ACPI Forced On & Option Disabled in WinXP-Certified Motherboards

stealth_zipper asks: "I just got off the phone with a rep from Soyo Computer Inc trying to get the ability to change IRQs for the onboard hardware. It turns out that because of a deal to get WindowsXP certification, the Dragon-series motherboard ended up having the ability of Enabling/Disabling ACPI in the BIOS disabled. Now FreeBSD has complications with multiple devices on the same IRQs (especially sound, video, and nic all off the same one). Is there a way to get around this for new hardware? Has anyone else encountered this?" Why in the world does XP need this feature disabled, and are there workarounds to get OSes like FreeBSD working properly with motherboards of this sort?

Comments

wouldn't this

[2MuchC0ffeeMan]

wouldn't this easily add to their antitrust case?

microsoft makes so many smart moves.

Re:wouldn't this

[MadAhab]

well, i don't know why that would be modded flamebait, but microsoft has for very long shown such contempt for the process. they can't believe it can catch them. the recent claims that IE can't be removed just prove the unbelievable depth of their contempt for consumers and the legal system.

but it looks from available comments that these are just shitty mobos. choice is not a problem; BIOSen are better for having enable/disable options, not worse. if mobos are being crippled to meet MSFT demands, that's different, and foolish, tho so far Bill's gang hasn't suffered at all for having contempt for the legal system or their customers.

Re:wouldn't this

[Alsee]

wouldn't this easily add to their antitrust case?

The DOJ is consistantly taking an extremely narrow view. Any issue that wasn't raised before trial, or was dropped from the case, or was not proven at trial, or hampered in any way by the appellate verdict is not open for remedy in the settlement. Nor will they do more than the minimum to ensure competition - even if it is very limited competition. (For example multi-million dollar RAND is ok because megacorps can then compete. It doesn't matter that GPL and indviduals are completely blocked from competing.) Compatability certifacation is completely voluntary and therefore does not prevent competition. ::cough cough::

I do not believe "Windows Compatibility Certifacation" was ever raised as a concern at trial. Therefore the DOJ won't even look at it.

On the otherhand the states that are still persuing the case might be quite interested.

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Soyo Dragon

[kwishot]

Are you sure that's the problem? These boards are having *tons* of problems, the P4 ones in particular.
I work at a computer shop in Wisconsin and we've gone so far as to stop carrying them because of the problems.
DOA.... bad slots.... bad ps/2 ports... "nothing after POST"... you name it.
I'd just make sure that it's ACPI causing the problem and not a defective board.

-kwishot

The board sucks

[bmajik]

XP doesn't require ACPI to be disabled on all boards, far from it. This is quite an incorrect leap to assume that because some random tech says they needed to ditch ACPI to get XP certified, that XP cannot work with ACPI.

The best board to get right now are the MSI Athlon boards. XP certified, fast as crap, rock solid.

Buying shitty hardware may save you some money up front, but you'll pay through the teeth down the road.

AGP troubles too

[InterruptDescriptorT]

I write video drivers for a living, and we have had nothing but problems with our software on the Dragon series of motherboards. In certain cases, the chipset is rejecting known configuration registers for AGP bus width, etc., which on some of our products causes the beta-level drivers we provide to bluescreen.

Some of our senior engineers have been in contact with their engineers, and they seem to be telling us the problem is ours, though we are following their specs to a tee.

Why can't it be easy like it did in the days where you supported a few int 10h BIOS calls? (sigh) Now that was cutting-edge for 1989! ;-)

Re:The OS dictating hardware design?

[robhancock]

I'm sure they do want to force the motherboard manufacturers off APM onto ACPI. ACPI is needed (or at least helps) for a lot of the more advanced power management/hibernate functions, and they don't want motherboards to get the "Designed for Windows XP" logo if they don't support all of the OS features in that regard.

If the option to disable ACPI was there then you can bet some lazy motherboard manufacturers would ship it in the disabled mode just to avoid the trouble of getting ACPI to work properly.

If you ask me, the solution here is to fix whichever isn't handling ACPI properly, FreeBSD or the motherboard BIOS, not to complain about Microsoft..

Re:A taste of the future

[TheOnlyCoolTim]

I really hope you are joking about Linux-Only Motherboards. That's even dumber than Windows-Only Motherboards.

Replace Linux Only with "non-XP certified", and it makes more sense. I think anyone building their own machine is going to be smart enough not to care about certification as long as it works.

Tim