pcbsd9-stable-20120505 snapshot - howto enable intel rc6

[user10508 at gmail.com]

Kevin Oberman@

> FWIW, I am running on a laptop with Intel-KMS driver with none of the
> power or thermal issues you are having. ThinkPad T520 Sandybridge. My
> cores are currently at 51 and 55 degrees with a load average of about
> .5, so pretty calm. Something is different in your system that is
> triggering the problem. I just don't know about hardware or software.

Thank you, this looks like its going to be fun after all.

Hardware:

Asus K53E intel gen2 core i5 4 GB ram - detected as 5 GB - hitachi 500GB 
sata-2, 15.6 samsung display, atheros wifi and wired ethernet, usb2 etc 
- bought four months ago.

Initial Software installed:

win7 - 64 bit something or other version - pre-installed, all updates 
applied, with a really nice intel software application supporting the 
IGA. Everything just works. IGA driver has had updates from intel; no 
problems with temperature, fans never seem to run, screen color 
temperature pretty accurate, no artifacts compiling or running other 
software. I've installed the same set of software tools on win7 as I use 
on bsd/linux.

In addition to win7, I installed:

OpenSuse linux 11.4 - 64 bit, all updates applied, intel X driver 
version 2.12,x, 2.6.X series linux kernel. Initial screen color 
temperature problems corrected using redshift software package.

PcBsd 9.0-release 64 bit, updated to stable - intel X driver version 2.7.x

I initially installed PcBsd on zfs with encryption, but this was a non 
starter for performance reasons as well as having compatibility problems 
with some of the software I installed. Reinstalling on ufs without 
encryption resulted in a stable system.

As with linux, I had a screen color temperature problem, but could not 
correct it. Redshift existed in ports but didn't work.  I tried it as a 
package and compiled it from ports. Otherwise the system was fine; no 
thermal problems, no screen artifacts; the intel IGA was driven by the 
Vesa driver.

In feb, a kms snapshot release turned up for testing; I installed this; 
redshift worked but so did the fans; while there were no screen 
artifacts, the system was too hot to the touch for daily use. I 
reinstalled PcBsd-9 and updated to stable.

The current may 5th snapshot release with kms replaced Opensuse on my 
laptop. KMS was not enabled by default on this snapshot. To enable kms, 
/etc/make.conf had to contain "WITH_NEW_XORG=yes" and X intel had to be 
compiled from source; a "make install clean" in ports. I initially 
installed on zfs with encryption; no problems with performance or 
compatibility; redshift worked and so did the fans, but with this 
snapshot, there were screen artifacts; X used xf86-video-intel 2.17.0.

At this point I wondered if ZFS and software encryption were too much 
for the machine. I removed the snapshot; updated pcbsd9-stable in place 
to the 20120505-snapshot and installed linux mint - debian - replacing 
opensuse - to see what things were like on a recent linux release.

Updating to PcBsd-20120505 on ufs without encryption was uneventful, but 
my laptop still runs hot to the touch, fans are always on and there are 
screen artifacts. Redshift works, as does everything else.

On your system, what version does pkg_info return for xf86-video-intel; 
how did you update to it; do you have WITH_NEW_XORG in /etc/make.conf? 
Maybe the Devil is in these details.

Maybe I have to go back to 9-release; cvsup to stable; patch the kernel 
for kms, get the 2.18.0 intel-driver and patch and install it.

Linux mint runs intel-2.18.x on a 3.2.x kernel; redshift runs and the 
system is cool, like win 7.

I haven't been able to figure out if Rc6 is enabled on this release of 
the intel driver for linux mint; I have to read some more, there doesn't 
seem to be a sysctl variable set for this value on linux.

Thing is, given the relationship between kernel code and driver code on 
linux, just installing 2.18.x doesn't guarantee anything if my system 
needs rc6 enabled; its an ongoing process getting kms running on bsd; 
I'm sure all the necessary changes to the bsd kernel will get done - 
properly.

Since thermal and battery life problems have also been noted on linux 
sandy bridge laptops on the way to a stable X intel driver, it doesn't 
surprise me that I'm having problems; it is really interesting though, 
that you are not.