272 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
272 lines
12 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: Dell Latitude E6400
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x-toc-enable: true
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...
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<div class="specs">
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<center>
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<img tabindex=1 alt="Dell Latitude E6400" class="p" src="https://av.libreboot.org/e6400/e6400-seabios.jpg" /><span class="f"><img src="https://av.libreboot.org/e6400/e6400-seabios.jpg" /></span> <img tabindex=1 alt="Dell Latitude E6400 XFR" class="p" style="max-width:24em" src="https://av.libreboot.org/e6400/e6400xfr-seabios.jpg" /><span class="f"><img src="https://av.libreboot.org/e6400/e6400xfr-seabios.jpg" /></span>
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</center>
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| ***Specifications*** | |
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|----------------------------|------------------------------------------------|
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| **Manufacturer** | Dell |
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| **Name** | Latitude E6400 |
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| **Variants** | E6400, E6400 XFR and E6400 ATG are supported |
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| **Released** | 2009 |
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| **Chipset** | Intel Cantiga GM45(Intel GPU)/PM45(Nvidia GPU) |
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| **CPU** | Intel Core 2 Duo (Penryn family). |
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| **Graphics** | Intel GMA 4500MHD (and NVidia Quadro NVS 160M
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on some models) |
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| **Display** | 1280x800/1440x900 TFT |
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| **Memory** | 2 or 4GB (Upgradable to 8GB) |
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| **Architecture** | x86_64 |
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| **EC** | SMSC MEC5035 with proprietary firmware |
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| **Original boot firmware** | Dell BIOS |
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| **Intel ME/AMD PSP** | Present. Can be completely disabled. |
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| **Flash chip** | SOIC-8 4MiB or 2MiB+4MiB |
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```
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W+: Works without blobs;
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N: Doesn't work;
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W*: Works with blobs;
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U: Untested;
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P+: Partially works;
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P*: Partially works with blobs
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```
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| ***Features*** | |
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|---------------------------------------------------|----|
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| **Internal flashing with original boot firmware** | W+ |
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| **Display (if Intel GPU)** | W+ |
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| **Display (if Nvidia GPU)** | W* |
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| **Audio** | W+ |
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| **RAM Init** | W+ |
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| **External output** | W+ |
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| **Display brightness** | P+ |
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| ***Payloads supported*** | |
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|---------------------------|-----------|
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| **GRUB** | Works |
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| **SeaBIOS** | Works |
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| **SeaBIOS with GRUB** | Works |
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</div>
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Introduction
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============
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Known supported variants: E6400, E6400 XFR and E6400 ATG. This page has
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been updated to include information about Nvidia GPU variants. See news post:
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[Dell Latitude E6400 XFR support confirmed, plus experimental Nvidia GPU
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support on E6400 variants](../../news/e6400nvidia.md).
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**To install Libreboot, see: [E6400 installation
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instructions](../install/e6400.md)**
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ROM images for Dell Latitude E6400 are available for flashing in the Libreboot
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release 20230423 onwards, or you can compile a ROM image for installation via
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lbmk, see: [build instructions](../build/)
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There are two possible flash chip sizes for the E6400: 4MiB (32Mbit) or 2+4MiB
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(16Mbit+32MBit). Libreboot presently supports the 4MiB version, and provides
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8MiB images for those who upgrade their flash to 8MiB or 16MiB. There appears
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to be several possible mainboard PCBs for the E6400, which we believe mostly
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affects the GPU configuration and the number of available SPI flash footprints:
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- LA-3801P: iGPU, possibly dual SPI (however only one may be populated)
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- LA-3803P: dGPU, dual SPI (however only one may be populated)
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- LA-3805P: iGPU, single SPI flash (4MiB)
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- LA-3806P: dGPU, unknown SPI configuration (likely at least 4MiB)
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These PCB numbers can be found either under the black plastic in the RAM slots
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on the bottom (CPU side) of the board, the top left corner near the VGA port
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(top side, under the keyboard and palmrest), or near the CPU backplate (only
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requires removal of the keyboard).
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We believe that all boards will have at least a single 4MiB flash chip,
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regardless of the number of SPI footprints. This is likely the most common
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configuration on most available systems. The 2+4MiB configuration likely
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would have only been used on systems with full Intel ME firmware with AMT
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functionality, though this configuration has not yet been encountered.
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Most people will want to use the 4MiB images.
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Intel GPU: 100% Free Software is possible
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---------------
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This is a GM45/PM45 platform, so completely libre initialisation in
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coreboot is possible, provided by default in Libreboot.
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Management Engine (ME) firmware removed
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-------------------------
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This port in Libreboot makes use of `ich9gen` from ich9utils, which
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you can read about in the [ich9utils manual](../install/ich9utils.md) - this
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creates a no-ME setup. The Intel Management Engine firmware (ME) is completely
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removed, and the ME disabled, just like on ThinkPad X200, T400 and so on.
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*The E6400 laptops may come with the ME (and sometimes AMT in addition) before
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flashing libreboot. Dell also sold configurations with the ME completely
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disabled, identifiable by a yellow sticker reading "3 ME Disabled" inside the
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bottom panel. This config sets the MeDisable bit in the IFD and sets the ME
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region almost entirely to 1's, with the occasional 32-bit value (likely not
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executable). libreboot disables and removes it by using a modified descriptor:
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see [../install/ich9utils.md](../install/ich9utils.md)*
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(contains notes, plus instructions)
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Issues pertaining to Nvidia GPU variants
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========================================
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Copper shim for GPU cooling
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---------------------------
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NOTE: this section does *not* apply to XFR or ATG variants of E6400, which have
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a much beefier heatsink by default.
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The *default* heatsink in Nvidia variants of E6400 (regular model) has thermal
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paste for the CPU, and a thermal *pad* for the GPU. This pad is woefully
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inadequate, but replacing it with *paste* is a bad idea, because of the gap
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there would be between heatsink plate and GPU die.
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A solution for this would be to use a *copper shim*, with paste on each side,
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to replace the thermal pad.
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This eBay seller seems to make and sell a lot of copper shims, specifically
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for E6400:
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**SELLER LINK REMOVED.** - one will not be re-added. Putting ebay links on the
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Libreboot site is folly, because they disappear. Just search for it and see if
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you can find one for purchase. It's literally just a small bit of copper cut
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smooth to just the right size. Actually, there's a lot of engineering behind
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that, but installation is very simple, and any decent seller will provide
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guidance.
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If you buy one of those, could you measure it? Tell Libreboot the dimensions.
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Get in touch with us. It would be nice to know precise specs, but that seller
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provides what you need. If you find similar listings elsewhere, please also
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let us know.
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The shim will greatly reduce GPU temperatures, and probably improve performance
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due to less GPU throttling as a result of heat.
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Nouveau(in Linux) currently broken
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----------------------------------
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Nouveau is the libre driver in Linux, for Nvidia graphics. Nvidia themselves
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do not provide binary drivers anymore, for these GPUs. It crashes in Linux,
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when you try to start Xorg (Wayland is untested).
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If you're booting an Nvidia variant in Linux, boot Linux with
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the `nomodeset` kernel option at boot time. This means that graphics are
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rendered in software.
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Development discussion, for Nvidia variants of E6400, is available here:
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<https://codeberg.org/libreboot/lbmk/issues/14>
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OpenBSD's Nvidia driver works perfectly
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---------------------------------------
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OpenBSD 7.3 was tested, on my Nvidia-model E6400, and Xorg works OK with
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the `nv` driver.
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<img tabindex=1 class="l" style="max-width:35%" src="https://av.libreboot.org/openbsd.jpg" /><span class="f"><img src="https://av.libreboot.org/openbsd.jpg" /></span>
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See: <https://www.openbsd.org/>
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OpenBSD is a complete free 4.4BSD Unix operating system focused on portability,
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security and *code correctness*. It's quite useable for most day to day tasks.
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You can find information in Libreboot about BSD operating systems on the
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main guide:
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* [BSD Operating Systems](../bsd/)
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FreeBSD and newer Linux (e.g. Archlinux) untested!
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--------------------------------------------------
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FreeBSD has not yet been tested, as far as we know, but it should work.
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[Testers needed! Please get in touch!](../maintain/testing.html)
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**At the time of writing this post, FreeBSD
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and newer Linux have not yet been tested** (I plan to test *Arch Linux*), but
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the older Linux/Mesa version in Debian 11.6 works just fine in the Dell BIOS,
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and I've confirmed that it uses the exact same Video BIOS Option ROM.
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Desktop environment / window manager on OpenBSD + Performance notes
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-------------------------------------------------------------------
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TODO: This section could probably be moved to its own section. It's not really
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relevant to Libreboot per se, but it may help a few people.
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Again, Linux's nouveau driver is currently broken. I've been playing with my
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E6400 (nvidia model) for a while and I've found that these things are a *must*
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for performance (the machine otherwise lags, openbsd's `nv` driver isn't quite
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as good as nouveau, when the nouveau one works that is):
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* Use a lightweight desktop environment like LXQt, or lightweight window
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manager (OpenBSD has `cwm` in base, and it's excellent)
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* Install `obsdfreqd` which scales down the CPU speed during idle state; the
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GPU has a poor thermal pad for cooling and so if the CPU is running hot,
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that doesn't bode well for GPU temperatures either, and the GPU is likely
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lagging due to heat:
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How to install `obsdfreqd`:
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pkg_add obsdfreqd
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rcctl enable obsdfreqd
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Now, before you start it, make sure `apmd` is disabled; it can be used, but
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not with the `-A` flag:
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rcctl stop apmd
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rcctl disable apmd
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Now start obsdfreqd:
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rcctl start obsdfreqd
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You will be well served to perform the copper shim mod, for GPU cooling.
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With `obsdfreqd`, your laptop will run much cooler. This is generally a good
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idea anyway, especially on laptops, to save electricity.
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Of course, there are many tweaks that you can do to OpenBSD but the key is:
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don't use heavy bloated software. The term *lightweight* is misleading anyway;
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if the software does its job efficiently, and you're happy with it, then it is
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by definition superior for your purposes. So, "lightweight" is simply a word
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for "efficient" in many contexts. We should encourage the use and development
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of highly efficient software that runs more smoothly on old machines. The
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elitist attitude of *just buy a new computer* is quite damaging; re-use is
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always better, when that is feasible and safe. The power of BSD (and Linux) is
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precisely that you can tweak it to get the most use out of older hardware..
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Another nice hint: higher resolution video like 1080p 60fps or above won't
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play smoothly at all in a web browser. In testing at least on OpenBSD 7.3,
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Firefox seems to have the best performance among all the web browsers, at least
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when I used it. Anything 720p 30/60fps will work ~OK.
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For YouTube, you could use yt-dlp, which is available in ports, and use mpv to
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stream via yt-dlp. Or download manually with yt-dlp and play offline. See:
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<https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp>
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<https://mpv.io/>
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Another hint: for watching youtube in the browser, Invidious works quite well.
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It's a frontend that lets you view it by proxy, and there are many instances
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of it online. For a list of instances, see:
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<https://redirect.invidious.io/>
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Unlike youtube.com, watching youtube via invidious works even with JavaScript
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turned off in the browser. You can use it to also search YouTube, and then
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paste the youtube.com link into yt-dlp or mpv; Invidious websites themselves
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also often provide a download button for videos.
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The yt-dlp software may also work on a few other websites besides YouTube.
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Running with JavaScript turned *off* is generally recommended for performance,
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especially on slower machines, turning it on only when you need it. Many
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websites are just full of junk nowadays.
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