Installation of Linux on Compaq Armada 7400/7800 Portables
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UMMARY OF
L
INUX
D
RIVERS
Linux
Armada 7400 & 7800 RedHat and SUSE Drivers
Video driver - S3 ViRGE/MX
www.xfree86.org
,
www.redhat.com
,
www.suse.com
Audio driver – ESS-1879
www.4front-tech.com
Setup & Diagnostics
http://www.compaq.com/support/files/portables/us/index.html
Choose Portables, Model #(7800 or 7400),
OS=Win95, Click locate software. Next, choose ROMPaqs and System Software. Finally, choose Computer
Setup for Portables, Personal Computer Diagnostics, or System ROMPaq.
USB
Linux USB is still in alpha state and requires the latest 2.2.X kernel series. This is for experienced Linux
developers only. The latest Linux kernel/documentation can be obtained a
t
http://kernelnotes.org/
Compaq Netelligent 10/100 PC Card
Based on TI-ThunderLAN . Kernel module(driver) is TLAN
Infrared
http://www.cs.uit.no/linux-irda/
Cardbus and PC-Card (PCMCIA) Support
http://hyper.stanford.edu/HyperNews/get/pcmcia/home.html
y Xircom Combo support: RealPort REM10BT and REM56G-100, CreditCard CEM28, CEM33, CEM56.
Monitor this site for future drivers.
Services Support
Within North America, a ten incident call pack can be ordered from Compaq Computer Corporation customer services as
part number QR-SMLNX-B1 for a fee of $1320. This services package provides resolution of ten separate incidents that
are jointly supported between Compaq and Red Hat. This package provides coverage for a 9x5-service window (8:00
a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday – Friday local time). “Best Endeavor” support provides remedial telephone advisory delivered
by the Customer Support Centers (CSC). Compaq Computer Corporation Services are investigating similar support
offerings with other distributors in other geographic areas. But, in the interim, for SuSE or other distributions, please
contact those companies directly for any software support issues.
Linux on Armada 7400 & 7800
Hard Disk Support
BIOS setup/diagnostic partition
The Armada family of portables have an enhanced GUI (graphical user interface) to BIOS setup (Computer Setup for
Portables or CSP) which is stored on a hidden disk partition. This partition is usually 12 to 16 MB is size and has a
partition type of 0x12. Both RedHat and SuSE Linux have installation choices, which reformat the entire hard disk
thereby removing any CSP’s that may exist. There are many options.
The first option is to make the Linux boot partition active and install the LILO boot manager into this partition, not the
MBR (Master Boot Record). LILO can then be used to boot other Operating Systems and will not interfere with entering
CSP using the F10 key during BIOS POST.
A second option is to use a CSP from a DOS bootable diskette. A downloadable SoftPaq (# SP) is available from
Compaq Support at
http://www.compaq.com/support/files/portables/us/index.html
which will create the diskette. This
downloadable program executes under DOS or Windows. The down side to this option is the floppy drive and CSP
diskette must be available.
