Hi,

I've decided to try to get my second monitor working under Mandrake 9, but am having real problems. I've read the man pages on setting up XF86Config and the Howto on Xinerama as well as the previous posts here and as far as I can tell everything should be working ok.

I started by setting up the system so it runs fine with my AGP GeForce 3 and made a copy of the XF86Config and XF86Config-4 files (from expreimenting with editing the files I gather that my system is looking to XF86Config-4 when starting X). Then I set it up up to run on the 2nd monitor using my PCI S3 Trio and copied those config files. I then combined the geforce and trio files, adding a few bits from the Howto to get the file below. (BTW in the BIOS I have the PCI set to the primary card, I gather this is the correct way - even though, I have tried it on the AGP and it still doesn't work).

The results I get vary on how the serverlayout section is setup. Depending on whether screen is "screen 1" or screen 2" and LeftOf or RightOf.
The 3 outcomes are:
-X starts on screen 2 only the way it always has.
-X starts, I get the KDE splashscreen and the sound played but hangs on the red screen, no taskbar/icons etc just the watch cursor.
-Both monitors make a sound as though they are coming out of powersaving mode but stay black.

When these happen screen 1 will flicker/flash for a second so some signal is getting sent at somepoint.

Here is my XF86Config-4 file:

# File generated by XFdrake.

# **********************************************************************
# Refer to the XF86Config man page for details about the format of
# this file.
# **********************************************************************

Section "Files"
# Multiple FontPath entries are allowed (they are concatenated together)
# By default, Mandrake 6.0 and later now use a font server independent of
# the X server to render fonts.
FontPath "unix/:-1"
EndSection

Section "ServerFlags"
#DontZap # disable <Crtl><Alt><BS> (server abort)
#DontZoom # disable <Crtl><Alt><KP_+>/<KP_-> (resolution switching)
AllowMouseOpenFail # allows the server to start up even if the mouse doesn't work
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "dbe" # Double-Buffering Extension
Load "v4l" # Video for Linux
Load "extmod"
Load "type1"
Load "freetype"
Load "glx" # 3D layer
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Keyboard1"
Driver "Keyboard"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbLayout" "gb"
Option "XkbOptions" ""
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Mouse1"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "IMPS/2"
Option "Device" "/dev/usbmouse"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Eraser1"
Driver "wacom"
Option "Device" "/dev/ttyS1"
Option "Type" "eraser"
Option "Mode" "Absolute"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Cursor1"
Driver "wacom"
Option "Device" "/dev/ttyS1"
Option "Type" "cursor"
Option "Mode" "Relative"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Stylus1"
Driver "wacom"
Option "Device" "/dev/ttyS1"
Option "Type" "stylus"
Option "Mode" "Absolute"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "LG"
VendorName "Plug'n Play"
HorizSync 30-96
VertRefresh 50-160

# Sony Vaio C1(X,XS,VE,VN)?
# 1024x480 @ 85.6 Hz, 48 kHz hsync
ModeLine "1024x480" 65.00 1024 1032 1176 1344 480 488 494 563 -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 "Monitor"
Identifier "Dell"
VendorName "Plug'n Play"
HorizSync 30-96
VertRefresh 50-160

# Sony Vaio C1(X,XS,VE,VN)?
# 1024x480 @ 85.6 Hz, 48 kHz hsync
ModeLine "1024x480" 65.00 1024 1032 1176 1344 480 488 494 563 -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

# Graphics card 1 - Trio

Section "Device"
Identifier "Trio"
VendorName "S3 Inc."
BoardName "S3 Trio64 (generic)"
Driver "s3"
VideoRam 2048
BusID "PCI:0:11:0"
Option "DPMS"
EndSection

# Graphics card 2 - GeForce 3

Section "Device"
Identifier "GeForce3"
VendorName "nVidia Corporation"
BoardName "NVIDIA GeForce3 (generic)"
Driver "nv"
BusID "PCI:1:0:0"
Option "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Screen2"
Device "GeForce3"
Monitor "LG"
DefaultColorDepth 16

Subsection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 15
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Screen1"
Device "Trio"
Monitor "Dell"
DefaultColorDepth 16

Subsection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 15
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection

Subsection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "layout1"
InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard"
InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Eraser1" "AlwaysCore"
InputDevice "Cursor1" "AlwaysCore"
InputDevice "Stylus1" "AlwaysCore"
Screen "Screen1"
Screen "Screen2" RightOf "Screen 1"
EndSection

##########################################################

Please help if you can I've spent hours on this and my non-Linux loving friends are laughing. It's hard to show the superiority of Linux when all they had to do in Windows was tick the 'extend desktop to this display' box


Thanks in advance

Tony

Hi, I've also recently setup a multihead system, my experience might help, although you might be at a dead end

At first I had an AGP Geforce 2 MX/400 64mb, and I went and bought a fairly cheap PCI Trident 8mb card. I tried running them together for a week on my Windows ME, Windows 2000, and Linux, none worked. Separately they worked fine for all, so I thought I should return it for a refund as it didn't work for what i bought it.

At the store I saw a PCI Geforce 2 MX/400 64mb and exchanged the two (notice bought same card as i had). Came home, installed first on win 2000, worked fine, then on linux, worked fine. My other computer had an AGP Riva TNT/2 32mb, so I changed my AGP Geforce 2 for the TNT/2. Now I had an AGP Riva TNT/2 and a PCI Geforce 2, again installed on win 2000 and on linux and both are working fine (both use 'nvidia' driver).

Did your non-linux friends use same video cards in their setup?
You could try getting a windows and screwing with it, too

Also there might be an option that your two video cards just can't co-exist together

Thanks for the reply.

I have Windows 2000 installed, used mainly for gaming and I've installed the drivers for the Trio and it works flawlessly. Easy as pie with the tickbox.

Still no joy with Linux though

I see your GeForce 3 driver is 'nv', you should update it to a newer one from the nvidia website (http://www.nvidia.com), it has the installation readme there.

If that doesn't do the trick, post back, if it works on windows, it has to on linux

Still no joy

I got the new drivers and the driver is set to nvidia and the glx module is loaded.

It's strange though, the PCI card (screen 1) is primary in the BIOS so that's the screen that always got used for the command line and booting etc, but when starting X it always started on screen 2 (geforce). Since putting on the new drivers when I start X it comes onto screen 1.

I don't know if this could be because the nvidia drivers didn't install ok and it's using the correctly installed S3 drivers/card instead or what. The nvidia drivers seemed to install without a problem.

Bah! I really want to get this working....I've been using the 2nd monitor in Windows and I love it! In fact I'm thinking of buying another.....just to make things even more complicated

One trick that both Acid and I had to use was flipping the AGP and PCI card... X initializes in the order they are in the file, I got a one head display until I put AGP first, Acid had it the other way round... weird, but it worked.

Some of getting X to work with 2 heads is just pure voodoo... the other day I got it to boot with 4 different cards (bored, christmas vactaion, bored...).

Cheers,

Finegan

try making other 2 layouts that use screens just by themselves (not dual monitor system, but just one monitor), and test them with either XFree86 -- -layout layoutname or startx -- -layout layoutname, if you say you had them working separately they should work, but just to make sure...

also you could try starting from AGP card in BIOS

unfortunately there isn't much else i could help you with, you just gotta try everything that you haven't tried yet, and just in case here's a copy of my xconfig file: http://dimanise.cjb.net/tmp/XF86Config.txt