Has anybody given a go to Ubuntu 15.10?

[alessio]

Any feeback? Does it bring any improvement?

[cboettig]

Yup, so far so good.

It's currently got kernel 4.2 (not up to kernel freeze yet), which has been nice since I was running that kernel on 15.04 to get better behavior without the nuisance of being off-sequence (e.g. to access 4.2 linux-image-extra for the kernel the ubuntu repos).

Otherwise everything seems very stable; similar to where I was on 15.04 + A05 (+ intel wireless/bluetooth; can't speak to broadcom). Bluetooth now has support for the new low-power bluetooth connection. My 4k display is working at full resolution (since kernel 4.2). Haven't seen kernel panic or suspend/resume issues so far, but only a few days in.

It might just be my hands learning to hover, but I haven't experienced any problems with my palms accidentally tapping the trackpad since updating, which used to bug me regularly. (Out of the box tap-to-click is off, but even putting this back on, no issues). Pretty happy about that.

[alessio]

Thanks!

[jchatard]

Yeah, I also tried 3 days ago, and so far it's pretty stable (meaning no issue as of now).

And surprisingly — but I need more time to confirm — I haven't reproduce the keyboard repeat issue. :dancers:

[rosolko]

I'm using 15.10 for a week. Only 2 issues:

• System always turning on my keyboard back-light on maximum level on the system start and wake-up.
• Dual-boot with windows required to reboot twice for sound to work.

[fillier]

Using 15.10 for a few days as well. I switched over from Windows 10 that came pre-installed. Most everything is working fine (broadcom wireless included) but I immediately noticed that the fan was on most of the time. I've since installed i8kutils and used smm to disabled the bios controlled fan which seems to be working for now. I'm closely monitoring the CPU temps now but I only wish I had taken a look at them before I removed my Windows 10 install.

[rosolko]

Did you upgrade bios to 05 version? Did you try to install and use TLP or Laptop Mode Tools? I'm using 15.10 since start of the beta 2 and fan noise is okay.

[hg8]

I am using Ubuntu 15.10. No unusual fan noise....

No idea why but touch palm detection does not work anymore... (was working on 15.04). Everything else works fine.

[fillier]

@rosolko I just recently purchased my XPS 13 and it came from the factory with bios A06. Maybe the latest revision messed up the fan control? Haven't tried TLP but I recently configured PowerTop so I'll see what improvements that gives me.

Thanks for the suggestions!

[fillier]

@hg8 Same here, no palm detection on 15.10.

[jchatard]

Hi guys,

Here's what I added at the end of my /usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/50-synaptics.conf

Section "InputClass"
    Identifier "XPS13 settings"
    MatchDriver "synaptics"
    MatchProduct "DLL0665:01 06CB:76AD UNKNOWN"
    Option "PalmDetect" "1"
    Option "PalmMinWidth" "8"
    Option "PalmMinZ" "100"
    Option "LockedDrags" "1"
    Option "LockedDragTimeout" "2000"
EndSection

Lock drags only if you want that behavior. The MatchProduct is important!

Forgot to mention, that I'm on 15.10 and PalmDetection works great ;-)

And if you have it disable libinput. Was really not helpful for me!

[hg8]

@jchatard Will give a try and report thanks!

[jchatard]

@fillier can you confirm you have bios A06 and not A05.

If A06, did you notice the keyboard repeat issue on the space key?

Thank you!

[garzajaime]

Hugo F. That's something you can configure on the desktop. If you updated, it was probably reseted.

On Wed, Oct 28, 2015 at 10:44 AM, Hugo F. notifications@github.com wrote:

I am using Ubuntu 15.10. No unusual fan noise....

No idea why but touch palm detection does not work anymore... (was working on 15.04)

— Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub https://github.com/mpalourdio/xps13/issues/57#issuecomment-151782203.

[hg8]

@garzajaime Something configured on the desktop ? What do you mean ?

[garzajaime]

Well when I upgraded from 15.04 to 15.10 I had to go into the mouse settings and re-enable the touch pad manually, because it was reset off by default after the upgrade.

On Wed, Oct 28, 2015 at 2:31 PM, Hugo F. notifications@github.com wrote:

@garzajaime https://github.com/garzajaime Something configured on the desktop ? What do you mean ?

— Reply to this email directly or view it on GitHub https://github.com/mpalourdio/xps13/issues/57#issuecomment-151845540.

[hg8]

@garzajaime Ah ok thanks, but I was talking about Palm detection...

@jchatard You config is not working for me. Did you blacklisted psmouse ?

[jchatard]

Nope, nor did I blacklist i2c_hid...

Did you restart?

[hg8]

@jchatard I have. I have also tried to add the config in /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/50-synaptics.conf.

What is your xinput output?

[fillier]

@jchatard Confirmed A06:

sudo dmidecode -s bios-version A06

I haven't noticed any repeating keys as of yet.

[jchatard]

@hg8 my xinput output:

⎡ Virtual core pointer                        id=2    [master pointer  (3)]
⎜   ↳ Virtual core XTEST pointer                id=4    [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ Logitech USB Receiver                     id=10   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ Logitech USB Receiver                     id=11   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ ELAN Touchscreen                          id=12   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ DLL0665:01 06CB:76AD UNKNOWN              id=14   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad                id=16   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎣ Virtual core keyboard                       id=3    [master keyboard (2)]
    ↳ Virtual core XTEST keyboard                 id=5    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Power Button                                id=6    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Video Bus                                   id=7    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Power Button                                id=8    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Sleep Button                                id=9    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Integrated_Webcam_HD                        id=13   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ AT Translated Set 2 keyboard                id=15   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Dell WMI hotkeys                            id=17   [slave  keyboard (3)]

@fillier lucky you :-)

Edited to reflect the fact that I have SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad.

[rosolko]

One more question about 15.10: Did your systems always turning on keyboard back-light on maximum level on the system start and wake-up? (System doesn't remember keyboard back-light level) If not, how can I fix it?

[hg8]

@rosolko Refer to this question. If a solution is found, the answer will probably be posted here.

@jchatard You do not have SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad in your xinput. I think the problem come from here...

Are you sure you did not blacklisted it ?

Here is my xinput :

⎡ Virtual core pointer                        id=2    [master pointer  (3)]
⎜   ↳ Virtual core XTEST pointer                id=4    [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ ELAN Touchscreen                          id=10   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ DLL0665:01 06CB:76AD UNKNOWN              id=12   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad  

[jchatard]

@hg8 Hmm. that's pretty strange, because I always saw it, and I still have it right now. I'm not 100% sure, but my guess is that when I copied/pasted it, I deleted the row by mistake...

Here's my output:

⎡ Virtual core pointer                        id=2    [master pointer  (3)]
⎜   ↳ Virtual core XTEST pointer                id=4    [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ Logitech USB Receiver                     id=10   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ Logitech USB Receiver                     id=11   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ ELAN Touchscreen                          id=12   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ DLL0665:01 06CB:76AD UNKNOWN              id=14   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎜   ↳ SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad                id=16   [slave  pointer  (2)]
⎣ Virtual core keyboard                       id=3    [master keyboard (2)]
    ↳ Virtual core XTEST keyboard                 id=5    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Power Button                                id=6    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Video Bus                                   id=7    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Power Button                                id=8    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Sleep Button                                id=9    [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Integrated_Webcam_HD                        id=13   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ AT Translated Set 2 keyboard                id=15   [slave  keyboard (3)]
    ↳ Dell WMI hotkeys                            id=17   [slave  keyboard (3)]

[timwienk]

The SynPS/2 Synaptics TouchPad is the touchpad in PS/2 mode, DLL0665:01 06CB:76AD UNKNOWN is the touchpad in i2c mode. I recall having some issues with both devices available when I first installed my system, and so I blacklisted psmouse.

Regarding the suggested configuration, from what I can see it should work (matching the i2c device), but with a similar configuration (except I set it through synclient) I do not have palm detection either. I left the settings in my configuration for future reference, but using evtest I see no width or pressure reported, so it may just be a driver problem. I did not look into it further.

However, I'm currently using Debian Jessie. I believe Ubuntu 15.10 is based on Debian Stretch, so there may be differences making it work for you guys, even though the symptoms seem the same and the device name has this "vendor:device UNKNOWN" structure which seems to suggest it's not (fully) implemented (and Jessie isn't that old + I use a kernel from jessie-backports). But again, I did not look into it further.

[hg8]

@timwienk Is right. I just blacklisted psmouse and palm detection seem to work now.

Will need a few day to test and be 100% sure. Will report.

For reference, here how to blacklist psmouse :

echo -e "\n#Force touchpad to use I2C \nblacklist psmouse" | sudo tee -a /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf
sudo update-initramfs -u

[timwienk]

In case it's useful and you guys haven't looked at the configurations document: I use a few more configuration files for my system, a short description is present in each file.

• /etc/modprobe.d/i915.conf
• /etc/modprobe.d/intel-hda.conf
• /etc/modprobe.d/psmouse-blacklist.conf
• ~/.xsession

[fillier]

Still no luck with palm detection but I did just discover that acpi_osi=!Windows\ 2013 seems to disable i2c touchpad. With that parameter set, xinput doesn't list the DLL0665.

[hg8]

@fillier If you don't want to mess with grub you can simply blacklist i2c_hid ;)

[fillier]

Thanks @hg8, my problem was that I didn't want to be in ps/2 mode. I started having really bad lag/freezing issues with the touchpad when it wasn't using i2c. I ended up blacklisting psmouse and removing the acpi_osi param (I added it to experiment with fan speeds).

[alessio]

@jchatard's config works great for me. BTW, I'm in the process to drop Unity in favor of either GNOME or Xfce4. Any feedback on Xfce4 folks?

[thej]

Hi @jchatard, I'm using Manjaro Linux with Xfce4 since 2 months now. Everything works as expected, with an excellent battery life between 6 and 10 hours. Anything special you want to know?

[jchatard]

@thej nice, it's interesting, because I tried Manjaro during the week-end, the Archway but with a quick install process was really seductive. I went for the Gnome version. But for some reason, which made me crazy was that my Broadcom Wifi card was recognized during the install process but not afterwards. I think I tried every single broadcom-wl drivers variant from AUS and also the one featured with the distro which is if I recall manjaro-firmware. But no luck, my wifi card never got discovered.

So long story short, after having a descant stock ubuntu install for several months without issue, one morning, I just couldn't boot. I didn't install any driver, didn't made any change as far as I can remember. So during the week-end, I tried: OpenSuse Tumbleweed (installer won't boot), Ubuntu-mate (no HiDPi), Arch stock (too much time to invest to master it, I can't right now), Manjaro (no network), Fedora (was pretty good, but I hate RPM, don't know why), I even tried ElementaryOS (too old packages based on ubuntu LTS), Antergos (don't remember what was wrong for me :-D), Ubuntu Gnome (really liked it), and now I'm trying Mint Cinnamon (but packages seem too old too).

So I might go back to Ubuntu stock or Gnome. I like apt and the freshness of Ubuntu it pretty good to me.

In my childhood I was a big fan of Gentoo, but I know I need time to re-install it and as said, I can't afford it right now!

Anything to recommend?

[rosolko]

Issue with keyboard backlight in launchpad

[thej]

@jchatard Luckily, my model has an Intel 7265 wifi module integrated, so I don't have to mess around with the broadcom kerneldriver hell.

You could head over to the Arch's Broadcom wireless wiki page and walk your way through the troubleshooting section. Hope this helps.

[sebastianst]

First thing I did when my xps 13 arrived was to swap the broadcom for an intel card. Those 20 bucks are worth it! (You might also consider getting an ath10k Atheros card, e.g. from Compex)

[jchatard]

@sebastianst hmm... I might do that. Could you point me to a specific Intel model? And any video tuto to do that on the XP 13? I guess the warranty is blown out if I do that?

[hg8]

@janhenke This model : Intel 7265 seem to work great for many people. Unfortunately I am having trouble to find this model in France...

The procedure for swapping the wireless card is explained in the official manual. So I guess the warranty is still valid after that.

[jchatard]

I live in Spain, I'll have a look ;)

[sebastianst]

Yeah that's the model I ordered (which was luckily easy to find in Germany). There are many reports on reddit that confirm that the Intel Card works way better for Linux. An extended range of 2-3 times the bcm range is also reported. And you get open-source drivers and firmware.

[davidbaumann]

I switched from 15.04 to 15.10, and the battery runtime has improved. Did never measure, but I am right sure.

[doreato]

Anyone having trouble with audio in 15.1? After installing and getting wireless to work I noticed I don't get sound, nothing showed up in the audio device list so I did some troubleshooting and now am seeing a "dummy audio" selection. Anyways around this?

[hg8]

@doreato Do you have a dual boot ? If so simply do two cold reboot (=full shut down) and you will get sound back.

[doreato]

@hg8 No I did a clean install, which is what makes this so strange. Would updating BIOS help at all?

[nmalacarne]

@doreato I would definitely update the BIOS; it solved a lot of problems for me. I had the same problem that you are having but on Fedora 23. I ended up having to patch my kernel to fix it.

I know you are on Ubuntu, but these Fedora tickets may give you insight into what is going wrong (it seems to be a kernel issue):

https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1255070 https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=1188741

If all else fails, I am currently running newest BIOS + Ubuntu 15.04 on my xps13, and I have not had any major problems yet. I did run into a problem with kernel panics when resuming from sleep, but the bcmwl-kernel-source package seemed to fix it.

[doreato]

@nmalacarne Sorry I'm a little new to this, but how do I find out exactly what version of the Dell XPS 13 I have so I can get the right BIOS? I think I found the right one but I'm speculating.

[nmalacarne]

@doreato No worries; we all have to start somewhere. There may be a better way than this, but for now you can head to xps13 wikipedia and match up your specs with the models listed. You can run lspci in the terminal if you need to see your specs.

I can not remember where I found the patch for the audio bug, but I will keep looking and post here if I find it.

[doreato]

@nmalacarne Yeah so it has to be the Dell XPS 13 9343 by my guess, I bought it in September or August of this year. I tried to use the A07 link on this repo but Ubuntu won't allow me to extract it. Any work-arounds?

[nmalacarne]

@doreato The BIOS update is in .exe fomat, so you will not be able to run it directly in Ubuntu. Fortunately, you can run the .exe directly from your BIOS following these steps:

1. Copy the downloaded file to a USB flash device. It does not need to be bootable.
2. Insert the USB flash device into any USB port.
3. Power on the system.
4. At the DELL logo screen, press F12 to access the one time boot menu.
5. Select BIOS Flash Update in the Other Options section.
6. Click on the ... button to browse the USB flash device to locate the downloaded file.
7. Select the file and click Ok.
8. Confirm the Existing System BIOS Information and the BIOS Update Information are as expected.
9. Click Begin Flash Update.
10. Reviewing the Warning message and click Yes to proceed with the update.
11. The system should restart and show a Flash Progress bar on the Dell logo screen as the BIOS update is being performed.
12. The system will restart once again when the Flash update is complete.

[doreato]

@nmalacarne Flashed my BIOS just now, still no sound. I've been looking around for a while, I looked and someone told me to disable my audio, reboot, then re-enable and boot into Ubuntu again but alas no sound. Any leads on this sound issue? Is it even possible to fix?

[janhenke]

FYI I am running Ubuntu 15.10 on the XPS since month and I had no trouble with the sound. Do you use the stock Ubuntu kernel? (linux-generic package) Did you really complete power down your laptop after any change and boot it twice?