# CGA as video adapter on FreeBSD/AMD64



## busyboy (Mar 16, 2011)

hi,

Can someone please help to identify whether is it possible to enable graphics console with high resolution on a systems running FreeBSD/AMD64 with below given HW


```
root@volvo ~# vidcontrol -i adapter < /dev/ttyv0
fb0:
    cga0, type:CGA (3), flags:0x70041
    initial mode:3, current mode:3, BIOS mode:3
    frame buffer window:0xb8000, buffer size:0x8000
    window size:0x8000, origin:0x0
    display start address (0, 0), scan line width:80
    reserved:0x0
root@volvo ~#
```


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## SirDice (Mar 16, 2011)

I very much doubt you have a CGA graphicscard. Those things have a maximum resolution of 640x200 and only support 16 colors.


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## wblock@ (Mar 16, 2011)

SirDice, ITYM "16 of the ugliest colors imaginable."

busyboy, CGA came out in 1981.  That was waaaay before VESA video modes.  It would be interesting to hear more about your hardware; maybe there are AMD64 systems with ISA slots and a CGA video card, but it would be moderately surprising to find a real CGA monitor that still works.  Odds are that this is a VM, or maybe an emulated video mode on VGA-type hardware.


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## busyboy (Mar 17, 2011)

wblock:
 I  have a SunFire X2270 M2 server with 16 GB RAM and 1 QUAD core processor with 2 threads per core, giving virtual processors count to be 8. 

 If I run this hardware with Solaris9 or 10, I get  proper windows Environment ( Xorg/GNOME+KDE and CDE ) and there is nothing wrong with high resolution graphics availability.

Now I was about to configure this systems for some RnD purposes and wanted to have a graphics based console (  I had graphical console setup very easily  on my Dell precision-380 machine  ) and I feel that it should also work with FreeBSD-8.1/AMD64 as well.

I'll really appreciate with any sort of help.

for VESA module to work on AMD64 arch, there is a long thread asking to rebuilt kernel  with SC_PRIXEL option enabled and then insert a new module in that newly built kernel. unfortunate thing is that download is broken and I'm simply left alone on this process.

http://forums.freebsd.org/showthread.php?t=6291

Thanks


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## busyboy (Mar 17, 2011)

from Sun/Oracle  webSite, its a HD15 VGA port ( capable of 1600x1200 resolution )


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## SirDice (Mar 17, 2011)

Without that module it's not possible to use VESA modes on AMD64. VESA modes only work on i386.


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## wblock@ (Mar 17, 2011)

x11/xorg plus a simple window manager may be an option.


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