Linux problems with motherboard chipsets?
 

I'm researching topic to decide which is the best motherboard to buy for my legacy build, avoid incompatibilities, and determine what expansion cards are needed. Chipsets are:

Nvidia nforce 720D
AMD 770
AMD SB710
Realtek 8111C
8111D
8111C/D(L)
ITE IT8720
T.I. TSB43AB23
JMicron JMB362

I welcome comments or documentation on any known Linux problems connected to these chipsets. Also, I'd be interested in patches, workarounds, etc., provided implementation is within reach of a Linux newbie (i.e. extensive command line work like kernel modds would be outside my skill level). Thanks.

I used a Gigabyte GA-MA770-UD3 with Linux for quite some time without any problems. This motherboard uses most of the components you are asking for.

AM2+/AM3 isn't what I would call 'legacy' yet.

Both will work, I wouldnt get the nForce 720D if you can have an AMD 770 (though to be honest, I wouldnt bother with AMD 770 either, might as well get a current 970 board).

Southbridge for a 7XX and some 8XX AMD chipsets. Works fine, apart from the very annoying to me USB flash drive bug....

Variants on the realtek 8111 gigabit networking chip. Works.

Super I/O chip for hardware monitoring and a fan speed controller. Works.

IEE/1394A/'FireWire' controller chip. Should work, dont know for sure, and do you really need firewire anyway?

SATAII controller chip. Works..but please dont use it, they are awful and the drivers for both windows and linux are dodgy. Use the chipset SATA ports instead.

Yes, its one of seven motherboard choices on my parts list. Great to know it has no problems, and if chosen, I'll not have to look for expansion cards. Thanks!

Thanks for all the great info! In what way is AMD 770 better than nforce 720D? Need to know that before I kick nforce board off my list.

Do you have a link to more info on this "USB flash drive bug"? Never yet ran across any mention of it.

Yes, I really want Firewire and eSATA, since USB3.0 and SATA6 is out of reach. Any way to find out if firewire controller chip works or not? If not, I need to look for firewire PCI/PCIe expansion card.

I'm newbie so not sure what you mean by "use chipset SATA ports instead." Can you elaborate?

Lastly, my parts-list for this custom build is almost done. You seem very knowledgeable in Linux hardware stuff. Could I impose to ask that you give it a look over for incompatibilities or other problems that might of slipped by me?

nVidia chipsets started out good (nForce1) gthen ot better (nForce2) then got worse (nForce 3 and everything after).

I trust the AMD 7XX/8XX/9XX chipsets far more than the few nVidia chipsets still around.

Sorry, I dont have any more info on it.

Umm...you can get AMD A75 (socket FM2) motherobards for similar amount of $$$ to the older AM2/AM2+ boards. They come with USB 3.0 and SATAIII.

Firewire is OK, but its pointless to get unless you already have firewire devices.....and its not that much faster than USB 2.0. You'l pay a lot mroe for DDR2 over DDR3 as well. Unless you've got a pile of old parts you know 100% run fine, it would be cheaper to get a current FM2 board, CPU and DDR3 RAM than trying to find older (and slower) parts.

Youm can check using search terms like "T.I. TSB43AB23 linux". Dont expect to much though, not many people had/have firewire devices. I actualy have a motherobard with a T.I. TSB43AB23, but I turn it off in the BIOS, and I dont have any firewire devices to check with.

The motherobard chipset supports SATA ports, and the motherobard chipsets work better than the cheap and nasty addon SATA chips.

Sure.

There are thousands of variables in pc boards. Each day companies use different parts, different revision and different build date products in them. Unless the board is certified to run some linux OS it can't be know how stable it could be. If you need stable and certified then go with a server or other linux system from big name companies with linux loaded on it from factory. It is the only way to be somewhat sure.

No link, but some of the 7XX (and earlier) southbridges were known for their bad USB performance. With the Gigabyte board I mentioned earlier I never had this problem.

Okay, I'll ditch the nVidia board from my parts-list. Thanks for the warning. I did thorough search of the motherboards starting from the most recent (that was about six months ago),and worked my way back...the AMD770 boards were the only ones I found to meet my needs. All the rest either had junk I didn't need (zillion PCIe x16 slots, SATA 6Gb/s, USB3, etc.) or didn't have what I do need (lotsa PCI/PCIe x1 slots, FDD connector, USB2, SATA3Gb/s, double PS/2 connectors, and so on).

Regarding TSB43AB23, can you or anyone translate this:
http://hardware4linux.info/component/17439/
to simple terms...like are they saying it works, or sorta works, or not at all? Cannot seem to find any 'key' to this site; looks like it should be very helpful though.

I'll try to give my parts list tomorrow, as today I wasted too much of my public computer time finding a replacement for Lavabit, and I'm not a fast typist. Thanks for saying you will look it over! I'm always paranoid I'll get this PC done, only to find I overlooked some problem, and have to take it back to the custom-build shop for major overhaul.

They are saying that it works out of the box on all distros mentioned on that site, except Mandriva 2009.0 i586, where it only partially worked. The key to understanding can be found here: http://hardware4linux.info/

Hmm....interesting. I've got a GA-770T-USB3 here and it does have some problems with USB flash drives (very slow!)

PCIe x16 slots work with all PCIe devices. x1/x4/x8 cards work in x16 slots, a x1 slot will only work with x1 cards (unless uou want to cut down the physical conenctors..not recommended)

SATAIII ports will work with SATAII devices.

You can get 970 chipset boards with 2 x ps/2. You'll also get a better southbridge, SATAIII, USB 3.0 + USB 2.0. Most of the AXX (FM1 + FM2 socket) have at least 1 x ps/2 port, and using a USB-> ps/2 adapter isnt hard. About all that will be missing is a floppy port....What possible use could anyone have for a floppy drive these days? If you really need one USB floppy drives are around....

Been trying to research this bug, but Google is being obstinate- any idea of search terms to use?

Excellent!
 

Many thanks...think this site may now be a major help!

My parts-list
 

Before giving my parts list I wish to remind that this is a legacy-oriented build (to what degree you can decide), and this emphasis extends to the software. Linux distro versions I've acquired for trial use kernels 2.4.31 (DSL) to 2.6.29.6, and my first goal in choosing hardware is to ensure this range of kernels are supported.

My parts list still has some holes that need filling, such as the video capture card, so user recommendations are needed. Some other components (such as the NIC) I'm deadlocked between two or more models and welcome tiebreaker assistance. Also, warnings of incompatibilities are welcomed. So on to the list:


CONSOLE- Requirements:full-size tower;at least eight 5.25" external bays;seven expansion slots...ports:2eSATA, 2 firewire, 8 USB2.0, & headphones jack. Would like one 3.5 external bay. Prefer construction of steel frame & aluminum panels, but will settle for all steel or all aluminum. Would like to make PC quiet. Looking at:
Cooler master STC-TO1-UWK
" " RC-810-SKN1
Thermaltake VA8003BWS
Xigmatek CCC-HSA0DS-U01
Antec Twelve Hundred

CASE FANS-
Enermax Marathon Enlobal UC-12EB
Noctua NF-F12 120mm

*CPU-
Phenom II X6 1055T (95W)

CPU FAN-
Noctua NH-D14
Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO
Zalman CNPS1OX

PSU- Various power calculators say I need 650 to 675W, but I'm wanting a bit more. Choices are:
Seasonic 760W 80Plus Platinum SS-760XP2
Corsair TX750
Kingwin LZP-750
Corsair AX-760

MOTHERBOARD- in order of preference:
GA-MA770-UD3
GA-MA770T-UD3
GA-770T-UD3P
GA-770TA-UD3
GA-770T-USB3

MEMORY- Depends on board chosen, but I want the high end sort, and to fill all DIMM sockets...if anyone wants to recommend memory modules for the five boards above, please do!

NIC CARD- in order of preference:
DGE-528T
Intel EXPI9301CTBLK PRO/1000
Netgear GA302T
Startech ST1000BT32

*SOUND CARD-
Asus Xonar D2

*GRAPHICS CARD-
Either Geforce 6800GS or 6800GT (PCIe x16, 256 to 512MB)

VIDEO CAPTURE CARD- Must include 'framegrabber' function.
No idea! Suggestions welcomed for PCI or PCIe card type.

IDE/EIDE DVD BURNER- Would much prefer one I can easily make into 'all-formats' or 'region-free'.
No idea! Suggestions welcomed.

IDE/EIDE HARD DISC DRIVE- 500GB size required. Maybe:
WD5000JBRTL
WD5000AAJB
WD5000AAKB
WD5000KS
WD5000AAKB-OOH8AO

IDE/EIDE HDD MOBILE RACK- Maybe:
PCTek KF-201DF
Lian Li RH-32
" " RH-600

SATA (3Gb/s)DVD BURNER- I'm considering Plextor PX-880SA, but welcome suggestions, just no Sony brand.

SATA HARD DISC DRIVE- SATA 3Gb/s & 750GB required. Maybe:
WD7500AVCS
WD 7500AAKS-OOBA0

SATA HDD MOBILE RACKS- Maybe:
Kingwin KF-201-DF
" KF-1000-BK
SNT-SAS136B
Vantec MRK-300ST-BK
iStarUSA T5F-SS
iRack MRA300

5.25" BAY DEVICE-
Lian Li BZ-UO1

5.25" HDD COOLER- Want two to fit between the three HDDs.
Akust 5.25 PC Front Grill Cooler #FG00-0037-AKS
Lian Li 5.25" Triple 40mm Extreme Bay Cooler
Evercool 5.25 Cross Flow Fan

EXTERNAL HDD DOCKING STATION- For making backups. eSATA or Firewire preferred. Maybe:
Orico 6618SUS-BK
Rosewill RX-DUS100

FLOPPY DRIVE- For internal floppy drive connector.
Bytecc BT-145
NEC FD1231

PCI/PCIe EXPANSION CARDS- Depends on motherboard chosen, and which chips Linux rejects, but will likely need at least eSATA and Firewire cards that work with Linux:
LaCie eSATA PCI Card #130823
Startech PEX1394B3 Firewire PCIE Card

LCD MONITOR- Require 1024x768. No touchscreen.
ViewEra V151HV-B

MOUSE-
Microsoft Intellimouse Explorer

KEYBOARD-
Microsoft Multimedia Keyboard

WIRED ROUTER- Require NAT & SPI;gigabit WAN.
TP Link TL-R600VPN
Netgear FVS336G
Trendnet TWG-BRF114
Cisco Linksys RVS-4000

UPS- It must cover minimum 675W, and have quiet operation.
Cyberpower CP1350PFCLCD
APC BR1500 LCD

MEMORY CARD READER-
Plugable Technologies Plugable 2.0

SCANNER-
Canon Canoscan LIDE 30

COLOR INKJET PRINTER- Require each color to have separately replaceable ink cartridge; above average color graphics & photo print quality, & easy Linux setup. Much prefer single-function printers.
HP Officejet Pro 800 Enterprise
" " 6000 Wireless Printer
Epson WF7010

MONOCHROME LASER PRINTER- Require double sided printing (auto-duplex), use reasonably priced toner, have above average text print quality. Single-function printers much preferred.
Brother HL-2040
" HL-5370DW
Dell 2350D
" 3330DN
HP Laserjet Pro 400 M401DN
" " " " M401DNE
" " " P1606DN
Xerox Phaser 3250


* These components are already decided on, so its very unlikely I'll change them.

That is one of the most confusing 'everything including the kitchen sink' setups I've ever seen.

You've got parts all over the place, many of which are pretty much useless. Why buy a gigabit network card when you'll get gigabit onboard?

Some of those parts you'd have to buy 2nd hand, _if_ you can find them at all, and they are outclassed by newer parts that you could find cheaper, e.g. Phenom II X6 1055T, Geforce 6800GS/6800GT.

Some things are stil avaible, but stupidly priced. Who is going to pay $220 for a 15'' 1024x768 ViewEra V151HV-B LCD?

Some stuff was pretty much a joke when it was new, e.g. the bay coolers. 3 x 40mm fans blow very litle air and are noisy.

A lot of it makes no sense at all to me. Why on earth have 1 x SATA burner and 1 x IDE burner? (and BTW, plextor used to be amazing, these days they are just average and have been rather anti-linux a few times) . Why on earth 'fill' all the RAM slots when at least with the DDR3 boards you can max out the RAM with 2 sticks (less RAM sticks tends to be more stable). Why look at HDD coolers when there are various cases you've listed with hard mounted fan spots for the 5.25''/3.5'' bays?

I keep looking at all those 'mobile racks', which are fine if you need and have a use for them, are actually counterproductive if you dont...think that doesnt make sense? Well, its pretty hard for the airflow from a 3 x 40mm bay cooler (or better yet, a 80mm+ fan mounted to the case) to reach the HDD at all if its stuck into a 'mobile rack'. There is also stuff like the eSATA card, which is an error on various levels IMO- its PCI so its limited to 133MB/sec....2 x eSATA can use more than 133MB/swec bandwidth. Most of the gigiabyte AMD 770 (and others as well) chipsets support chnaging 1 or 2 SATA ports to eSATA.

I'd be rethinking this whole setup.

*edit and the Phenom II X6 has turbocore, which requires linux kernel 2.6.35 onward. Old distros without turbocore support might work, but I wouldnt use them with a turbocore CPU.

What is the intended use anyway?