Installing Ubuntu 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope) on a ThinkPad X200

Overview

This page is intended to evolve into a more recent version of Installing Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) and Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) on a ThinkPad X200.

Upgrading from 8.10 may not be a painless process. There are regressions (at least with the X200Tablet).

Saving Windows

The factory install of Windows on your hard disk is likely the only copy you have (aside from, perhaps, an downgrade disk for XP). If you were planning to use Windows, the first thing you would do is to back this up. Even if you don't plan on using Windows, you may wish to back it up anyway. See other installation instructions for details. You don't need to register to do it (ie, you can save a raw disk image using the Ubuntu LiveCD, without booting Windows). But backing up Windows may be the hardest part of the entire installation process.

Install Ubuntu

If you have an UltraBase, the CD install should just work.

Resolve Issues

The X200 is newish hardware, and Lenovo no longer officially supports linux, so it takes some time to get everything working. Joys of monoculture.

Bugzilla

• https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bugs (very large - the best place to start searches)
• search: thinkpad (large - includes bugs not applicable to the X200, but misses some which don't mention it)
• search: X200 (medium - still includes a couple of false hits, eg Radeon "X200", and misses more)
• search: thinkpad X200 (small - but misses many)

Features

• Display - now just works.
• Trackpoint - now just works? For customizing the calibration, see link.
• Wireless (Intel 5100 and 5300) - both seem to just work.
• Bluetooth - works, but see [1].
• Broadband (AT&T) - untested.
• Camera - seems to just work (install cheese).
• Sound - now seems to just work
  • Speakers - now seem to just work
  • Headphones - just work, both laptop and base.
  • Mic - all just work: built-in, laptop external, and base external.
• UltraBase VGA - just works
• HDAPS and drive parking - works with Tp smapi, needs proper parameters for axis orientation. See [2] also
• HDAPS as tilt sensor - as above
• Temperature sensors - mostly work, for HDD hddtemp is needed
• UltraBase DisplayPort - works with karmic kernel >= 2.6.31 and xserver-xorg-video-intel >= 2.7, see X200 UltraBase#DisplayPort_support_in_Linux

untested

• Skype
• Power Mgmt
• HDD clicking. (but I haven't heard a click (on AC) since install).
• GPS (AT&T)
• Fingerprint reader

Sound

Internal speakers don't seem to be working out of the box. See the 8.10 doc.

Update: Tested 2009 Jul 19, internal speakers worked fine with vanilla install.

Suspend and Hibernate

While they don't immediately fail, very limited testing suggests they cause later system flakiness (after suspending and then hibernating, a new synaptic hung while installing cheese).

There are notes in Installing Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) and Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) on a ThinkPad X200#Suspend_and_Hibernate.

Update: suspending&resuming works 9 of 10 times for me.

Docking and Undocking

• Docking works ok, the only minor issue is that it doesn't switch automatically to saved external monitor display configuration.
• Before undocking you must always press "pre-undock" button on the left side of docking station and wait until green arrow allows you to proceed. Otherwise system will start to beep at you and it will probably get confused.
• Undocking usually switches automatically display to internal LCD only so you don't have to worry about it.
• Undocking doesn't umount automatically devices connected to docking station [3] (usb pendrives, optical drive) so you must remember to do this manually.
• suspending or hibernating when docked is not a good idea as system will get confused when resumed not docked also.
• undocking sometimes makes gnome panel freeze and consume 100% cpu [4]

X200 Tablet

There is old information in Category:X61 Tablet, especially Installing Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex) on a ThinkPad X61 Tablet, and in Wacom Serial Tablet PC Stylus.

• Wacom stylus - seems to just work.
• Wacom touch - "works", but is still miscalibrated, so the cursor position doesn't match your finger position.
• Screen rotation - the old scripts don't work in 9.04.

Wacom touch calibration

There are old instruction for adjusting the calibration ... somewhere. They will have to be dug up and modified for the new, bare, "works" out of the box xorg.conf.

Screen rotation

Neither the old xrandr+xsetwacom scripts, nor xrandr by itself, work in 9.04. But it looks like a modified script might work?

this one works for me on fedora 11 - after i added some option to xorg.conf (http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Wacom_Serial_Tablet_PC_Stylus)

#!/bin/bash

orientation=$1
orientation=${orientation:=normal}
wacomDevs="stylus cursor eraser touch"

function setWacomDev {
	for dev in ${wacomDevs}
	do
		xsetwacom set ${dev} $*
	done
}


case "$orientation" in
	left)	xrandr --output LVDS1 --rotate left
		setWacomDev Rotate 2
		setWacomDev BottomX 21200
		;;
	right)	xrandr --output LVDS1 --rotate right
		setWacomDev Rotate 1
		setWacomDev BottomX 21200
		;;
	inverted) xrandr --output LVDS1 --rotate inverted
		setWacomDev Rotate 3
		setWacomDev TopX 0
		setWacomDev TopY 0
		;;
	*)	xrandr --output LVDS1 --rotate normal
		setWacomDev Rotate 0
		setWacomDev TopX 0
		setWacomDev TopY 0
		;;
esac