Linux on Wyse Winterm S10 Thin Clients - Revision history

Mirage335 at 18:04, 8 March 2015

2015-03-08T18:04:18Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:04, 8 March 2015
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	Sometimes, the network device may not initialize properly. DSL (2.4 kernel) does not appear to have this problem, Knoppix (2.6 kernel) does. Automatic retry does seem to be a valid workaround as follows.		Sometimes, the network device may not initialize properly. DSL (2.4 kernel) does not appear to have this problem, Knoppix (2.6 kernel) does. Automatic retry does seem to be a valid workaround as follows.
	<nowiki>		<nowiki>
	while ! ifconfig \| grep eth0; do ifconfig eth0 up ; ifconfig eth0 ~~down~~ ; done		while ! ifconfig \| grep eth0; do ifconfig eth0 down ; sleep 3 ; ifconfig eth0 up ; sleep 3 ; done
	</nowiki>		</nowiki>

Mirage335: /* Performance */

2015-03-07T07:18:24Z

Performance

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:18, 7 March 2015
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	Really, really slow. Raspberry Pi's have CPUs many, many times faster, acceptable quantities of RAM. However, these devices are available secondhand or at significantly lower prices than Raspberry Pi's. Also, the CPU is x86, and audio I/O is provided onboard.		Really, really slow. Raspberry Pi's have CPUs many, many times faster, acceptable quantities of RAM. However, these devices are available secondhand or at significantly lower prices than Raspberry Pi's. Also, the CPU is x86, and audio I/O is provided onboard.

	In some situations, ~~even~~ such low-end hardware may be effective, even efficient. Reasonable uses may include thin clients, lightweight servers, industrial automation, kiosks, etc.		Nevertheless, in some situations, such low-end hardware may still be effective, even efficient. Reasonable uses may include thin clients, lightweight servers, industrial automation, kiosks, etc.

	[[Category:Useful_Info]]		[[Category:Useful_Info]]
	[[Category:Materiel]]		[[Category:Materiel]]

Mirage335: /* Performance */

2015-03-07T07:16:44Z

Performance

← Older revision		Revision as of 07:16, 7 March 2015
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	Really, really slow. Raspberry Pi's have CPUs many, many times faster, acceptable quantities of RAM. However, these devices are available secondhand or at significantly lower prices than Raspberry Pi's. Also, the CPU is x86, and audio I/O is provided onboard.		Really, really slow. Raspberry Pi's have CPUs many, many times faster, acceptable quantities of RAM. However, these devices are available secondhand or at significantly lower prices than Raspberry Pi's. Also, the CPU is x86, and audio I/O is provided onboard.

	Reasonable uses may include thin clients, lightweight servers, industrial automation, kiosks, etc.		In some situations, even such low-end hardware may be effective, even efficient. Reasonable uses may include thin clients, lightweight servers, industrial automation, kiosks, etc.

	[[Category:Useful_Info]]		[[Category:Useful_Info]]
	[[Category:Materiel]]		[[Category:Materiel]]

Mirage335 at 06:38, 7 March 2015

2015-03-07T06:38:48Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:38, 7 March 2015
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	* AMD Geode processor 333MHz		* AMD Geode processor 333MHz
	* 32MB internal flash memory ([http://www.alldatasheet.com/datasheet-pdf/pdf/129712/SAMSUNG/K9F5608U0D-XIB0.html]) behind an ATA/IDE disk controller ([http://www.alldatasheet.com/datasheet-pdf/pdf/171066/SST/SST55LD019A-45-C-BWE.html])		* 0-32MB internal flash memory ([http://www.alldatasheet.com/datasheet-pdf/pdf/129712/SAMSUNG/K9F5608U0D-XIB0.html]) behind an ATA/IDE disk controller ([http://www.alldatasheet.com/datasheet-pdf/pdf/171066/SST/SST55LD019A-45-C-BWE.html])
	* 64-128MB RAM (4 x [http://www.alldatasheet.com/datasheet-pdf/pdf/2413/MOSEL/V58C2128164S.html])		* 64-128MB RAM (4 x [http://www.alldatasheet.com/datasheet-pdf/pdf/2413/MOSEL/V58C2128164S.html])
	* BIOS capable of booting from USB flash drives		* BIOS capable of booting from USB flash drives or PXE

	This allows for small Linux distributions to be installed on the internal flash memory in place of the very limited original OS. Distributions too large to fit into the 32MB internal flash drive can still be booted and run from an external USB flash drive, though boot time may take a while.		This allows for small Linux distributions to be installed on the internal flash memory in place of the very limited original OS. Distributions too large to fit into the 32MB internal flash drive can still be booted and run from an external USB flash drive, though boot time may take a while.

Mirage335: /* Comparison with RasPi */

2015-03-07T06:37:13Z

Comparison with RasPi

← Older revision		Revision as of 06:37, 7 March 2015
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	It is possible to manually build Debian or Gentoo operating systems, and use syslinux directly as the bootloader. Unfortunately, at least Debian stable occasionally hangs at startup, which is one reason the ChRoot from DSL or Knoppix is preferable.		It is possible to manually build Debian or Gentoo operating systems, and use syslinux directly as the bootloader. Unfortunately, at least Debian stable occasionally hangs at startup, which is one reason the ChRoot from DSL or Knoppix is preferable.

	=~~Comparison with RasPi~~=		=Performance=
	~~Performance is much better~~, ~~thanks to much more~~ RAM ~~and a much faster CPU~~. ~~Additionally~~, ~~prebuilt images make things rather easy~~. ~~However~~, the ~~WYSE terminal does offer built-in audio capability~~, and ~~can still serve as a nice~~ thin ~~client~~, ~~fairly basic server~~, or industrial automation ~~platform~~.		Really, really slow. Raspberry Pi's have CPUs many, many times faster, acceptable quantities of RAM. However, these devices are available secondhand or at significantly lower prices than Raspberry Pi's. Also, the CPU is x86, and audio I/O is provided onboard.

			Reasonable uses may include thin clients, lightweight servers, industrial automation, kiosks, etc.

	[[Category:Useful_Info]]		[[Category:Useful_Info]]
	[[Category:Materiel]]		[[Category:Materiel]]

Mirage335: /* Network Bug */

2015-03-07T05:32:06Z

Network Bug

← Older revision		Revision as of 05:32, 7 March 2015
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	====Network Bug====		====Network Bug====
	Sometimes, the network device may not initialize properly. DSL (2.4 kernel) does not appear to have this problem, Knoppix (2.6 kernel) does.		Sometimes, the network device may not initialize properly. DSL (2.4 kernel) does not appear to have this problem, Knoppix (2.6 kernel) does. Automatic retry does seem to be a valid workaround as follows.
	<nowiki>		<nowiki>
	while ! ifconfig \| grep eth0; do ifconfig eth0 up ; ifconfig eth0 down ; done		while ! ifconfig \| grep eth0; do ifconfig eth0 up ; ifconfig eth0 down ; done

Mirage335 at 05:27, 7 March 2015

2015-03-07T05:27:40Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 05:27, 7 March 2015
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	Lack of RAM is a more serious problem, even with 128MB RAM. Knoppix with LXDE, Damn Small Linux (DSL), Tiny Core Linux and similar may be acceptable choices. Dillo and Midori are reasonable web browser choices. Firefox under Knoppix ran out of memory on startup, Firefox under DSL was slow to the point of barely usable.		Lack of RAM is a more serious problem, even with 128MB RAM. Knoppix with LXDE, Damn Small Linux (DSL), Tiny Core Linux and similar may be acceptable choices. Dillo and Midori are reasonable web browser choices. Firefox under Knoppix ran out of memory on startup, Firefox under DSL was slow to the point of barely usable.

	USB drives are recommended for any serious use (including host OS). IDE interface seems to be operating rather slowly, with extreme CPU usage. Suspect it operates only in PIO mode, and is not DMA capable.		USB drives are recommended for any serious use (including host OS). Fast USB drives may provide tolerable swap. IDE interface seems to be operating rather slowly, with extreme CPU usage. Suspect it operates only in PIO mode, and is not DMA capable.

			====Network Bug====
			Sometimes, the network device may not initialize properly. DSL (2.4 kernel) does not appear to have this problem, Knoppix (2.6 kernel) does.
			<nowiki>
			while ! ifconfig \| grep eth0; do ifconfig eth0 up ; ifconfig eth0 down ; done
			</nowiki>

	==Step 3: More powerful OS==		==Step 3: More powerful OS==

Mirage335 at 03:39, 28 February 2015

2015-02-28T03:39:37Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 03:39, 28 February 2015
Line 9:		Line 9:

	----		----

			=Prebuilt Images=
			Knoppix and DSL ("Damn Small Linux") images have been prebuilt for 2GB USB sticks, to easily and reliably boot these finicky WYSE terminals.

			Knoppix uses up more space, at ~700MB, and does not presently offer a GUI on the WYSE terminal. However, with a 2.6 kernel, it can be used as a robust starting point for ChRoot'ing into other distributions.

			DSL offers a lean GUI with nice performance counters, as well as some simple apps (Dillo, Firefox, etc), and can occupy much less space (<64MB). However, based on a 2.4 kernel, loading binaries built on modern platforms may be challenging.

	=Setup=		=Setup=
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	Additionally, it may be simplest to construct the ChRoot from a full-scale computer. See https://github.com/mirage335/PortableChRoot for an easy way to containerize this.		Additionally, it may be simplest to construct the ChRoot from a full-scale computer. See https://github.com/mirage335/PortableChRoot for an easy way to containerize this.

	Unfortunately, at present it seems Debian packages rely on kernels newer than 2.4, which DSL does not provide.		Unfortunately, at present it seems Debian packages rely on kernels newer than 2.4, which DSL does not provide. However, Knoppix does provide a newer 2.6 series kernel.

	===Direct Booting===		===Direct Booting===

Mirage335 at 16:27, 24 March 2014

2014-03-24T16:27:18Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:27, 24 March 2014
Line 46:		Line 46:
	===Direct Booting===		===Direct Booting===
	It is possible to manually build Debian or Gentoo operating systems, and use syslinux directly as the bootloader. Unfortunately, at least Debian stable occasionally hangs at startup, which is one reason the ChRoot from DSL or Knoppix is preferable.		It is possible to manually build Debian or Gentoo operating systems, and use syslinux directly as the bootloader. Unfortunately, at least Debian stable occasionally hangs at startup, which is one reason the ChRoot from DSL or Knoppix is preferable.

			=Comparison with RasPi=
			Performance is much better, thanks to much more RAM and a much faster CPU. Additionally, prebuilt images make things rather easy. However, the WYSE terminal does offer built-in audio capability, and can still serve as a nice thin client, fairly basic server, or industrial automation platform.

	[[Category:Useful_Info]]		[[Category:Useful_Info]]
	[[Category:Materiel]]		[[Category:Materiel]]

Mirage335 at 16:14, 24 March 2014

2014-03-24T16:14:08Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:14, 24 March 2014
Line 10:		Line 10:
	----		----

	====Step 1: Configuring the BIOS to boot from a USB drive====		=Setup=

			==Step 1: Configuring the BIOS to boot from a USB drive==

	This part is very simple. Before inserting the power cable, connect a USB keyboard, and VGA monitor to the terminal. Then, hold down the del key and plug in the power cable. After a moment you should hear a beep, and the terminal will boot to a green BIOS screen.		This part is very simple. Before inserting the power cable, connect a USB keyboard, and VGA monitor to the terminal. Then, hold down the del key and plug in the power cable. After a moment you should hear a beep, and the terminal will boot to a green BIOS screen.
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	Save your configuration and exit the BIOS.		Save your configuration and exit the BIOS.

	~~----~~		==Step 2: Creating a bootable Linux USB drive==

	====Step 2: Creating a bootable Linux USB drive====
	'''Virtually unbearable.'''		'''Virtually unbearable.'''
	=====Bootloader=====		===Bootloader===
	Install syslinux 2.x on a linux machine and follow the [http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/wiki/install_to_usb_from_within_linux.html DSL USB installation instructions] . Also, the boot partition must be aligned to cylinder, and marked with the boot flag.		Install syslinux 2.x on a linux machine and follow the [http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/wiki/install_to_usb_from_within_linux.html DSL USB installation instructions] . Also, the boot partition must be aligned to cylinder, and marked with the boot flag.

	Newer versions of syslinux tend to hang. Modern hybrid LiveCD ISOs, GRUB2, etc, also fail.		Newer versions of syslinux tend to hang. Modern hybrid LiveCD ISOs, GRUB2, etc, also fail.

	====Performance====		====Performance Management====
	CPU is adequate for basic web browsing and similar kiosk tasks.		CPU is adequate for basic web browsing and similar kiosk tasks.

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	USB drives are recommended for any serious use (including host OS). IDE interface seems to be operating rather slowly, with extreme CPU usage. Suspect it operates only in PIO mode, and is not DMA capable.		USB drives are recommended for any serious use (including host OS). IDE interface seems to be operating rather slowly, with extreme CPU usage. Suspect it operates only in PIO mode, and is not DMA capable.

	====Step 3: ~~ChRooting a more~~ powerful OS====		==Step 3: More powerful OS==
			===ChRoot===
	Loading a full Ubuntu or Debian system outright may be infeasible or challenging due to RAM or bootloader limitations. Alternatively, DSL supports the ChRoot and debootstrap commands. Conveniently, it is therefore possible to quickly deploy a full Debian ChRoot for such purposes as efficiently hosting a full-featured webserver.		Loading a full Ubuntu or Debian system outright may be infeasible or challenging due to RAM or bootloader limitations. Alternatively, DSL supports the ChRoot and debootstrap commands. Conveniently, it is therefore possible to quickly deploy a full Debian ChRoot for such purposes as efficiently hosting a full-featured webserver.

	Additionally, it may be simplest to construct the ChRoot from a full-scale computer. See https://github.com/mirage335/PortableChRoot for an easy way to containerize this.		Additionally, it may be simplest to construct the ChRoot from a full-scale computer. See https://github.com/mirage335/PortableChRoot for an easy way to containerize this.

	Unfortunately, at present it seems Debian packages rely on kernels newer than 2.4, which DSL does not provide. It is ~~however~~ possible to manually build Debian or Gentoo operating systems, and use syslinux directly as the bootloader.		Unfortunately, at present it seems Debian packages rely on kernels newer than 2.4, which DSL does not provide.

			===Direct Booting===
			It is possible to manually build Debian or Gentoo operating systems, and use syslinux directly as the bootloader. Unfortunately, at least Debian stable occasionally hangs at startup, which is one reason the ChRoot from DSL or Knoppix is preferable.

	[[Category:Useful_Info]]		[[Category:Useful_Info]]
	[[Category:Materiel]]		[[Category:Materiel]]