and wanted to disable the WiFi disable switch. Overall I am not too unhappy since I will use this opportunity to get rid of all 32-bit only machines around. The keyboard on it was nice but since pcvt is not in FreeBSD anymore I really wanted X11 and a VGA-font xterm and I only have too many brain cycles that I can spend on hardware that is dead end anyway.


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## wblock@ (Dec 3, 2014)

Followup: I tested this machine with the upcoming xorg-server 1.14, and the OpenChrome driver works with it. I had no success with the built-in Broadcom 4311 wireless card.  bwn(4) attaches to it, but it does not see any access points.


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