The simplest way to setting up sound on FreeBSD to load universal kernel module kldload:
howtobsd# kldload snd_driver

snd_driver is driver, that include itself supporting the most popular sound card drivers.

But I think better to install kernel with support exactly yours sound card. For this way we have to identify device model:
slim# pciconf -lv | grep audio
device = 'Intel audio controller embedded with the 82801H chipset ( ICH8 chipset ) (82801H)'

find this sound card in the Hardware Notes :

and make kernel with options:

device sound
device snd_hda

You also can load driver without configuring kernel. Add in /boot/loader.conf:
snd_hda_load=”YES”

Posted on October 21st, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Hardware | Comments Off

Usually  hdd for notebooks (and some models for desktop, for example models of  WD Caviar Green series) includes function of head parking for powersave. This function parks heads after few seconds of inactivity.A lot of head parkings isn’t good for hdd.

You can check your smart data using utility smartmontools:

howtobsd# smartctl -a /dev/ad0 | grep Load_Cycle_Count
193 Load_Cycle_Count 0x0032 099 099 000 Old_age Always - 37104

37104 – it is a number of parking (only imagine it! On my laptop before fixing this value had been increased on 50 numbers per\hour)

For prevent hdd from  head parking or change timeout you can use ataidle.

howtobsd# cd /usr/ports/sysutils/ataidle/
howtobsd# make install clean
howtobsd# ataidle -P 254 /dev/ad0

This commands set APM (Advanced Power Management) to highest power consumption.

and add into rc.conf:
ataidle_enable="YES"
ataidle_devices="ad0"
ataidle_ad0="-I 60 -S 120 -A 127 -P 254"

Posted on October 18th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Solutions | 2 Comments »

Openmeetings – is open source video conferencing server on FreeBSD

Requirements:

• Openoffice 3.0 or latest
• Mysql-Server5 (or PostgreSQL)
• jdk16 (openjdk6, diablo-jdk1.6.0)
• swftools
• ImageMagick

I hadn’t had swftools and OpenOffice (and i was really upset the fact that I had to install OpenOffice on FreeBSD server) I couldn’t install it from packages because many ports had been installed before was later than many dependencies from latest OpenOffices package. Installing OpenOffice from a ports tree(/usr/ports/editors/openoffice.org-3) caused a lot of problem, because until that moment all ports had been installed with option WITHOUT_X11=yes. But it’s a lyrical digression. I suppose you’ve been already installed required ports.

At first download  latest Openmeetings
At moment when I wrote this notes the latest was openmeetings_1_5_rc1_r3393.zip

#fetch http://openmeetings.googlecode.com/files/openmeetings_1_5_rc1_r3393.zip
#unzip openmeetings_1_5_rc1_r3393.zip

run the OpenOffice in a headless mode:
#/usr/local/openoffice.org-3.2.1/openoffice.org3/program/soffice.bin \
-headless -nofirststartwizard \
-accept="socket,host=localhost,port=8100;urp;StarOffice.Service"

checking:
# ps -aux | grep openoffice
howtobsd 96549 0.6 0.6 157740 52268 p0 S+ 4:58PM 0:00.33 /usr/local/openoffice.org-3.2.1/openoffice.org3/program/soffice.bin -headless -nofirststartwizard -accept=socket,host=localhost,port=8100;urp;

back to the folder red5 and edit configuration file:
#vim red5/webapps/openmeetings/conf/hibernate.cfg.xml

<!– User / Password –>
<property name=”connection.username”>mysqluser</property>
<property name=”connection.password”>userpassword</property>

<!– Database Settings –>
<property name=”connection.driver_class”>com.mysql.jdbc.Driver</property>
<!– for performance reasons changed to MyISAM from org.hibernate.dialect.MySQLInnoDBDialect –>
<property name=”dialect”>org.hibernate.dialect.MySQLMyISAMDialect</property>
<property name=”connection.url”>jdbc:mysql://localhost/openmeetings autoReconnect=true&amp; useUnicode=true&amp;createDatabaseIfNotExist=true&amp; characterEncoding=utf-8</property>

<property name=”hibernate.connection.CharSet”>utf8</property>
<property name=”hibernate.connection.characterEncoding”>utf8</property>
<property name=”hibernate.connection.useUnicode”>true</property>

Create database openmeetings with utf8_general_ci encoding and Let’s start:
#cd red5
#sh red5.sh

Wait some time until appear
[Launcher:/openmeetings] - ##### loadEmot completed
And using 5080 ports connect with your video conferencing server by url:
http://192.168.1.150:5080 (change 192.168.1.150 to your servers IP-adress or domain name)

You will be redirected to installation page.

Posted on October 15th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Software | 1 Comment »

gmake[3]: Entering directory `/usr/ports/sysutils/policykit/work/PolicyKit-0.9/doc/man'
/usr/local/bin/xsltproc -nonet http://docbook.sourceforge.net/release/xsl/current/manpages/docbook.xsl polkit-auth.xml
warning: failed to load external entity "http://docbook.sourceforge.net/release/xsl/current/manpages/docbook.xsl"
cannot parse http://docbook.sourceforge.net/release/xsl/current/manpages/docbook.xsl

The solve is: install (or reinstall) /usr/ports/textproc/docbook-xsl with MANPAGES option!

Posted on October 13th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Solutions | Comments Off

How to Install KDE4 on FreeBSD 8.1

1. Before installing you have to update ports tree:
2. Installing X.org:

#cd /usr/ports/x11/xorg
#make install clean

create a X.org configuration file by command:
#Xorg -configure

and copy this file:
#cp /root/xorg.conf.new /etc/X11/xorg.conf

for testing Xorg:
#Xorg -config xorg.conf.new -retro

if installation have been completed is correct – the result of this command must be a X mouse cursor on black and gray grid.

3.Installing KDE4:
#cd /usr/ports/x11/kde4
#make install clean

(ATTENTION! For compilation kde from the port will be need enough time and a lot of free disk space and in virtual part /usr – I have been used near 20Gb)
In depends from your computer it it requires much time. I have been make it about one and a half days, because I decided party to installation and from time to time I have been choosing dependences. You can disable it in /etc/make.conf by string “BATCH=YES”. With this string ports will be build with default dependences.

When installing of KDE finish:
#echo “exec /usr/local/kde4/bin/startkde4” > /home/username/.xinitrc for running kde from command startx by user-name

and give command by user:
#startx

In my first run keyboard and mouse are didn’t works. Handbook said than I can use HAL to autodetect keyboards and mouse:
#echo "hald_enable=”YES”" >> /etc/rc.conf
#reboot

In the next article I will tell howto enable sound cart support.

PS: for making Xorg and kde from the ports you need to a lot of space and time. You can install xorg and kde4 from packages:
pkg_add -r or pkg_add ftp://url-package. For example :

#pkg_add ftp://ftp.ua.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/amd64/packages-8.1-release/x11/xorg-7.5.tbz

or you can define environment variable PACKAGEROOT nearest mirror:

#setenv PACKAGEROOT=ftp://ftp3.ua.freebsd.org
#pkg_add -r xorg-7.5.tbz

same for kde:
#pkg_add ftp://ftp.ua.freebsd.org/pub/FreeBSD/ports/ia64/packages-8-stable/x11/kde4-4.4.5_1.tbz
or
# pkg_add -r kde4-4.4.5_1.tbz

Posted on September 29th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Software | 7 Comments »

Recently I’ve bought laptop. I am happy!
Sony VAIO VGN-CR41.

Of course! I’ve installed FreeBSD with KDE4.
I have already come cross some problems and I really enjoy it! Because it good reason for writing articles about FreeBSD. I will try to describe here problems and solves.

Posted on September 24th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: No topic | Comments Off

I came across on a problem when was deleting port netbeans-6.8 (make deinstall in /usr/ports/java/netbean, pkg_delete netbeans, pkg_deinstall netbeans):

pkg_delete: package 'netbeans-6.8' doesn't have a prefix

And I have solved this by command:

pkg_deinstall -pf netbeans-6.8

Posted on September 22nd, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Solutions | 1 Comment »

One command synchronize system time on FreeBSD

#ntpdate europe.pool.ntp.org

Posted on September 14th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Tips | Comments Off

Change root password:

– Boot system in single user mod (key “4″)

– Remount / root in rw mode:

#mount -u /
#mount -a

– Сhange the password:

#passwd

– Insert new root password
– Reboot

Posted on September 12th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Tips | Comments Off

If you have just installed FreeBSD from CD\DVD, first that you need to do – update ports collection freebsd (update freebsd ports tree) and src files from repositories.
With cvsup update ports collection isn’t difficult. Install cvsup:

#cd /usr/ports/net/cvsup-without-gui/
#make install clean

Copy and edit supfile (I describe only ports tree upfating process. Src updating is looks same):
#cp /usr/share/examples/cvsup/ports-supfile /etc/ports-supfile
#vim /etc/ports-supfile

Choose nearest mirror for you:
*default host=cvsup3.ua.FreeBSD.org

My ports-supfile looks like:

*default host=cvsup.ua.FreeBSD.org
*default base=/var/db
*default prefix=/usr
*default release=cvs tag=.
*default delete use-rel-suffix
*default compress
ports-all

Save file and give command updating:
#cvsup -g -L 2 /etc/ports-supfile

It is can updating a long time (specially if you have slow internet connection).
When process is finish – you will can calm install soft from the ports.

Posted on September 12th, 2010 by admin
Filed under: Software | 2 Comments »