Lenovo X60: GRUB_GFXMODE=1024x768 only works with docking station connected

[Paul Menzel]

Dear coreboot folks,

on the Lenovo X60s, running coreboot with SeaBIOS as payload, adding the
two lines below to GRUB’s configuration in `/etc/default/grub`

GRUB_GFXMODE=1024x768
        GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX=keep

and running `update-grub`, which updates GRUB 2.02~beta2-20 (Debian
Jessie/testing) in the MBR, it does only work, when the laptop is
attached to the docking station (nothing attached to the docking
station).

Those of you with a Lenovo system, could you please try to reproduce
this? Also if you still have the vendor firmware, it’d be great to get
some data points. Any hints, how to debug this issue are also
appreciated.

Thanks,

Paul

[Paul Menzel]

Dear coreboot folks,

Am Mittwoch, den 14.01.2015, 22:53 +0100 schrieb Paul Menzel:
> on the Lenovo X60s, running coreboot with SeaBIOS as payload, adding the
> two lines below to GRUB’s configuration in `/etc/default/grub`
>     GRUB_GFXMODE=1024x768
>     GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX=keep
>
> and running `update-grub`, which updates GRUB 2.02~beta2-20 (Debian
> Jessie/testing) in the MBR,

a small correction, phcoder pointed out to me in
#[e-mail] that `update-grub` only updates
`/boot/grub/grub.cfg` and does not install GRUB in the MBR.
> it does only work, when the laptop is attached to the docking station
> (nothing attached to the docking station).

To clarify, does not work means, that only a resolution of 640×480 is
chosen and not 1024×768.

phcoder also said, that it is probably a Video BIOS issue as GRUB does
not do anything special. GRUB’s command `vbeinfo` also lists the
resolution 1024×768.
> Those of you with a Lenovo system, could you please try to reproduce
> this? Also if you still have the vendor firmware, it’d be great to get
> some data points. Any hints, how to debug this issue are also
> appreciated.

For testing, I flashed the vendor BIOS to the device and there
`GRUB_GFXMODE=1024x768` does not have any effects at all and without and
with the port replicator/ultrabase/docking station only a resolution of
640×480 is used.

Ideas to get that to work with the Video BIOS? It’s needed to get the
fastboot of Linux’ i915 module to work.

Thanks,

Paul