Fedora 16 PPC release notes: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 15:23, 23 December 2011

General Information

Download Fedora 16 PPC now
To download Fedora 16 PPC, visit https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/publiclist/Fedora/16/ppc64/ to get to one of the mirrors or directly from http://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora-secondary/releases/16/Fedora/ppc64. This release is available for 64-bit Power PC platforms. Power PC 32-bit images and trees have been created but due to lack of time and resources haven't received any testing. Note that Fedora uses SHA256 instead of MD5 or SHA-1 to verify images in a more secure way. For more information, refer to #How_to_Try_Fedora_16_for_PowerPC on this page.

Filing Bug Reports

Please file bug reports on this release if you find any problems.

Known Issues

Refer to the Common F16 bugs page for a listing of issues, and any known resolutions, commonly found with this release. This page is maintained throughout the Fedora 16 developmental cycle.

Known PPC Issues

We currently have several issues in F16 PPC that don't block installation. Please read and review the following known issues before reporting bugs.

Installation

On Apple PPC64 hardware with Radeon graphics cards, graphical anaconda fails to load. Bug -> 766862

 Add the kernel commandline parameter radeon.agpmode=-1 at the yaboot prompt to work around this issue.

Runtime

Similar to the installation issue on Apple PPC64 hardware with Radeon graphics cards, the kernel commandline parameter radeon.agpmode=-1 must be added to /etc/yaboot.conf

Release Overview

As always, Fedora continues to develop and integrate the latest free and open sourced software. The following sections provide a brief overview of major changes from the last release of Fedora. For more details about other features that are making their way into Rawhide and set for inclusion in Fedora 16, refer to their individual wiki pages that detail feature goals and progress. Features for this release are tracked on the feature list page.

What's New in Fedora 16 PPC

In addition to the features mentioned in the release announcement,

No desktop folder by default Major desktop environments including GNOME 3 and KDE 4 do not show the desktop folder's contents by default anymore and hence xdg-user-dirs has been configured to not create a desktop folder anymore by default. This is still user configurable however. Thanks to Matthias Clasen for doing this change.

Additional Information

The Fedora 16 PPC release is a Secondary Arch release, in fact the first since Fedora 12. More information about this specific architecture can be found here:

http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Architectures/PowerPC

The developers working on it typically hang out on the FreeNode IRC channel #fedora-ppc and we do have a architecture specific mailinglist for Power PC on Fedora here:

https://admin.fedoraproject.org/mailman/listinfo/ppc

How to Try Fedora 16 for PowerPC

Simply install it via the DVD or the netboot images
Boot it!
Run it!
Test it!
Write bugs!

IBM PPC64 Notes

You should use the graphical installer to install Fedora whenever possible. This is enabled by passing the 'vnc=1' parameter.

Apple PPC64 Notes

If your machine has a radeon graphics card, the kernel commandline parameter radeon.agpmode=-1 needs to be added to /etc/yaboot.conf and the bootloader must be re-written with ybin.

You also might need to create a new file /etc/X11/radeon-disable-dri.conf with these contents:

  Section "Device"
      Identifier  "Card0"
      Driver      "radeon"
      Option      "DRI" "off"
  EndSection

Verify Fedora

Fedora does not publish MD5 or SHA1 hashes to verify images since they are not secure enough. Instead we have been using SHA256 since Fedora 11. In Linux, you can use sha256sum command (part of coreutils and installed by default) to verify the Fedora image

sha256sum -c *-CHECKSUM

Windows can use the free to download utility HashCalc.

Mac OS X can use the free to download utility hashtab.

Fedora GPG signatures can be verified following the instructions here

Debugging Information And Performance

Fedora kernels have many extensive debugging options during the developmental cycle that have a negative impact on performance but provide developers with more information automatically, in the case of bug reports. If you are running performance analysis on Rawhide or test releases such as Alpha or Beta, make sure you take this into account.

Fedora 16 Feature Details

The link below provides the wiki's pages for tracking the various features in Fedora 16.

Feature List

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 == General Information ==
-{{admon/note | Download Fedora 16 RC PPC now | To download Fedora 16 RC PPC, visit [https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/publiclist/Fedora/16/ppc64/ https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/publiclist/Fedora/16/ppc64/] to get to one of the mirrors or directly from [http://download.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora-secondary/releases/test/16-RC/ http://download.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora-secondary/releases/test/16-RC/]. This release is available for 64-bit Power PC platforms. Power PC 32-bit images and trees have been created but due to lack of time and resources haven't received any testing. Note that Fedora uses SHA256 instead of MD5 or SHA-1 to verify images in a more secure way. For more information, refer to [[#How_to_Try_RC]] on this page. }}
+{{admon/note | Download Fedora 16 PPC now | To download Fedora 16 PPC, visit [https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/publiclist/Fedora/16/ppc64/ https://mirrors.fedoraproject.org/publiclist/Fedora/16/ppc64/] to get to one of the mirrors or directly from [http://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora-secondary/releases/16/Fedora/ppc64 http://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora-secondary/releases/16/Fedora/ppc64]. This release is available for 64-bit Power PC platforms. Power PC 32-bit images and trees have been created but due to lack of time and resources haven't received any testing. Note that Fedora uses SHA256 instead of MD5 or SHA-1 to verify images in a more secure way. For more information, refer to [[#How_to_Try_Fedora_16_for_PowerPC]] on this page. }}
 == Filing Bug Reports ==
-'''Please [[How_to_file_a_bug_report| file bug reports]] on this RC release if you find any problems.'''
+'''Please [[How_to_file_a_bug_report| file bug reports]] on this release if you find any problems.'''
 == Known Issues ==
@@ Line 15: / Line 15: @@
 == Known PPC Issues ==
-We currently have several issues in the RC that don't block installation.  Please read and review the following known issues before reporting bugs.
+We currently have several issues in F16 PPC that don't block installation.  Please read and review the following known issues before reporting bugs.
 === Installation ===
-* On IBM PPC64 hardware with graphics cards, graphical anaconda fails to load.  Bug -> [https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=746410 746410]
+* On Apple PPC64 hardware with Radeon graphics cards, graphical anaconda fails to load.  Bug -> [https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=766862 766862]
+  Add the kernel commandline parameter ''radeon.agpmode=-1'' at the yaboot prompt to work around this issue.
 === Runtime ===
-No known issues
+* Similar to the installation issue on Apple PPC64 hardware with Radeon graphics cards, the kernel commandline parameter ''radeon.agpmode=-1'' must be added to /etc/yaboot.conf
 == Release Overview ==
@@ Line 31: / Line 32: @@
 Features for this release are tracked on the [[FeatureList|feature list page]].
-=== The Purpose of the RC Release ===
-This release is an installable, testable version of the code and features being developed for Fedora 16 (Verne). The software has bugs, problems, and incomplete features.  It is not likely to eat your data or parts of your computer, but you should be aware that it could.
+== What's New in Fedora 16 PPC ==
-You have an important part to play in this release. Install Fedora 16 RC PPC release, then try using a few applications or activities that are important to you.  If it doesn't work, [https://bugzilla.redhat.com/enter_bug.cgi?product=Fedora&rep_platform=powerpc file a bug], but make sure to set the 'Hardware' field to 'powerpc'.  This release gives the wider community a set of code to test against as a very important step in the process of making a solid Fedora 16 release.  You can make the Fedora 16 release better by testing this release and reporting your findings.
-== What's New in Fedora 16 RC PPC ==
 In addition to the features mentioned in the release announcement,
@@ Line 45: / Line 41: @@
 == Additional Information ==
-The Fedora 16 RC PPC release is a Secondary Arch release, in fact the first since Fedora 12. More information about this specific architecture can be found here:
+The Fedora 16 PPC release is a Secondary Arch release, in fact the first since Fedora 12. More information about this specific architecture can be found here:
 [http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Architectures/PowerPC http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Architectures/PowerPC]
@@ Line 53: / Line 49: @@
 [https://admin.fedoraproject.org/mailman/listinfo/ppc https://admin.fedoraproject.org/mailman/listinfo/ppc]
-=== How to Try RC ===
+=== How to Try Fedora 16 for PowerPC ===
 * Simply install it via the DVD or the netboot images
@@ Line 65: / Line 61: @@
 * You should use the graphical installer to install Fedora whenever possible. This is enabled by passing the 'vnc=1' parameter.
+==== Apple PPC64 Notes ====
+* If your machine has a radeon graphics card, the kernel commandline parameter ''radeon.agpmode=-1'' needs to be added to /etc/yaboot.conf and the bootloader must be re-written with ''ybin''.
+You also might need to create a new file ''/etc/X11/radeon-disable-dri.conf'' with these contents:
+<pre>
+  Section "Device"
+      Identifier  "Card0"
+      Driver      "radeon"
+      Option      "DRI" "off"
+  EndSection
+</pre>
 === Verify Fedora ===
@@ Line 82: / Line 90: @@
 Fedora kernels have many [[KernelDebugStrategy | extensive debugging options]] during the developmental cycle that have a negative impact on performance but provide developers with more information automatically, in the case of bug reports. If you are running performance analysis on Rawhide or test releases such as Alpha or Beta, make sure you take this into account.
-=== Fedora 16 Release Schedule And Feature Details ===
+=== Fedora 16 Feature Details ===
-Development continues on Rawhide during and after this release, leading to the beta, then the final release. The links below provide the release schedule for both the pre-releases and the final release, as well as the wiki's pages for tracking the various features planned for inclusion in Fedora 16.
+The link below provides the wiki's pages for tracking the various features in Fedora 16.
 * [[Releases/16/FeatureList | Feature List]]
-* [[Releases/16/Schedule | Schedule]]
 [[Category:Release_Notes]]

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