Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
On Wednesday 28 October 2009 20:10:52 Maxim Wexler wrote: Not sure this is related with the OP's problem, I have noticed that on my system I can scroll up in a console if it displays the output of a command, e.g. ls, but I cannot scroll up on the boot messages. Also, I cannot scroll up on the log messages on VT12. Is there something that I need to set up in the kernel? In the old days (perhaps different machine?) I used to be able to scroll up in both. Also note, if you migrate away from the boot console and then come back, it may not scrollback at all. If I want to see what boot is doing I scroll back immediately before running startx or moving to another console. Maxim (or anyone else): do you know what causes scrollback to be disabled once you move to a different terminal? Amit
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
On Monday 09 November 2009 11:07:15 Amit Dor-Shifer wrote: On Wednesday 28 October 2009 20:10:52 Maxim Wexler wrote: Not sure this is related with the OP's problem, I have noticed that on my system I can scroll up in a console if it displays the output of a command, e.g. ls, but I cannot scroll up on the boot messages. Also, I cannot scroll up on the log messages on VT12. Is there something that I need to set up in the kernel? In the old days (perhaps different machine?) I used to be able to scroll up in both. Also note, if you migrate away from the boot console and then come back, it may not scrollback at all. If I want to see what boot is doing I scroll back immediately before running startx or moving to another console. Maxim (or anyone else): do you know what causes scrollback to be disabled once you move to a different terminal? Amit The scrollback buffer is global, not per-VT So when you change VT, the buffer must go away other wise you have wrong text on the wrong terminal. -- alan dot mckinnon at gmail dot com
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
On Tuesday 27 October 2009 09:10:13 Alan McKinnon wrote: You enabled scrollback so now the console has retained enough of the kernel console output that you can scroll back to the beginning without using all 128K. Symbol: VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK_SIZE [=256] Prompt: Scrollback Buffer Size (in KB) Defined at drivers/video/console/Kconfig:37 Depends on: HAS_IOMEM VT VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK Symbol: VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK [=y] Prompt: Enable Scrollback Buffer in System RAM Defined at drivers/video/console/Kconfig:22 Depends on: HAS_IOMEM VT VGA_CONSOLE Not sure this is related with the OP's problem, I have noticed that on my system I can scroll up in a console if it displays the output of a command, e.g. ls, but I cannot scroll up on the boot messages. Also, I cannot scroll up on the log messages on VT12. Is there something that I need to set up in the kernel? In the old days (perhaps different machine?) I used to be able to scroll up in both. $ cat /usr/src/linux/.config | grep SCROLLBACK CONFIG_VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK=y CONFIG_VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK_SIZE=128 -- Regards, Mick signature.asc Description: This is a digitally signed message part.
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
On Wednesday 28 October 2009 03:50:56 Maxim Wexler wrote: So, since in the digital world, things don't just happen, can someone enlighten me, or anyone else who's interested, in the connection between the scrollback buffer and usb-storage, if any? There isn't a connection. Why do you think there is one? Because, before the scrollback buffer was configured, when I ran $dmesg|less the output, ie more that 2700 lines, that came up in the console, all started with 'usb-storage'. After configuring the scrollback buffer, there may have been a few usb-console lines but certainly not 2700, and nothing else, one right after another. I understand it makes no sense to say there is a connection but that is what I saw. It may have been intermittant. I notice with successive reboots of 2.6.30, /dev/sdb1,2, which contain /home and /var are sometimes not found and not mounted; sometimes not found but mounted anyways; sometimes found and mounted as per /etc/fstab. If it happens enough times, I suppose a pattern will emerge but I haven't seen it yet. I think the presence or absence of your usb-storage debug output is related to stuff being found or not found, and has nothing whatsoever to do with scrollback. -- alan dot mckinnon at gmail dot com
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
Not sure this is related with the OP's problem, I have noticed that on my system I can scroll up in a console if it displays the output of a command, e.g. ls, but I cannot scroll up on the boot messages. Also, I cannot scroll up on the log messages on VT12. Is there something that I need to set up in the kernel? In the old days (perhaps different machine?) I used to be able to scroll up in both. On my unit, /var/log/messages re-iterates F12. If I want to read it I use less, tail, grep in a terminal as root. Also note, if you migrate away from the boot console and then come back, it may not scrollback at all. If I want to see what boot is doing I scroll back immediately before running startx or moving to another console. HTH
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
On Wednesday 28 October 2009 20:10:52 Maxim Wexler wrote: Not sure this is related with the OP's problem, I have noticed that on my system I can scroll up in a console if it displays the output of a command, e.g. ls, but I cannot scroll up on the boot messages. Also, I cannot scroll up on the log messages on VT12. Is there something that I need to set up in the kernel? In the old days (perhaps different machine?) I used to be able to scroll up in both. Also note, if you migrate away from the boot console and then come back, it may not scrollback at all. If I want to see what boot is doing I scroll back immediately before running startx or moving to another console. I think that you may have put your finger on the problem here. I used to run startx from the console - now run xdm. So it may have been that it worked back then because I would scroll up before leaving the console. However, I seem to recall that it also worked with VT12. May be I'm wrong, not sure. -- Regards, Mick signature.asc Description: This is a digitally signed message part.
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
On Tuesday 27 October 2009 03:38:53 Maxim Wexler wrote: Ok, this is too weird. While mucking around in the kernel I noticed that the scroll back buffer wasn't set. So I configured it and gave it 128 bytes to play with. It's 128 kilo bytes just btw :-) Sez I, well at least I'll be able to scroll back to the start of all that verbiage. That's the only change I've made since turning USB_STORAGE debugging off. After a reboot, dmesg behaved and gives me a complete rundown on startup all the way back to the prompt! So, since in the digital world, things don't just happen, can someone enlighten me, or anyone else who's interested, in the connection between the scrollback buffer and usb-storage, if any? There isn't a connection. Why do you think there is one? You enabled scrollback so now the console has retained enough of the kernel console output that you can scroll back to the beginning without using all 128K. Symbol: VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK_SIZE [=256] Prompt: Scrollback Buffer Size (in KB) Defined at drivers/video/console/Kconfig:37 Depends on: HAS_IOMEM VT VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK Symbol: VGACON_SOFT_SCROLLBACK [=y] Prompt: Enable Scrollback Buffer in System RAM Defined at drivers/video/console/Kconfig:22 Depends on: HAS_IOMEM VT VGA_CONSOLE Symbol: USB_STORAGE [=m] Prompt: USB Mass Storage support Defined at drivers/usb/storage/Kconfig:9 Depends on: USB_SUPPORT USB SCSI Symbol: USB_STORAGE_DEBUG [=n] Prompt: USB Mass Storage verbose debug Defined at drivers/usb/storage/Kconfig:27 Depends on: USB_SUPPORT USB_STORAGE Symbol: USB_SUPPORT [=y] Prompt: USB support Defined at drivers/usb/Kconfig:5 Depends on: HAS_IOMEM -- alan dot mckinnon at gmail dot com
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
So, since in the digital world, things don't just happen, can someone enlighten me, or anyone else who's interested, in the connection between the scrollback buffer and usb-storage, if any? There isn't a connection. Why do you think there is one? Because, before the scrollback buffer was configured, when I ran $dmesg|less the output, ie more that 2700 lines, that came up in the console, all started with 'usb-storage'. After configuring the scrollback buffer, there may have been a few usb-console lines but certainly not 2700, and nothing else, one right after another. I understand it makes no sense to say there is a connection but that is what I saw. It may have been intermittant. I notice with successive reboots of 2.6.30, /dev/sdb1,2, which contain /home and /var are sometimes not found and not mounted; sometimes not found but mounted anyways; sometimes found and mounted as per /etc/fstab. If it happens enough times, I suppose a pattern will emerge but I haven't seen it yet. mw
Re: [gentoo-user] strange dmesg output - RESOLVED
Ok, this is too weird. While mucking around in the kernel I noticed that the scroll back buffer wasn't set. So I configured it and gave it 128 bytes to play with. Sez I, well at least I'll be able to scroll back to the start of all that verbiage. That's the only change I've made since turning USB_STORAGE debugging off. After a reboot, dmesg behaved and gives me a complete rundown on startup all the way back to the prompt! So, since in the digital world, things don't just happen, can someone enlighten me, or anyone else who's interested, in the connection between the scrollback buffer and usb-storage, if any? mw