Install Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) on a ThinkPad T400

T400Site under construction. You are invited building an useful guidance!

Before Installation

Before you can start Ubuntu from CD or USB you have to change two BIOS settings:

• Change to Internal or ATI Graphics with Config --> Display --> Graphics Device --> [Integrated graphics] or [Discrete Graphics]
• Disable OS Detection for Switchable Graphics. Otherwise it will mysteriously switch back to Switchable Graphics.

Now you can boot your Live-CD, connect to Wireless Lan, and install the OS.

What works out of the box?

• Wireless with iwlagn driver (Intel WiFi Link 5100/5300 WLAN controller)
  • Only tested G mode + WEP yet
  • with status LED and everything!
• Bluetooth
  • Even with Bluetooth Laser Mouse
• Intel Gigabit Ethernet Controller
• Intel driver for Integrated Graphics (Intel Integrated Intel GMA 4500MHD)
  • with 3D acceleration out-of-the-box
• ATI fglrx driver for Discrete Graphics (ATI Mobility Radeon 3470 graphics)
  • To enjoy 3D acceleration, you have to install the proprietary fglrx Driver. (for example with the jockey-gtk tool)
• Touchpoint and Trackpad
  • Including scroll at the right side of the pad by default.
• Optical drive
  • Not tested burning yet
• Sound card
  • To use your internal microphone you have to change to "HDA Intel CONEXANT Analog (ALSA)" in audio-settings.
• 7-in-1 card reader from Ricoh (MMC, Memory Stick, Mem Stick Pro, SD, SDHC, XD, XD Type H Memory)
  • Only tested SD cards.
• Control buttons/Hotkeys
  • Volume control buttons
  • Screen brightness control (but changing brightness is a little bit diffuse. It's getting brighter but on maximum it changes to nearly lowest and get brighter again.)
  • Thinklight control
  • WLAN/BT/OFF toggle (Fn+F5 and mechanical toggle)
  • Media player control
• Some ACPI features
  • Battery status, power graphs and history (tested with an single 6-Cell battery)
  • Lid states and events

What needs some Tweaks?

ThinkVantage Button ThinkVantage

Edit the file /usr/share/hotkey-setup/ibm.hk with adding this line:

setkeycodes e017 148 #thinkpad button

You have to restart, then you refer a program with the "System -> Preferences -> Keyboard Shortcuts"-Menu (eg. Terminal, Firefox,...).

What doesn't work at the moment?

Integrated Fingerprint Reader

Theres a new chipset build in, the "AuthenTec AES2810". So neither the thinkfinger nor the fprint Project support this Device at the moment.

lsusb:
Bus 002 Device 004: ID 08ff:2810 AuthenTec, Inc.

Switchable Graphics

I installed Ubuntu 8.10 with the on-board Intel Graphic chip. So 3D acceleration works out-of-the-box.

Then I booted with the ATI Graphics, which was no problem, because the radeon driver works very well, but only in 2D.

After installing fglrx packages, jockey also found out, that proprietary drivers are available. So i let him configure my xorg.conf:

Section "Monitor"
	Identifier	"Configured Monitor"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
	Identifier	"Default Screen"
	Monitor		"Configured Monitor"
	Device		"Configured Video Device"
	DefaultDepth	24
EndSection

Section "Module"
	Load	"glx"
EndSection

Section "Device"
	Identifier	"Configured Video Device"
EndSection

Section "Device"
	Identifier  	"ATI Technologies Inc Mobility Radeon HD 3400 Series"
	BusID       	"PCI:01:00.0"
	Driver	        "fglrx"
EndSection

After reboot also Compiz works (but not so smooth as with Intel, i allege)

Problem: Strating up with integrated graphic again, no 3D desktop works. After removing all fglrx packages, Compiz normally works.

So i changed my xorg.conf using the radeon driver, succeeding to have 3D on onboard Graphics and 2D on ATI Graphics.

I also tried radeonhd driver, which does not work.

TODO	Maybe anybody can get both working!

Suspend/Hibernate

Neither Suspend nor Hibernate work for me. They fall asleep, but waking up nearly never works. Maybe it worked once... but i can't remember exactly.

TODO	Anybody an idea?

Menu-Key

I changed keyboard modell to "IBM Thinkpad R60/T60/R61/T61" using the "German Dead acute" Layout.

But also with these settings my menu-key does not work. I tried to refer it with Firefox using the keyborad shortcuts-tool. It writes: "XF86WakeUp"

Problem: The FN-Key also writes "XF86WakeUp", which is not so practical, so I removed allocation!

TODO	Is ist possible to have an real menu-key?

Not tested yet

Active Protection System

There is no patch for Kernel 2.6.27-7 at the moment to use HDAPS. See also How to protect the harddisk through APS.

VGA/HDMI

TODO	please test an external monitor!