Translation(s): none

DebianOn is an effort to document how to install, configure and use Debian on some specific hardware. Therefore potential buyers would know if that hardware is supported and owners would know how get the best out of that hardware.

The purpose is not to duplicate the Debian Official Documentation, but to document how to install Debian on some specific hardware.

If you need help to get Debian running on your hardware, please have a look at our user support channels where you may find specific channels (mailing list, IRC channel) dedicated to certain types of hardware.

Models covered
T520, W520

- Processor: Intel Core i5-2520M Processor (2.50GHz, 3MB L3)
- Video card: Intel HD Graphics 3000
- Screen size: 15"
- Wireless card: Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205
- Disk size: 500GB
- RAM size: 4GB

Overall Status

Core Components

[ATTACH]

Boot Standard Kernel:

{OK}

LAN network card:

{OK}

Detect CD/DVD:

{OK}

Detect hard drives:

{OK}

Extra Features

CPU Frequency Scaling

[?]

Hibernation

{OK}

Sleep / Suspend

{OK}

Xorg

{OK}

- OpenGL

{OK} see notes

- Resize-and-Rotate(randr)

[?]

Switch to External Screen

[?]

Mouse

- Built-in (Trackpoint)

{OK}

- Built-in (Touchpad)

{OK}

Modem

[?]

Wireless/Wifi

{i}

Keyboard's Hotkeys

{OK}

Legend :
{OK} = OK ; {X} Unsupported(No Driver) ; /!\ = Error (Couldn't get it working); [?] Unknown, Not Test ; [-] Not-applicable
{i} = Configuration Required; X-( = Only works with a non-free driver and or firmware

Important Note

Configuration

Display

As with all Linux machines using an NVIDIA GPU, you have the option of using the open-source Nouveau display driver, or the proprietary NVIDIA display driver. Unfortunately the Nouveau driver is a lot slower and less-featured than the proprietary driver, so you will typically be better off with the NVIDIA proprietary blob than Nouveau.

Note: This laptop can come with NVIDIA Optimus (ie: both an integrated Intel GPU and a discrete NVIDIA GPU in the one laptop), so this allows you to potentially obtain good battery life (when on Intel GPU) as well as high-performance 3D graphics (when on NVIDIA GPU), but Optimus is not fully supported in Linux by NVIDIA yet, so you may want to use Bumblebee for now.

Note: Lenovo ?ThinkPad W520 has a bug in the "NVIDIA discrete mode" BIOS setting, so you should disable "VT-x" in the BIOS settings if you want to use Discrete Mode for GPU (ie: disable the Intel GPU and only use the NVIDIA GPU). Disabling VT-x can potentially reduce performance of virtual machines, such as VirtualBox or KVM.

Audio

Mouse

Power Management

WiFi

Intel Corporation Centrino Advanced-N 6205

aptitude install firmware-iwlwifi

More details are at iwlwifi.

Modem


System Summary

lspci

00:00.0 Host bridge [0600]: Intel Corporation 2nd Generation Core Processor Family DRAM Controller [8086:0104] (rev 09)
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: Intel Corporation 2nd Generation Core Processor Family Integrated Graphics Controller [8086:0126] (rev 09)
00:16.0 Communication controller [0780]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family MEI Controller #1 [8086:1c3a] (rev 04)
00:16.3 Serial controller [0700]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family KT Controller [8086:1c3d] (rev 04)
00:19.0 Ethernet controller [0200]: Intel Corporation 82579LM Gigabit Network Connection [8086:1502] (rev 04)
00:1a.0 USB Controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family USB Enhanced Host Controller #2 [8086:1c2d] (rev 04)
00:1b.0 Audio device [0403]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family High Definition Audio Controller [8086:1c20] (rev 04)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 1 [8086:1c10] (rev b4)
00:1c.1 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 2 [8086:1c12] (rev b4)
00:1c.3 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 4 [8086:1c16] (rev b4)
00:1c.4 PCI bridge [0604]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port 5 [8086:1c18] (rev b4)
00:1d.0 USB Controller [0c03]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family USB Enhanced Host Controller #1 [8086:1c26] (rev 04)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge [0601]: Intel Corporation QM67 Express Chipset Family LPC Controller [8086:1c4f] (rev 04)
00:1f.2 SATA controller [0106]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family 6 port SATA AHCI Controller [8086:1c03] (rev 04)
00:1f.3 SMBus [0c05]: Intel Corporation 6 Series/C200 Series Chipset Family SMBus Controller [8086:1c22] (rev 04)
03:00.0 Network controller [0280]: Intel Corporation Centrino Advanced-N 6205 [8086:0085] (rev 34)
0d:00.0 System peripheral [0880]: Ricoh Co Ltd Device [1180:e823] (rev 05)
0d:00.3 FireWire (IEEE 1394) [0c00]: Ricoh Co Ltd FireWire Host Controller [1180:e832] (rev 04)

lsusb

lsusb -v | grep -E '\<(Bus|iProduct|bDeviceClass|bDeviceProtocol)' 2>/dev/null

Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
  bDeviceClass            9 Hub
  bDeviceProtocol         0 Full speed (or root) hub
  iProduct                2 EHCI Host Controller
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
  bDeviceClass            9 Hub
  bDeviceProtocol         0 Full speed (or root) hub
  iProduct                2 EHCI Host Controller
Bus 001 Device 002: ID 8087:0024 Intel Corp. Integrated Rate Matching Hub
  bDeviceClass            9 Hub
  bDeviceProtocol         1 Single TT
  iProduct                0 
  bDeviceClass            9 Hub
  bDeviceProtocol         0 Full speed (or root) hub
Bus 002 Device 002: ID 8087:0024 Intel Corp. Integrated Rate Matching Hub
  bDeviceClass            9 Hub
  bDeviceProtocol         1 Single TT
  iProduct                0 
  bDeviceClass            9 Hub
  bDeviceProtocol         0 Full speed (or root) hub
Bus 001 Device 003: ID 04f2:b217 Chicony Electronics Co., Ltd 
  bDeviceClass          239 Miscellaneous Device
  bDeviceProtocol         1 Interface Association
  iProduct                2 Integrated Camera
      (Bus Powered)
  bDeviceClass          239 Miscellaneous Device
  bDeviceProtocol         1 Interface Association
  (Bus Powered)

USB Host controllers entries (without OHCI, UHCI, EHCI) are removed too.

Resources

Attachments

Some configuration files and sample outputs.

How to Have a Pleasant Installation (for Debian Newbies) by the late rickh
http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php?t=13362

Credits