Hello,

I have been trying to install Linux on a DELL Precision 610 computer for some time now to no avail. I have tried to install the following Distributions:
Mandrake 10.0
RedHat 7.3
KNOPPIX 3.4 (More of a test since can't really install a LiveCD)
Fedora Core 2

In all cases the installation doesn't work. The closest I got was with RedHat 7.3 but the display was so bad that I couldn't really do anything (8 bit 640-480) and looked real bad. The most recent thing I did was to try Fedora Core 2 using "NOAPIC" passed to the kernel upon installation (from a different thread).

One big problem seems to be the video card:
It is an Intergraph Intense 3D Pro 3410 (AGP), Intense 3D Pro 3400 (PCI) which has two cards (one AGP and one PCI) linked together.

What driver should I pick, RedHat seems to keep picking CIRRUS?

I also had a related general question:
With old hardware is it better to use old distributions?
The Dell Precision was distributed with RedHat 6.0 at some point.

Thanks for all the help,

Mike

hi mikefazz, welcome to lq. first try choosing not to boot to the gui by default. during the install you should be given an option to choose a default window manager or boot to gui something along that line, choose not to do that. once the install finishes and reboots, you should be dropped to a shell, or login, it should look something like this

$login:

that's an example only. once you get to this point you could login w/your username and password, or login as root. (just to cma, logging in as root is dangerous and shouldn't be done unless extremly neccessary, sometimes it's neccessary just to the box up and running), that said, once your logged in, you have some control over the system, from the command line.

if all goes well and you get to this point, issue from the command line (if your root)

lspci -v

if your not root issue

/sbin/lspci -v

copy and paste the results here, or type them as best you can. armed w/that info, you will have help from the users here to sort out the proper driver, and get x up and running. i hope this helps.
good luck.

Here is the Output:

00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corp. 440GX - 82443GX Host bridge
Subsystem: Dell Computer Corporation: Unknown device 4087
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 64
Memory at f0000000 (32-bit, prefetchable) [size=64M]
Capabilities: <available only to root>

00:01.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corp. 440GX - 82443GX AGP bridge (prog-if 00 [Normal decode])
Flags: bus master, 66Mhz, medium devsel, latency 64
Bus: primary=00, secondary=01, subordinate=01, sec-latency=64
Memory behind bridge: fc000000-fdffffff
Prefetchable memory behind bridge: f6000000-f7ffffff

00:07.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corp. 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 ISA (rev 02)
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 0

00:07.1 IDE interface: Intel Corp. 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 IDE (rev 01) (prog-if 80 [Master])
Flags: medium devsel
I/O ports at 1000 [size=16]

00:07.2 USB Controller: Intel Corp. 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 USB (rev 01) (prog-if 00 [UHCI])
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 64, IRQ 19
I/O ports at ece0 [size=32]

00:07.3 Bridge: Intel Corp. 82371AB/EB/MB PIIX4 ACPI (rev 02)
Flags: medium devsel, IRQ 9

00:0d.0 Display controller: Intergraph Corporation: Unknown device 00a4
Subsystem: Intergraph Corporation: Unknown device 00a4
Flags: bus master, stepping, slow devsel, latency 0, IRQ 16
Memory at f8000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
Memory at fe000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=4K]

00:11.0 Ethernet controller: 3Com Corporation 3c905B 100BaseTX [Cyclone] (rev 24)
Subsystem: Dell Computer Corporation 3C905B Fast Etherlink XL 10/100
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 64, IRQ 17
I/O ports at ec00 [size=128]
Memory at fe001000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=128]
Expansion ROM at f9000000 [disabled] [size=128K]
Capabilities: <available only to root>

00:13.0 PCI bridge: Digital Equipment Corporation DECchip 21152 (rev 03) (prog-if 00 [Normal decode])
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 64
Bus: primary=00, secondary=02, subordinate=02, sec-latency=64
I/O behind bridge: 0000f000-0000ffff
Memory behind bridge: fa000000-fbffffff
Prefetchable memory behind bridge: 00000000f5000000-00000000f5f00000
Capabilities: <available only to root>

01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: Cirrus Logic GD 5430/40 [Alpine] (rev 47) (prog-if 00 [VGA])
Flags: VGA palette snoop, medium devsel
Memory at f7000000 (32-bit, prefetchable) [size=16M]
Expansion ROM at 80000000 [disabled] [size=16M]

01:00.1 Display controller: Intergraph Corporation: Unknown device 0780 (rev 40)
Subsystem: Intergraph Corporation: Unknown device 00f1
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 64, IRQ 16
Memory at fcff8000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=32K]

02:09.0 SCSI storage controller: Adaptec AHA-7850 (rev 03)
Subsystem: Adaptec AHA-2904/Integrated AIC-7850
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 64, IRQ 17
I/O ports at fc00 [disabled] [size=256]
Memory at fafff000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=4K]
Capabilities: <available only to root>

02:0e.0 SCSI storage controller: Adaptec AIC-7880U (rev 01)
Subsystem: Adaptec AIC-7880P Ultra/Ultra Wide SCSI Chipset
Flags: bus master, medium devsel, latency 64, IRQ 18
I/O ports at f800 [disabled] [size=256]
Memory at faffe000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=4K]
Expansion ROM at fb000000 [disabled] [size=64K]
Capabilities: <available only to root>


This is after I installed RedHat 7.3 again using the number I got after pulling out the video cards and finding the CIRRUS LOGIC GD544x label on one of them.

Thanks,