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Idea #10580: "Supported Hardware Wizard", from live-cd and wubi

Written by mangar the 1 Jul 08 at 19:43. Related project: Live CD. Status: New
Rationale
Currently, when installing Ubuntu, we can't tell whether the hardware will be recognized and supported until the installation is over, or by digging through incomplete on-line documentations.

Why not create a Wizard, that will be run-able from either the Live-CD or Wubi, that will detect the hardware, and report what works?

This way we can avoid frustrating users that will discover post install that their video card is black listed (so Compiz doesn't work), having compatibility problems with several chipsets (like jmicron), non-working web cams, unsupported multi-monitor setups, etc.

When you know in advance what you're facing, it is easier to cope, instead of wasting time and discovering after the fact that the hardware is not fully supported.

for example:
Running the hardware wizard from Wubi on my main machine will yield the following result (based on my actual experience installing Hardy):

Hardware discovered:

(X) motherboard: MSI Neo 965 - known problem - unsupported jMicron chipset, the system will not be bootable.
(V) Video card: Nvidia 8800gts 320mb - hardware support is available.
(X) Dual screens: Dual screens are not properly supported using the propriety nvidia drivers.
(X) Printer: Epson pixma ip1500 - printer is not supported.
(V) scanner: HP (something) - supported.
(X) Webcam: Samsung (something) - webcam not supported.
(V) iPod : supported.
(V) Palm Pilot m505: supported.

On my laptop:
(V) Motherboard: compal (something) Supported.
(V) SDcard slot: supported.
(X) Video card: Radeon 9000 64mb - partial hardware support, Compiz will not be enabled, TV-out will not be supported.

A nice addition would be some sort of performance quantifier.

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Solution #1: Auto-generated solution of idea #10580
Written by mangar the 1 Jul 08 at 19:43.
Ubuntu Brainstorm was updated in January 2009. Since the idea #10580 was submitted before this update, its rationale and solution are not separated. Please vote accordingly, and if you have the necessary rights, please separate the rationale from the solution. Thanks!

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jvin248 wrote on the 1 Jul 08 at 20:58
This would be good to have. I'd suggest adding the choice to do this to the "main menu" (where the "memtest" line is at).

There should be different indicator levels for difficulty in getting anything else working (if in gui then green/yellow/red/black-can't do, if text then various letters), like "it's possible to get webcam working but you'll need to visit this site, or this forum, or google the model number'. Yellow might be .deb package to download and easy install with gdebi(?), Red is you're off to command line land, Black is no one has figured it out yet maybe get a different device).

Database size will be huge so it won't fit on the CD and will need server space and an active internet.





jvin248 wrote on the 1 Jul 08 at 21:08
It would also be good to have a "test suite" as part of this wizard, like running moire patterns on the monitor/lcd, sound samples, microphone playback, etc. to actually verify what is recognized/works/doesn't work.

I do some computer repair/refurbishment so I see a lot of different hardware (that may or may not be broken, too) and it would be helpful to know "does X/K/Ubuntu recognize the hardware and is the hardware functioning correctly as expected".


tgape wrote on the 2 Jul 08 at 00:38
As a feature enhancement to be completed later, it would also be nice if the install process tied into the hardware detection wizard, and only enabled those modules that were actually needed - my system has over a hundred modules loaded, according to 'lsmod', most of which have a '0' in the used counter column, and most of which don't apply to my hardware.

(Yes, I realize there's currently a 'load everything' task. That's exactly the thing I'm suggesting should be fixed after we have something that can give it the information necessary for it to only load drivers for what exists.)

coolaj86 wrote on the 3 Jul 08 at 04:24
+1

EVEN BETTER: How about not having a wizard, but simply doing it on boot and presenting it non-intrusively in the installer?

Have a brief hardware test and report hardware that is known to not work correctly or that is not recognized.

This would require an internet connection as database on the CD would might be incomplete.

Darvon wrote on the 4 Jul 08 at 10:04
This is brilliant. But it could be a horrendous work, and a huge database.
I really don't know how huge, perhaps it would fit on a CD, than ubuntu would have a 2 CD install. Of course that's less comfortable then, and it's also weird to have a second CD only for this wizard. People would then perhaps think "Ok, no risk, no fun, I just try without the hardware wizard, who cares" and wouldn't even bother.
And: instead of having this database, you could also have a whole bunch of drivers
Perhaps this should be discussed.

slsolaris wrote on the 6 Jul 08 at 17:45
Exellent idea, it will be like in vista!

phaed wrote on the 7 Jul 08 at 02:30
Good idea, however doesn't the Live CD already allow you to test your hardware? Granted, it's not a full install, and some things may work after installing additional drivers, but it should let you do that, if it doesn't.

madjr wrote on the 7 Jul 08 at 07:22
there's 1 problem with this idea.

along with this there needs to be a "recommended Hardware list" in case some of your hardware is "listed as not supported"

also, if people "see a list" telling them that their hardware is not supported they won't bother, instead they will just boot back to windows and will never touch linux till their hardware 1 day magically says it's now supported...


so i have not voted on this idea till it gets revised.

glotz wrote on the 2 Aug 08 at 15:32
Also see http://www.dohickey-project.com/about.shtml


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