Unable to get Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD tuner working on EL9
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Unable to get Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD tuner working on EL9
I am running AlmaLinux 9.1 (kernel 5.14.0-162.6.1.el9_1.x86_64) and I am attempting to install a Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD USB tuner. According to all of the documentation I can find, this tuner is linux-compatible and the drivers for it have been part of the kernel since 4.17 (please see the linuxtv.org listing here for details).
When I plug the tuner stick into my system, I am able to see it with lsusb:
Code:
[user@localhost]~% lsusb
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub
Bus 001 Device 007: ID 2040:826d Hauppauge 955D
If it were working properly, my understanding is that I should have a few device files; in particular a device file at /dev/dvb. Unfortunately no device files are getting created.
When I plug it in, here's what I see in dmesg:
Code:
[ 1678.060191] usb 1-6: new high-speed USB device number 17 using xhci_hcd
[ 1678.186831] usb 1-6: New USB device found, idVendor=2040, idProduct=826d, bcdDevice= 1.00
[ 1678.186843] usb 1-6: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=1, SerialNumber=2
[ 1678.186848] usb 1-6: Product: 955D
[ 1678.186852] usb 1-6: Manufacturer: HCW
[ 1678.186855] usb 1-6: SerialNumber: 0014330228
Based on my internet searches thus far, I should see a lot more dmesg activity. I am assuming the appropriate kernel modules are not loaded (in particular, the modules for em28xx-dvb, si2157, and si2168). It seems like these modules should be part of the kernel, but I don't appear to have them (for example, "modprobe em28xx-dvb" doesn't work), and there are no EL9 packages that appear to include them. I note there are some EL8 packages that include them (see here) as well as several Fedora packages (see here). But nothing for EL9.
I feel like I am missing something obvious. Am I just doing something colossally dumb? Were these drivers/modules removed from EL9 upstream for some reason? Or have the appropriate modules simply not been built for EL9 yet? I would be happy to put in a request to EPEL and ask that they be forked and built, but I'm not even sure what to request (there is no kernel-debug-modules package for EL9 yet...should there be?).
Boot to some live or virtual mainstream multimedia dvd or usb and try it? Server distro's tend to be terrible multimedia out of box.
Not a bad thought. I booted my system to a Fedora 34 Live DVD (since this is the distro that el9 is based on) and tried plugging in the tuner. As you can see from dmesg below, it was 100% successful:
Code:
[ 365.586713] usb 2-1: new high-speed USB device number 6 using xhci_hcd
[ 365.713630] usb 2-1: New USB device found, idVendor=2040, idProduct=826d, bcdDevice= 1.00
[ 365.713643] usb 2-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=1, SerialNumber=2
[ 365.713648] usb 2-1: Product: 955D
[ 365.713652] usb 2-1: Manufacturer: HCW
[ 365.713656] usb 2-1: SerialNumber: 0014330228
[ 366.290277] em28xx 2-1:1.0: New device HCW 955D @ 480 Mbps (2040:826d, interface 0, class 0)
[ 366.290283] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB interface 0 found: bulk
[ 366.341992] em28xx 2-1:1.0: chip ID is em28174
[ 367.484897] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM ID = 26 00 01 00, EEPROM hash = 0x7c99074e
[ 367.484910] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM info:
[ 367.484913] em28xx 2-1:1.0: microcode start address = 0x0004, boot configuration = 0x01
[ 367.492625] em28xx 2-1:1.0: AC97 audio (5 sample rates)
[ 367.492634] em28xx 2-1:1.0: 500mA max power
[ 367.492637] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Table at offset 0x27, strings=0x0a72, 0x187c, 0x086a
[ 367.544717] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Identified as Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM (card=100)
[ 367.548684] tveeprom: Hauppauge model 204201, rev C2I6, serial# 14330228
[ 367.548689] tveeprom: tuner model is SiLabs Si2157 (idx 186, type 4)
[ 367.548690] tveeprom: TV standards PAL(B/G) NTSC(M) PAL(I) SECAM(L/L') PAL(D/D1/K) ATSC/DVB Digital (eeprom 0xfc)
[ 367.548693] tveeprom: audio processor is None (idx 0)
[ 367.548694] tveeprom: has no radio, has IR receiver, has no IR transmitter
[ 367.548697] em28xx 2-1:1.0: dvb set to bulk mode.
[ 367.600816] em28xx 2-1:1.0: chip ID is em28174
[ 368.739797] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM ID = 26 00 01 00, EEPROM hash = 0x7c99074e
[ 368.739809] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM info:
[ 368.739813] em28xx 2-1:1.0: microcode start address = 0x0004, boot configuration = 0x01
[ 368.746892] em28xx 2-1:1.0: AC97 audio (5 sample rates)
[ 368.746900] em28xx 2-1:1.0: 500mA max power
[ 368.746904] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Table at offset 0x27, strings=0x0a72, 0x187c, 0x086a
[ 368.798719] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Identified as Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM (card=100)
[ 368.801796] tveeprom: Hauppauge model 204201, rev C2I6, serial# 14330228
[ 368.801800] tveeprom: tuner model is SiLabs Si2157 (idx 186, type 4)
[ 368.801802] tveeprom: TV standards PAL(B/G) NTSC(M) PAL(I) SECAM(L/L') PAL(D/D1/K) ATSC/DVB Digital (eeprom 0xfc)
[ 368.801814] tveeprom: audio processor is None (idx 0)
[ 368.801815] tveeprom: has no radio, has IR receiver, has no IR transmitter
[ 368.801818] em28xx 2-1:1.0: dvb ts2 set to bulk mode.
[ 369.002288] usbcore: registered new interface driver em28xx
[ 369.163144] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Binding DVB extension
[ 369.390348] i2c i2c-12: Added multiplexed i2c bus 15
[ 369.390354] lgdt3306a 12-0059: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
[ 369.640889] si2157 15-0060: Silicon Labs Si2147/2148/2157/2158 successfully attached
[ 369.640920] dvbdev: DVB: registering new adapter (2-1:1.0)
[ 369.640925] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB: registering adapter 0 frontend 0 (LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend)...
[ 369.640932] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend' registered.
[ 369.641358] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'dvb-demux' registered.
[ 369.642490] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB extension successfully initialized
[ 369.642495] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Binding DVB extension
[ 369.648676] i2c i2c-14: Added multiplexed i2c bus 16
[ 369.648679] lgdt3306a 14-000e: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
[ 369.651618] si2157 16-0062: Silicon Labs Si2147/2148/2157/2158 successfully attached
[ 369.651633] dvbdev: DVB: registering new adapter (2-1:1.0)
[ 369.651635] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB: registering adapter 1 frontend 0 (LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend)...
[ 369.651638] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend' registered.
[ 369.651953] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'dvb-demux' registered.
[ 369.654539] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB extension successfully initialized
[ 369.654543] em28xx: Registered (Em28xx dvb Extension) extension
[ 369.658245] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Registering input extension
[ 369.795635] Registered IR keymap rc-hauppauge
[ 369.796059] rc rc0: Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb2/2-1/2-1:1.0/rc/rc0
[ 369.796204] rc rc0: lirc_dev: driver em28xx registered at minor = 0, scancode receiver, no transmitter
[ 369.796276] input: Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb2/2-1/2-1:1.0/rc/rc0/input25
[ 369.796410] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Input extension successfully initialized
[ 369.796414] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Remote control support is not available for this card.
[ 369.796417] em28xx: Registered (Em28xx Input Extension) extension
It creates the expected device files in /dev, which is further than I'm getting on my el9 system. So it definitely appears that the drivers are present and working in kernel 5.14 (which corroborates the info at https://www.linuxtv.org/wiki/index.p...e_WinTV-dualHD).
So it seems like this should work? Or at least be possible? I assume that I just need to compile the appropriate kernel module? If so, how?
I note that the kernel-modules package included in Fedora 34 (kernel-modules-5.11.12-300.fc34.x86_64) contains a lot more modules...including a module called /kernel/drivers/media/usb/em28xx/em28xx-dvb.ko.xz. How can I get these modules? Do I need to submit a bugzilla ticket and ask someone to build/package them?
Again, I feel like I'm missing something really dumb here and I'm just not sure how to proceed.
Distribution: Ubuntu based stuff for the most part
Posts: 1,177
Rep:
As was stated, server distros usually don't ship with multi-media apps. You will need install video support stuff as well, Mplayer or VLC may pull in everything you need.
dvb-apps is a separate package in Ubuntu, probably the same for Alma, if you want to try just installing that along with dvb-tools and dtv-scan-tables for minimal support for the command line.
Not a bad thought. I booted my system to a Fedora 34 Live DVD (since this is the distro that el9 is based on) and tried plugging in the tuner. As you can see from dmesg below, it was 100% successful:
Code:
[ 365.586713] usb 2-1: new high-speed USB device number 6 using xhci_hcd
[ 365.713630] usb 2-1: New USB device found, idVendor=2040, idProduct=826d, bcdDevice= 1.00
[ 365.713643] usb 2-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=3, Product=1, SerialNumber=2
[ 365.713648] usb 2-1: Product: 955D
[ 365.713652] usb 2-1: Manufacturer: HCW
[ 365.713656] usb 2-1: SerialNumber: 0014330228
[ 366.290277] em28xx 2-1:1.0: New device HCW 955D @ 480 Mbps (2040:826d, interface 0, class 0)
[ 366.290283] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB interface 0 found: bulk
[ 366.341992] em28xx 2-1:1.0: chip ID is em28174
[ 367.484897] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM ID = 26 00 01 00, EEPROM hash = 0x7c99074e
[ 367.484910] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM info:
[ 367.484913] em28xx 2-1:1.0: microcode start address = 0x0004, boot configuration = 0x01
[ 367.492625] em28xx 2-1:1.0: AC97 audio (5 sample rates)
[ 367.492634] em28xx 2-1:1.0: 500mA max power
[ 367.492637] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Table at offset 0x27, strings=0x0a72, 0x187c, 0x086a
[ 367.544717] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Identified as Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM (card=100)
[ 367.548684] tveeprom: Hauppauge model 204201, rev C2I6, serial# 14330228
[ 367.548689] tveeprom: tuner model is SiLabs Si2157 (idx 186, type 4)
[ 367.548690] tveeprom: TV standards PAL(B/G) NTSC(M) PAL(I) SECAM(L/L') PAL(D/D1/K) ATSC/DVB Digital (eeprom 0xfc)
[ 367.548693] tveeprom: audio processor is None (idx 0)
[ 367.548694] tveeprom: has no radio, has IR receiver, has no IR transmitter
[ 367.548697] em28xx 2-1:1.0: dvb set to bulk mode.
[ 367.600816] em28xx 2-1:1.0: chip ID is em28174
[ 368.739797] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM ID = 26 00 01 00, EEPROM hash = 0x7c99074e
[ 368.739809] em28xx 2-1:1.0: EEPROM info:
[ 368.739813] em28xx 2-1:1.0: microcode start address = 0x0004, boot configuration = 0x01
[ 368.746892] em28xx 2-1:1.0: AC97 audio (5 sample rates)
[ 368.746900] em28xx 2-1:1.0: 500mA max power
[ 368.746904] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Table at offset 0x27, strings=0x0a72, 0x187c, 0x086a
[ 368.798719] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Identified as Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM (card=100)
[ 368.801796] tveeprom: Hauppauge model 204201, rev C2I6, serial# 14330228
[ 368.801800] tveeprom: tuner model is SiLabs Si2157 (idx 186, type 4)
[ 368.801802] tveeprom: TV standards PAL(B/G) NTSC(M) PAL(I) SECAM(L/L') PAL(D/D1/K) ATSC/DVB Digital (eeprom 0xfc)
[ 368.801814] tveeprom: audio processor is None (idx 0)
[ 368.801815] tveeprom: has no radio, has IR receiver, has no IR transmitter
[ 368.801818] em28xx 2-1:1.0: dvb ts2 set to bulk mode.
[ 369.002288] usbcore: registered new interface driver em28xx
[ 369.163144] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Binding DVB extension
[ 369.390348] i2c i2c-12: Added multiplexed i2c bus 15
[ 369.390354] lgdt3306a 12-0059: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
[ 369.640889] si2157 15-0060: Silicon Labs Si2147/2148/2157/2158 successfully attached
[ 369.640920] dvbdev: DVB: registering new adapter (2-1:1.0)
[ 369.640925] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB: registering adapter 0 frontend 0 (LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend)...
[ 369.640932] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend' registered.
[ 369.641358] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'dvb-demux' registered.
[ 369.642490] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB extension successfully initialized
[ 369.642495] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Binding DVB extension
[ 369.648676] i2c i2c-14: Added multiplexed i2c bus 16
[ 369.648679] lgdt3306a 14-000e: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
[ 369.651618] si2157 16-0062: Silicon Labs Si2147/2148/2157/2158 successfully attached
[ 369.651633] dvbdev: DVB: registering new adapter (2-1:1.0)
[ 369.651635] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB: registering adapter 1 frontend 0 (LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend)...
[ 369.651638] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'LG Electronics LGDT3306A VSB/QAM Frontend' registered.
[ 369.651953] dvbdev: dvb_create_media_entity: media entity 'dvb-demux' registered.
[ 369.654539] em28xx 2-1:1.0: DVB extension successfully initialized
[ 369.654543] em28xx: Registered (Em28xx dvb Extension) extension
[ 369.658245] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Registering input extension
[ 369.795635] Registered IR keymap rc-hauppauge
[ 369.796059] rc rc0: Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb2/2-1/2-1:1.0/rc/rc0
[ 369.796204] rc rc0: lirc_dev: driver em28xx registered at minor = 0, scancode receiver, no transmitter
[ 369.796276] input: Hauppauge WinTV-dualHD 01595 ATSC/QAM as /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:14.0/usb2/2-1/2-1:1.0/rc/rc0/input25
[ 369.796410] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Input extension successfully initialized
[ 369.796414] em28xx 2-1:1.0: Remote control support is not available for this card.
[ 369.796417] em28xx: Registered (Em28xx Input Extension) extension
It creates the expected device files in /dev, which is further than I'm getting on my el9 system. So it definitely appears that the drivers are present and working in kernel 5.14 (which corroborates the info at https://www.linuxtv.org/wiki/index.p...e_WinTV-dualHD). So it seems like this should work? Or at least be possible? I assume that I just need to compile the appropriate kernel module? If so, how?
I note that the kernel-modules package included in Fedora 34 (kernel-modules-5.11.12-300.fc34.x86_64) contains a lot more modules...including a module called /kernel/drivers/media/usb/em28xx/em28xx-dvb.ko.xz. How can I get these modules? Do I need to submit a bugzilla ticket and ask someone to build/package them? Again, I feel like I'm missing something really dumb here and I'm just not sure how to proceed.
Have you made sure you've got the firmware file downloaded, and present in /lib/firmware? Sounds very similar to a problem I had with a similar device some time ago. Would get all sorts of dmesg output, but nothing would pop up. The page you referenced: https://www.linuxtv.org/wiki/index.p...ualHD#Firmware
...had a download link. Should have to copy that into your /lib/firmware directory. From there, I'd suggest either a reboot, or unplug/replug the USB device, and see what you get.
As was stated, server distros usually don't ship with multi-media apps. You will need install video support stuff as well, Mplayer or VLC may pull in everything you need.
dvb-apps is a separate package in Ubuntu, probably the same for Alma, if you want to try just installing that along with dvb-tools and dtv-scan-tables for minimal support for the command line.
Also a good thought. I already have VLC and MPlayer installed, so unfortunately no help there; they can't see the tuner because they're looking for it in places like /dev/dvb/adapter0, and those places don't currently exist. And it doesn't look like there are any packages called dvb-apps, dvb-tools, or dtv-scan-tables available in EPEL or RPMFusion.
Have you made sure you've got the firmware file downloaded, and present in /lib/firmware? Sounds very similar to a problem I had with a similar device some time ago. Would get all sorts of dmesg output, but nothing would pop up. The page you referenced: https://www.linuxtv.org/wiki/index.p...ualHD#Firmware
...had a download link. Should have to copy that into your /lib/firmware directory. From there, I'd suggest either a reboot, or unplug/replug the USB device, and see what you get.
I did see that, but the linuxtv page states that the firmware is only required for the "Model 01590 demodulator" and my tuner appears to be the Model 01595 version. In particular, the firmware in question appears to apply to the Silicon Labs Si2168 demodulator, whereas my model appears to have the LG LGDT3306a demodulator:
Code:
[ 369.390354] lgdt3306a 12-0059: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
[ 369.648679] lgdt3306a 14-000e: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
So this shouldn't be needed. But I don't think I'm even making it to the point where the firmware would apply, as my system isn't detecting any of the components yet.
It sounds like Red Hat decided to remove a bunch of drivers from the kernel for RHEL9. So the source exists and the drivers are normally part of the mainline kernel, but Red Hat decided (in their infinite wisdom) to leave them out when they compiled the kernel for RHEL9. Since all el9 derivatives will use the same kernel, the drivers will be missing from those distributions as well.
The most viable suggestion at the moment seems to be to reach out to the folks over at ELRepo and see if they would be willing to build some kmod packages for the missing drivers. I guess that will be my next step...
I did see that, but the linuxtv page states that the firmware is only required for the "Model 01590 demodulator" and my tuner appears to be the Model 01595 version. In particular, the firmware in question appears to apply to the Silicon Labs Si2168 demodulator, whereas my model appears to have the LG LGDT3306a demodulator:
Code:
[ 369.390354] lgdt3306a 12-0059: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
[ 369.648679] lgdt3306a 14-000e: LG Electronics LGDT3306A successfully identified
So this shouldn't be needed. But I don't think I'm even making it to the point where the firmware would apply, as my system isn't detecting any of the components yet.
Ok..but downloading a small firmware file as a test wouldn't be a bad thing, would it?
Ok..but downloading a small firmware file as a test wouldn't be a bad thing, would it?
Fair enough. I downloaded the firmware file suggested on the linuxtv.org site and put it in my /lib/firmware folder. Unfortunately, I still get the same result -- the OS doesn't appear to recognize the adapter at all.
So the ELRepo folks have concerns that the RHEL 9 kernel simply has the necessary framework that underpins hardware like TV tuners disabled, and thus unavailable in the el9 kernel as currently compiled:
Code:
[phil@Build64R9 boot]$ cat config-5.14.0-162.6.1.el9_1.x86_64 | grep -i tv
# CONFIG_MEDIA_ANALOG_TV_SUPPORT is not set
# CONFIG_MEDIA_DIGITAL_TV_SUPPORT is not set
This is opposed to Fedora, for example, which I referenced earlier:
Code:
[phil@Build64F37 boot]$ cat config-6.0.12-300.fc37.x86_64 | grep -i tv
CONFIG_MEDIA_ANALOG_TV_SUPPORT=y
CONFIG_MEDIA_DIGITAL_TV_SUPPORT=y
# Digital TV options
So RHEL seems to be intentionally removing this support from its kernel (and thus all downstream el9 kernels). I was able to get my system to recognize my tuner by installing the kernel-ml packages from ELRepo (at their suggestion) as this mainline-stable kernel contains the necessary drivers. But this is an entirely new kernel, of course, and perhaps not the most optimal solution for enabling a TV tuner <sigh>.
So the ELRepo folks have concerns that the RHEL 9 kernel simply has the necessary framework that underpins hardware like TV tuners disabled, and thus unavailable in the el9 kernel as currently compiled:
Code:
[phil@Build64R9 boot]$ cat config-5.14.0-162.6.1.el9_1.x86_64 | grep -i tv
# CONFIG_MEDIA_ANALOG_TV_SUPPORT is not set
# CONFIG_MEDIA_DIGITAL_TV_SUPPORT is not set
This is opposed to Fedora, for example, which I referenced earlier:
Code:
[phil@Build64F37 boot]$ cat config-6.0.12-300.fc37.x86_64 | grep -i tv
CONFIG_MEDIA_ANALOG_TV_SUPPORT=y
CONFIG_MEDIA_DIGITAL_TV_SUPPORT=y
# Digital TV options
So RHEL seems to be intentionally removing this support from its kernel (and thus all downstream el9 kernels). I was able to get my system to recognize my tuner by installing the kernel-ml packages from ELRepo (at their suggestion) as this mainline-stable kernel contains the necessary drivers. But this is an entirely new kernel, of course, and perhaps not the most optimal solution for enabling a TV tuner <sigh>.
Well, trying the firmware is an easy first-shot for such things. And honestly, I'm not surprised at this....RHEL is typically aimed at servers. They usually don't have bluetooth/sound/wifi/tv-tuners, so support can be spotty.
For 99% of folks who want to stay in the Red Hat ecosystem, Fedora is the best way to go. Just makes things easier, and unless you're a hard-core developer for RHEL, you won't miss anything, and your code should still be portable.
Well, trying the firmware is an easy first-shot for such things. And honestly, I'm not surprised at this....RHEL is typically aimed at servers. They usually don't have bluetooth/sound/wifi/tv-tuners, so support can be spotty.
For 99% of folks who want to stay in the Red Hat ecosystem, Fedora is the best way to go. Just makes things easier, and unless you're a hard-core developer for RHEL, you won't miss anything, and your code should still be portable.
Yeah, I know support for these types of things is really spotty on el9 distros, and this isn't generally what they're for. But I use my server for lots of other things, and I'm more interested in stability and "turn it on and forget it" than I am in being on the bleeding edge of linux. The 10 years of support was the biggest selling point, so I can just install the OS, configure it, and not need to worry about much again until 2032. The server also happens to run my Plex media server (among other things) so having everything on one beefy box is just nice to have. It's just disappointing because my old system was CentOS 7, and the support for these types of things was actually pretty good. It seems like RHEL is really drifting away from a chunk of its user base (us home/small business/small server users), which I understand from a business perspective, but is nonetheless disappointing. I know Fedora is more stable than it used to be, but it still seems like an OS for enthusiasts and not one I want to depend on for anything really important or critical. And I'm definitely not interested in doing an OS update every 6 months. Ah well. Perhaps one day Rocky or Alma or someone else will pick of the mantle of an LTS linux system for home users who want bulletproof media and application servers.
Yeah, I know support for these types of things is really spotty on el9 distros, and this isn't generally what they're for. But I use my server for lots of other things, and I'm more interested in stability and "turn it on and forget it" than I am in being on the bleeding edge of linux. The 10 years of support was the biggest selling point, so I can just install the OS, configure it, and not need to worry about much again until 2032. The server also happens to run my Plex media server (among other things) so having everything on one beefy box is just nice to have. It's just disappointing because my old system was CentOS 7, and the support for these types of things was actually pretty good. It seems like RHEL is really drifting away from a chunk of its user base (us home/small business/small server users), which I understand from a business perspective, but is nonetheless disappointing. I know Fedora is more stable than it used to be, but it still seems like an OS for enthusiasts and not one I want to depend on for anything really important or critical. And I'm definitely not interested in doing an OS update every 6 months. Ah well. Perhaps one day Rocky or Alma or someone else will pick of the mantle of an LTS linux system for home users who want bulletproof media and application servers.
Ubuntu LTS is aimed at such things, but as for servers....most 'real' servers for businesses don't even have screens or keyboards, much less speakers and other such 'consumer' devices. Don't need the 'bleeding edge' of things, but I can personally say that I run openSUSE Tumblweed (a rolling release) on one of my servers at my office, and it hasn't had a single issue.
Personally, I try to pick the right tool for the job...RHEL for multimedia isn't it, in my opinion. If that other kernel works for you that's excellent, but for Plex and video capture/streaming, I'd go with something easier that 'just works', rather than having to monkey around with stuff. And what happens in 4 years when someone comes out with a whizz-bang new video processing thing? Chances are support for that won't be easy, and you're back where you started.
You may also consider Rocky or Alma linux, both of which are created from CentOS streams (or CentOS Streams itself) and thus upstream of RHEL. I have no clue about the support for TV tuners in the kernels they use, but it is a possibility while remaining in the server mainstream.
Last edited by computersavvy; 12-21-2022 at 10:39 AM.
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