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Date:      Sat, 27 Jan 2007 02:26:39 +0800
From:      Zhang Weiwu <zhangweiwu@realss.com>
To:        freebsd-questions@freebsd.org
Subject:   [SOLVED] Re: laptop screen always shutdown if no keyboard interaction for several minutes
Message-ID:  <1169835999.5469.9.camel@joe.realss.com>
In-Reply-To: <1169542022.6177.7.camel@bossdog.realss.com>
References:  <1169542022.6177.7.camel@bossdog.realss.com>

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在 2007-01-23二的 16:47 +0800,Zhang Weiwu写道:
> Hello. I tried various ways to stop the laptop screen from being
> shutting down, as I use this screen to watch debug message of an
> application I am working on, I need monitor always on, no screensaver,
> no blank, no dpms etc.
> 
> I cannot do it. I have tried:
>      1. set blanktime to "NO" in /etc/rc.conf
>      2. set saver to "NO" in /etc/rc.conf
>      3. start X server and run a terminal in it, run xset -dpms
>      4. check laptop BIOS setting (there is no setting for automatic
>         blank time
> 
> I have not tried:
>      I. remove 'apm' from kernel (I didn't compile ACPI into kernel
>         because this is an old notebook I am not sure if ACPI works, but
>         I have compiled apm in kernel, which is not shown in dmesg and
>         doesn't seem to work, e.g. 'shutdown -p' do not turn off the
>         power)
>     II. install Windows on the same computer to see if Windows can keep
>         the monitor on.
>    III. boot the system to FreeDOS and see if monitor keep turned up (to
>         decide if LCD is turned off by hardware or software)

I have solved my problem. I cannot / didn't make APM work on my FreeBSD
so basicaly turning of LCD/DFP is done by BIOS on its own.  So my
problem is actually not related to OS (FreeBSD). The solution:

1) get an IBM BIOS upgrade diskette (do a search on IBM website can find
this diskette very easily;
2) use this diskette upgrade BISO from my current version (some version
released in 1998) to the latest one (released in 1999).

The new bios default setting is chagned a lot, including a change that
by default BIOS lcd turn-off timer is not activated.

If someone got the same problem as I got and don't wish to upgrade BIOS
(as stated in an very early post I found by googling around, the latest
BISO breaks apm feature on FreeBSD, not confirmed and don't know if this
is a problem already solved) you can still get a "Configuration utility
for DOS - ThinkPad General" (UTTPFDOS.EXE) from IBM (now Lenovo)
website. Use it to configure BIOS to turn of timer.




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