Problem: xorg 1.7.7 on Mandriva 2010.2 / ATI X600: X11 crashing or slowing down

grover · 03-11-2011, 07:03 PM

I am having annoying problems with my fresh installation of Mandriva 2010.2.

It uses the xorg-1.7.7 server for my ATI X600 mobility graphics card.
(package: x11-server-xorg-1.7.7-1mdv2010.1)

There are several - perhaps related, perhaps unrelated - problems:

Problem 1:

Random lockups.

The Xorg.0.log states:

Code:

[mi] EQ overflowing. The server is probably stuck in an infinite loop.

Backtrace:
0: /etc/X11/X (xorg_backtrace+0x37) [0x80e9127]
1: /etc/X11/X (mieqEnqueue+0x1c1) [0x80e88c1]  
2: /etc/X11/X (xf86PostMotionEventP+0xdc) [0x80c181c]
3: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/input/evdev_drv.so (0xb6ff3000+0x2c62) [0xb6ff5c62]
4: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/input/evdev_drv.so (0xb6ff3000+0x2ee0) [0xb6ff5ee0]
5: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0x6bd81) [0x80b3d81]
6: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0x1263f9) [0x816e3f9]
7: (vdso) (__kernel_sigreturn+0x0) [0xffffe400]
8: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0x60b70) [0x80a8b70]  
9: (vdso) (__kernel_sigreturn+0x0) [0xffffe400]
10: (vdso) (__kernel_vsyscall+0x10) [0xffffe424]
11: /lib/i686/libc.so.6 (ioctl+0x19) [0xb73c9dd9]
12: /usr/lib/libdrm.so.2 (drmDMA+0x83) [0xb7186c03]
13: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/radeon_drv.so (0xb7084000+0xdd31)
[0xb7091d31
14: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/radeon_drv.so (0xb7084000+0xe1e2)
[0xb70921e2
15: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/radeon_drv.so (0xb7084000+0xacd8b)
[0xb7130d8
16: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/libexa.so (0xb6ea0000+0xcee9) [0xb6eacee9]
17: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/libexa.so (0xb6ea0000+0xdd3b) [0xb6eadd3b]
18: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0xdb28a) [0x812328a]
19: /etc/X11/X (CompositePicture+0x2de) [0x81161ae]
20: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/libexa.so (0xb6ea0000+0xc995) [0xb6eac995]
21: /etc/X11/X (CompositeTrapezoids+0xaa) [0x8115e2a]
22: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0xd6cf8) [0x811ecf8]
23: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0xd0ea1) [0x8118ea1]
24: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0x26ad7) [0x806ead7]
25: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0x1b025) [0x8063025]
26: /lib/i686/libc.so.6 (__libc_start_main+0xe6) [0xb7311b96]
27: /etc/X11/X (0x8048000+0x1ac11) [0x8062c11]

Problem 2:

X11 becomes slower and slower when running applications like mplayer, xine or glxgears

When started on a freshly started X11-Server glxgears for the first 30
seconds reports about 1900 FPS (more or less).

After 30 or 40 seconds these values start to drop. After about 1 minute
the reported frames per second drop dramatically to about 100 fps or less.
The x-server is generally unusable then, if I (try to) switch the workspace
in XFCE it appears as if the server has swapped all its windows to
the harddisk.

'free' doesn't report any used swap of course, and the system has a few
hundreds of megabytes still unsused memory.

The cpu usage of X11 has gone up then, but is not consuming more than 20% of cpu.

Same happens while playing any kind of video with any kind of sound driver
in either mplayer or xine.
At first the video plays without problems, but after about 40 seconds or 1
minute frames are dropped, and although there is still unsused cpu
reported by 'top' the system cannot play the video anymore.

If I stop playing the video and restart it, but this time forwarding the
position where it last time had the problems the video plays fine, but
after 40 seconds or 1 minute it's the same problem again.

The lockups have not appear again, since I have disabled 'composite', but this may just have been a coincidence.

I played a lot with the configuration, but the second problem is completely unaltered by any change I've made.

My xorg.conf:
===============

Code:

# File generated by XFdrake (rev )

# **********************************************************************
# Refer to the xorg.conf man page for details about the format of
# this file.
# **********************************************************************

Section "ServerFlags"
    Option "DontZap" "False" # disable <Ctrl><Alt><BS> (server abort)
    AllowMouseOpenFail # allows the server to start up even if the mouse
does not work
    #DontZoom # disable <Ctrl><Alt><KP_+>/<KP_-> (resolution switching)
EndSection

Section "Module"
    Load "dbe" # Double-Buffering Extension
    # Load "v4l" # Video for Linux
    Load "extmod"
    Load "glx" # 3D layer
    Load "dri" # direct rendering
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    Identifier "monitor1"
    VendorName "Generic"
    ModelName "Flat Panel 1680x1050"
    HorizSync 28.8-90
    VertRefresh 60
    
    # Monitor preferred modeline (60.6 Hz vsync, 64.5 kHz hsync, ratio
    # 16/10, 128 dpi)
    ModeLine "1680x1050" 121 1680 1704 1792 1876 1050 1051 1054 1065 -hsync
-vsync
    
    # TV fullscreen mode or DVD fullscreen output.
    # 768x576 @ 79 Hz, 50 kHz hsync
    ModeLine "768x576"     50.00  768  832  846 1000   576  590  595  630
    
    # 768x576 @ 100 Hz, 61.6 kHz hsync
    ModeLine "768x576"     63.07  768  800  960 1024   576  578  590  616
EndSection

Section "Device"
    Identifier "device1"
    VendorName "ATI Technologies Inc"
    BoardName "ATI Radeon X1950 and earlier"
    Driver "radeon"
#    Option "DPMS"
#    Option "AccelMethod" "EXA"
#    Option "AccelMethod" "XAA"
    Option "MonitorLayout" "LVDS,NONE"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
    Identifier "screen1"
    Device "device1"
    Monitor "monitor1"
    DefaultColorDepth 24
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
    Identifier "layout1"
    Screen "screen1"
EndSection


Section "Extensions"
        Option  "Composite" "Disable"
EndSection

Any suggestions ?

Do you need more information?

I guess I am experiencing a software bug?

JZL240I-U · 03-15-2011, 01:56 AM

Bug or no bug ... I honestly wouldn't know. But the current version of xorg is 1.9. Even old SuSE 11.3 has 1.8 -- so I'd suggest you update xorg.

grover · 03-15-2011, 12:55 PM

Hello JZL240I-U,

Thank you for your suggestions.

At the moment I don't have a repository available with newer versions of the xorg-server.

I have updated the device driver, which was version 6.13.0 (package x11-driver-video-ati-6.13.0-3mdv2010.1)
to the newest version 6.13.2, which didn't help.

Also I updated to a newer kernel 2.6.36.4 (it was 2.6.33.7 before). This didn't change the problem at all.

It's definitively only the slowing down which haunts me. The lockups are gone since I disabled Composite.

I have now details for the problem with a video player like 'mplayer'.

It starts with running smoothly using about 10% of the cpu.
After about 40 seconds the cpu usage goes up. First very slowly to about 20%, then suddenly
to 100% and the video drops frames and the sound stutters.

JZL240I-U · 03-16-2011, 04:21 AM

But this still sounds like an x-problem. So it wouldn't really help to update your kernel, but ... you just might try the proprietary driver from http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/Pages/index.aspx. Maybe this can also be found in your Mandriva repositories. But I can't believe that there is no newer xorg, yours is several years old...

grover · 03-16-2011, 11:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JZL240I-U

So it wouldn't really help to update your kernel, but ...

Well, I saw a lot of X11 problems solved which were caused by the kernel mode setting feature, so it
was a good guess to try a newer kernel.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JZL240I-U

you just might try the proprietary driver from http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/Pages/index.aspx. Maybe this can also be found in your Mandriva repositories.

Thanks to f*cking ATI the X600 mobility isn't supported anymore by the propietary driver.
This driver has always worked perfectly. but I wanted to use modern OS features so I had to update
to a newer Mandriva ...

I could switch back to Mandriva 2009.0. The kernel and xorg-System were old enough to have a working
older propietary driver, but ......

Quote:

Originally Posted by JZL240I-U

But I can't believe that there is no newer xorg, yours is several years old...

I had a look at x.org. It was actually released at the beginning of 2010.
EDIT: Found out it was released in early May 2010.

So it's actually less than a year old, like the Mandriva 2010.2 I am using.

So with Mandriva 2011 (available now as a BETA) there will be a newer version of xorg.

I might try updating to this release, although it's considered BETA.

I cannot view even the smallest videos anymore, really getting on my nerves.

Thank you for your suggestions.

I keep this thread open until I finally find out what caused this ....

JZL240I-U · 03-17-2011, 11:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grover

Well, I saw a lot of X11 problems solved which were caused by the kernel mode setting feature, so it
was a good guess to try a newer kernel.

You are right here. The radeon driver complains in the logs on my machine about KMS but the meaning is garbled and on my box it works.

Quote:

Originally Posted by grover

...I had a look at x.org. It was actually released at the beginning of 2010.
EDIT: Found out it was released in early May 2010.
So it's actually less than a year old, like the Mandriva 2010.2 I am using.

But still, the latest release on the x.org site is 1.9.2 or even 1.9.3 so essentially you're working with bugfixes on a 2009-10-01 server...

Quote:

Originally Posted by grover

...I keep this thread open until I finally find out what caused this ....

Please do. We'd all like to learn

.

grover · 06-15-2011, 06:24 AM

Update:

I have installed a new linux version. I test Mageiea 1 at the moment, since
the 2011.0 version of Mandriva is a bit late ...

I run now xorg 1.10: x11-server-xorg-1.10.1-1.mga1

The version of the ATI driver is 6.14.1 (x11-driver-video-ati-6.14.1-4.mga1)

The problem is completely unchanged though.
Still after a short time every video I try to view starts dropping frames
and ends in X11 being completely unusable for the next few minutes .....

JZL240I-U · 06-15-2011, 06:26 AM

Didn't re-read the whole thread, but did you try out the "radeon" driver at all?

adamk75 · 06-15-2011, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JZL240I-U

Didn't re-read the whole thread, but did you try out the "radeon" driver at all?

Apparently you didn't even read the first post since it clearly shows that Xorg is using the radeon driver in the backtrace:

Code:

13: /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/radeon_drv.so

grover · 06-15-2011, 03:16 PM

AFAIK the ATI and the radeon driver are the same thing.
I still use the radeon driver, which is part of ATI driver package.
It doesn't matter whether I call the driver "ati" or "radeon", doesn't change antyhing.

Code:

[grover@ischnura ~]$ rpm -qf /usr/lib/xorg/modules/drivers/radeon_drv.so
x11-driver-video-ati-6.14.1-4.mga1

JZL240I-U · 06-16-2011, 01:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by adamk75

Apparently you didn't even read the first post...

Code:

...
 Section "Device"
      Identifier "device1"
      VendorName "ATI Technologies Inc"
      BoardName "ATI Radeon X1950 and earlier"
      Driver "radeon"
  #    Option "DPMS"
  #    Option "AccelMethod" "EXA"
  #    Option "AccelMethod" "XAA"
      Option "MonitorLayout" "LVDS,NONE"
  EndSection
...

Urgh. Apologies to both of you. And I'm freshly out of ideas...