I am trying to set up my laptop computer to work with OpenSUSE 13.0 and XFCE. When I installed the system and started XFCE, the desktop was at 1024x768 resolution but it was horizontally stretched over the laptop’s wide screen. XFCE’s display settings is stuck at 1024x768 at 76Hz and is not offering any alternatives.
My lspci output for graphics card is:
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: VIA Technologies, Inc. CN700/P4M800 Pro/P4M800 CE/VN800 [S3 UniChrome Pro] (rev 01)
I tried to resolve this by installing xorg-x11-driver-video-unichrome package from OpenSUSE repository. After X restart, it gave me much sharper graphics, but my resolution was still stuck at 1024x768 at 76Hz and instead of stretched desktop, it was exactly at 4:3 aspect ratio, along the left edge of the screen, with some space along the right edge left black and unused.
I tried to fix this by editing the conf files in /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d. I typed “cvt 1280 720” and pasted its output into newly created modlines section of the monitors conf file. I also created a section in screens conf file, telling the X to use the mode I just created. After X restart, I got an error: UNICHROME(0): No valid modes found. I only managed to get back into desktop to post this by renaming the xorg.conf.install file into xorg.conf.
Any ideas on how to get XFCE settings to display more resolution choices with Unichrome drivers?
Yeah. Thanks. Guess I’ve been crazed by trying to get this to work.
I’ve seen this. Reread it just now. Did some more digging in Project Unichrome FAQ and found out I don’t need to use modelines and that the driver already supports all modes supported by the card. So, I tried using the Modes in mcedit in Screen section of xorg.conf. It works and I can change the resolution this way to some widescreen resolutions, but I’m still getting 4:3 aspect ratio with the right side of the screen unused. When I change to a widescreen resolution, instead of claiming the whole screen, my XFCE panel gets pushed up and the area below it also becomes useless, except that it is in the color of the desktop instead of the black color of the area to the right. Is there any way to make the driver or xorg (whoever is causing the problem) realise that my screen is not 4:3?
User consused is our resident Chrome graphics expert, and user deano_ferrai our resident custom resolution expert.
What might help them is you to post (and keep us appraised of any changes to) the contents of the following files:
your PC’s /etc/X11/xorg.conf file (if any)
any changed files in the /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d directory
your PC’s /var/log/Xorg.0.log file with the above settings
You can post the contents of each of those in a separate page on SUSE Paste and then share here the URL.
Also if you can advise exactly what laptop model you have, it might be easier to get the specifications for this and know better what resolution/frequencies your laptop is capable of supporting.
I’ve done some experimenting on my own so the situation is rather different than when I opened the thread. Doing some grepping on /var/log/Xorg.0.log, I found out that my chipset is VT3344 for which most features of unichrome driver are not supported. Among other things, unichrome driver attempts to detect the dimensions of my panel and fails, so it defaults to 1024x786 which prevents it from using any higher resolutions.
I had switched to openchrome since and done some meddling with xorg.conf. I’ve found out that openchrome is having trouble detecting panel dimensions of my panel so it defaults to using vesa, which brings me back to the stretched 1024x768 resolution. I’ve tried to manually enter “Virtual 1280 800” as dimensions, which is supposed to be the highest resolution supported by the panel, but it gives me only a garbled screen when I start XFCE.
My xorg.conf and Xorg.0.log files are below. If I understand the concept correctly, my /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d is irrelevant since I’m now using xorg.conf. Openchrome driver detects my laptop as Fujitsu/Siemens Amilo Pro V2035.
Thanks ! Please, one more request for information, … please can you run in a terminal, and provide the output of typing in that terminal as a regular user :
xrandr
I ask that because I note your 1280x800 resolution identified:
# 30206.234] (II) CHROME(0): Monitor0: Using hsync value of 48.93 kHz
# 30206.234] (II) CHROME(0): Monitor0: Using vrefresh value of 59.97 Hz
# 30206.234] (II) CHROME(0): Attempting to use 60Hz refresh for mode "1280x800" (1b8)
# 30206.235] (**) CHROME(0): Virtual size is 1280x800 (pitch 1280)
# 30206.235] (**) CHROME(0): *Built-in mode "1280x800": 0.0 MHz, 48935.2 kHz, 60.5 Hz
# 30206.235] (II) CHROME(0): Modeline "1280x800"x60.5 0.00 1280 0 0 0 800 0 0 0 (48935.2 kHz)
# 30206.235] (**) CHROME(0): Built-in mode "1280x768"
# 30206.235] (**) CHROME(0): Built-in mode "1024x768"
..............
… but the only errors specific to that resolution was the following (that I could notice):
# 30206.273] (II) CHROME(0): Trying VBE Mode 1280x800 (0xc1b8) Refresh 67.01:
# 30206.273] (II) CHROME(0): ViaVbeSetRefresh
# 30206.273] (II) CHROME(0): Active Device: 2
# 30206.273] (II) CHROME(0): Refresh Rate Index: 0
# 30206.274] (II) CHROME(0): VBESetVBEMode failed...but worked OK without customized refresh and dotclock.
… and that makes me wonder if ‘xrandr’ will discover a higher resolution than 1024x768.
I note both 1280x800 and 1280x768 are available. That suggests to me that you should be able to obtain those two resolutions by a simple ‘xrandr’ command. Unfortunately this is NOT my area of expertise (deano_ferrai is our resident expert on this) and I don’t know the syntax/structure of the simple command. I note this thread of his with some examples: Won’t save display settings
Possibly something like:
xrandr --output default --mode 1280x800
… but you have to know that I am wildly speculating, with my never having been forced to do this myself on any of my PCs (nor anyone elses). You can either ‘readup’ and then ‘play’ with this xrandr approach, or perhaps contact deano_ferrai and ask him if he won’t mind joining the thread to pass some advice.
Thanks for directing me to xrandr. I didn’t actually need to use it to set my resolution. I was under the impression that the Modes “1280x800” line in my Screen section of xorg.conf would force XFCE to use that resolution, but it didn’t work that way. Since xrandr told me that it was using 1024x768, I managed to navigate through my garbled screen and set the resolution to 1280x800 in my XFCE gui settings. Thanks a lot! I’ve tried both with unichrome and openchrome drivers and I’m not noticing any difference.
Since xrandr told me that it was using 1024x768, I managed to navigate through my garbled screen and set the resolution to 1280x800 in my XFCE gui settings.
As oldcpu had correctly deduced, your xrandr output showed that 1280x800 was supported ok, but upon reading this entire thread it is apparent that your display mode issue appeared to be related to your dekstop environment. Well done for hanging in there, and updating this thread for the benefit of others.
FWIW, I note you’d attempted to use cvt to generate a modeline. Its better to use Xorg’s gtf utility instead. The timing values better suit modern flat panel displays. Any modeline that appears in xorg.conf, should have a corresponding “Modes” entry in the screen section of the same name. (Your modeline had this reference “1280x800_cvt” while the screen section had “1280x800”)