Bugs found so far in XFree86/OS2 3.3.1

Last updated 02 Oct 1997
These HTML pages can be downloaded from SET.GMD.DE (/pub/misc/XFree86OS2/html) by FTP. Bug fixes below are collected in /pub/misc/XFree86OS2/fixes at the same site.

If you came here by a notice of this URL in some newsgroup article: Here is the toplevel of the XFree86/OS2 pages.

Note: If possible, I will provide fixes as fast as possible on this page. The main archive for the distribution is ftp.xfree86.org. If appropriate, I'll also update the distribution files at this site. Maintainers are urged to mirror ftp.xfree86.org for this software.

Generally, please ensure, that you have NO HARDWARE CONFLICTS, and that your system runs stable in general. Flaky hardware and improper OS/2 configuration may hide various effects or cause problems that wouldn't be there otherwise. Don't expect that XFree86/OS2 can turn an instable OS/2 into a stable one.

List of recent files

The following is the list of recent file dates and sizes from the main archive at ftp.xfree86.org/pub/XFree86/3.3.1/binaries/OS2. If your archives or files differ from that, you have old versions (likely from some other archive). Obtain the recent files!

Bug descriptions for older releases

The following link(s) refers to bugs known to be present in older releases. Note that once there is a new release, we won't give support for older versions any longer, unless the bug is still present - it is mainly of problem of man power. Please upgrade to the most recent version.

Severe bugs

Please get the following fixes, and apply them after the system is installed.

Minor bugs

Annoying, but harmless, likely to be fixed in the next version, use workaround for now, if available.
(3.2/3.2A/3.3)Possible race condition in xinit
There has been a report that xinit might cause X applications to be run in xinitrc.cmd not to be started when the X server option -auth /path/.Xauthority is specified. This will be analyzed further. If this happens, run xinitrc.cmd manually from a PM CMD window.
(3.3.1)Problem with keyboard focus
There are reports that 3.3.1 has some problem with the keyboard focus in conjunction with AfterStep and icewm window managers. Get the following fix FX0009.
(3.3.1)icewm window manager has problems displaying icons.
Get the following fixed icewm.exe.
(3.3.1)Duplicate symbol when linking with static libraries of Xt and Xaw.
Install the following fix FX0008.
TCP/IP 4.1 causes problems.
If you install TCP/IP 4.1 under Warp 4, the X server may lockup or crash. You have to install EMXFIX04 which is available from the standard EMX repositories. This fix is recommended because of unrelated bug fixes, but is not required specifically for XFree86/OS2 if you don't have TCP/IP 4.1.

General problems

May appear with XFree86 on other platforms as well, no idea when this will be fixed. These problems are usually repeated on each bug page until there is a final solution.
There exists a general hardware conflict between certain S3 or Mach32/64 based cards and COM4 (port address 0x2e8)
This is a deficiency of these chip sets, unfortunately. If this happens, the only workaround known is to disable the COM4 port, or switch it to a base address other than 0x2e8.
Server breaks SLIP/PPP connection
No solution known yet, but at least there has been recently a report for Linux in the XFree86 mailing list indicating that this is not an OS/2 problem. It was reported that this problem should not happen with the VGA16 server. It is possible that this happens with bad designed serial I/O hardware which does not decode I/O port addresses correctly, and may then point out some address conflict between video and serial I/O card. If you know more about this, please tell me.
Superprobe misdetects the videocard.
Double check that you really have the hardware which was sold to you We have found one case where Superprobe was right, and the dealer was lying. If you are right, this turned out to be almost always a problem with Superprobe, not with OS/2 or XFree86/OS2. Please send the output of Superprobe from now on directly to xfree86@xfree86.org with a detailed description of what this card really is.

Things that are not a bug

(but candidates for the FAQ...)

None known yet.

Mistakes in the documentation

OS2.Notes is missing
The file OS2.Notes mentioned in the docs is missing in X331doc.zip. Get the file from here.

Inaccuracies or omissions from the XFree86 docs

None known yet.

Useful hints and tricks

The following are not bugs, but comments and hints, partly from other people. Added here without warranty.

None reported yet. See also offical XFree86 FAQ.

This page was accessed since 4 June 97 (2418 times since 1 Nov 96, 645 times since 1 Sep 96, 1159 times since 22 May 96, 1749 times since 11 Mar 96).
Send reports to: Holger.Veit@gmd.de