Asus M3N Linux install

Initial Plans

I purchased an Asus M3000N from Carbon Linux, a start-up in California dedicated to the idea of linux on laptops. Jim Choi was helpful and put together exactly the machine I wanted.

So I had to choose between my tried and true install of Debian and my desire to learn the Gentoo install and the wonders of an uber-optimized system. Being the dork that I am, I chose to use Gentoo.

Having now just deleted several paragraphs that used to be here, I am ditching the Gentoo install for old faithful. After compiling Xfree86 and loads of other stuff in Gentoo, all of the browsers I tried (galeon, mozilla, firebird) seemed to segfault on key-commands and I didn't feel like I wanted to debug it. I was tired of compiling everything. So I installed using a cd iso of woody(2.4.18bf2.4) and then dist-upgraded to sarge and some sid packages.

UPDATE (06.18.04): Much of my page is now a bit outdated. I do now use Gentoo Linux and love it. I'm providing also my link for my kernel config. config-2.6.7 which you'd need to save as .config in your kernel source tree.

Networking

01:08.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corp. 82801BD PRO/100 VM (MOB) Ethernet Controller (rev 83)

The M3N comes with an Intel EtherExpress100 Mini-PCI card. Initially I used the eepro100, and have since, with later kernels, switched to the e100 driver. The chipset was detected and the module installed cleanly.
Wireless / PCMCIA
Intel's Centrino setup includes a built-in wireless chipset (2100) which is currently unsupported with the linux kernel. Everyone should go bug Intel to offer a free driver so we can complete our Centrino systems (twitch). Meanwhile, I'm using a Netgear MA401 and PCMCIA works as expected with cardmgr. I could not get the orinoco driver to work with this card and have been using linux-wlan-ng successfully, though configuration was a little tricky to get encryption working correctly.

IDE

00:1f.1 IDE interface: Intel Corp.: Unknown device 24ca (rev 03)

I use hdparm like so in my init scripts:
hdparm -d1 -u1 -m16 -c3 /dev/hda

Results:
hdparm -Tt /dev/hda

/dev/hda:
Timing buffer-cache reads: 128 MB in 0.49 seconds =261.22 MB/sec
Timing buffered disk reads: 64 MB in 3.14 seconds = 20.38 MB/sec

Kernel & ACPI

Originally, in the 2.4.18 kernel I started with I noticed that I couldn't monitor my battery with APM. Hello ACPI. Incidentally, check out TuxMobil for some debriefings on the basics of running linux on laptops.
UPDATE: 10/02/2003
Luca Capello and many others have worked on testing and changing some ACPI code to get this machine working properly. After previously patching the DSDT and all sorts of other annoying things, I can refer you now to this page: http://luca.pca.it/projects/asus/M3410C.htm#acpi_patched for a HOWTO on getting ACPI working properly with a 2.4.21 kernel.
  1. S1: echo 1 > /proc/acpi/sleep puts the machine to sleep and causes the blue power light to flash. The machine successfully awakens(in X or a console)!
  2. S2: reported as unsupported.
  3. S3: echo 3 > /proc/acpi/sleep does nothing.
  4. S4: echo 4 > /proc/acpi/sleep does nothing.
  5. S5: echo 5 > /proc/acpi/sleep turns the machine off, read crashes, straightaway.
Note: Debian's default acpid event (powerbtn.sh) initiates immediate shutdown on awakening, so I've apt-get removed it.

Sound

00:1f.5 Multimedia audio controller: Intel Corp. 82801DB AC'97 Audio (rev 03)

Works wonderfully with snd-intel8x0 from ALSA and the i810_audio module also loads and unloads just fine, though I'm sticking with the ALSA one.

XFree86

00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corp.: Unknown device 3582 (rev 02)
00:02.1 Display controller: Intel Corp.: Unknown device 3582 (rev 02)

My touchpad works great, as touchpads go, at /dev/psaux.
Debian comes with XFree86-4.2 and I could not get the i810 driver to work with it. The chipset is the Intel 855. Anyhow, I downloaded the XFree86-4.3 binaries and installed, and voila, X started. Here is a copy of my XF86Config.

USB

00:1d.0 USB Controller: Intel Corp. 82801DB USB (Hub #1) (rev 03)
00:1d.1 USB Controller: Intel Corp. 82801DB USB (Hub #2) (rev 03)
00:1d.2 USB Controller: Intel Corp. 82801DB USB (Hub #3) (rev 03)
00:1d.7 USB Controller: Intel Corp. 82801DB USB EHCI Controller (rev 03)

USB root hubs were detected and work for me with hotplug for my Logitech optical mouse.

Firewire

01:05.1 FireWire (IEEE 1394): Ricoh Co Ltd R5C551 IEEE 1394 Controller

After getting a 4-pin to 4-pin Firewire cable, I hooked up my Canon ZR45mc and have performed captures of both video and still images in kino successfully.

Keyboard Buttons

When I first got the M3N, my officemate was cringing at the bash bell, which was quite loud. Fortunately, Fn-F11 works to turn the volume down. Alternately, Fn-F12 will turn it up.
Julien Lerouge's acpi4asus package provides a kernel module that can read the Asus laptops' extra buttons as ACPI events.

Lindsey Simon (email: lsimon at commoner dot com)
Last modified: Tue Jul 8 09:54:17 CDT 2003