root/lm-sensors/trunk/doc/lm_sensors-FAQ.html @ 2114

Revision 2114, 92.9 KB (checked in by mds, 9 years ago)

add item on registering for announcements via freshmeat

  • Property svn:eol-style set to native
  • Property svn:keywords set to Author Date Id Revision
RevLine 
[2114]1<html lang="en">
2<head>
[1837]3<title>Sensors FAQ for lm_sensors version 2.9</title>
[1526]4<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html">
[1968]5<meta name=description content="Sensors FAQ for lm_sensors version 2.9">
[2114]6<meta name=generator content="makeinfo 4.2">
7<link href="http://www.gnu.org/software/texinfo/" rel=generator-home>
8</head>
9<body>
10<h1>Sensors FAQ for lm_sensors version 2.9</h1>
11Copyright (c) 1998 - 2002<br>
[1526]12<a href="mailto:frodol@dds.nl">Frodo Looijaard</a>,<br>
13<a href="mailto:phil@netroedge.com">Philip Edelbrock</a>,<br>
14and<br>
15<a href="mailto:mdsxyz123@yahoo.com">Mark Studebaker</a><br>
16
17
[2114]18<h2>Short Contents</h2>
[1526]19<ul>
[2114]20<li><a href="#toc_Top">lm_sensors</a>
21<li><a href="#toc_Overview">1 PC and Sensor Overview</a>
22<li><a href="#toc_Basics">2 Sensor and Bus Basics</a>
23<li><a href="#toc_Installation">3 Installation and Management</a>
24<li><a href="#toc_Problems">4 Problems</a>
25<li><a href="#toc_Help">5 How to Ask for Help</a>
26<li><a href="#toc_Contribute">6 How to Contribute</a>
27<li><a href="#toc_Version%201%20Specifics">7 Version 1 Specific Questions</a>
28<li><a href="#toc_Document%20Revisions">Appendix A Revision History of This Document</a>
29</ul>
30
31
32<h2>Table of Contents</h2>
[1526]33<ul>
[2114]34<li><a name="toc_Top"></a>
35    <a href="#Top">lm_sensors</a>
36<li><a name="toc_Overview"></a>
37    <a href="#Overview">1 PC and Sensor Overview</a>
38<ul>
[1526]39<li><a href="#Section%201.1">1.1 What sensors are available on my PC?</a>
40<li><a href="#Section%201.2">1.2 What can a sensor chip like the "LM78" do?</a>
41<li><a href="#Section%201.3">1.3 Where do I find out more about any of these chips?</a>
[1968]42</ul>
[2114]43<li><a name="toc_Basics"></a>
44    <a href="#Basics">2 Sensor and Bus Basics</a>
[1526]45<ul>
46<li><a href="#Section%202.1">2.1 How are these sensors read?</a>
47<li><a href="#Section%202.2">2.2 What is the SMBus? And the I2C bus?</a>
48<li><a href="#Section%202.3">2.3 I don't have an ISA bus!</a>
49<li><a href="#Section%202.4">2.4 What sensors do processors have?</a>
50<li><a href="#Section%202.5">2.5 How often are the sensor values updated?</a>
51<li><a href="#Section%202.6">2.6 How are alarms triggered?</a>
[1968]52</ul>
[2114]53<li><a name="toc_Installation"></a>
54    <a href="#Installation">3 Installation and Management</a>
[1526]55<ul>
56<li><a href="#Section%203.1">3.1 Why so many modules, and how do I cope with them?</a>
57<li><a href="#Section%203.2">3.2 How do I know which chips I own?</a>
58<ul>
59<li><a href="#Section%203.2">3.2.1 What chips are on motherboard XYZ?</a>
60<li><a href="#Section%203.2">3.2.2 Do you support motherboard XYZ?</a>
61<li><a href="#Section%203.2">3.2.3 Do you support chip XYZ?</a>
62<li><a href="#Section%203.2">3.2.4 Anybody working on a driver for chip XYZ?</a>
[1968]63</ul>
[1526]64<li><a href="#Section%203.3">3.3 Which modules should I insert?</a>
65<li><a href="#Section%203.4">3.4 Do I need the configuration file <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>?</a>
66<ul>
67<li><a href="#Section%203.4">3.4.1 The labels for the voltage and temperature readings in <code>sensors</code> are incorrect!</a>
68<li><a href="#Section%203.4">3.4.2 The min and max for the readings in <code>sensors</code> are incorrect!</a>
69<li><a href="#Section%203.4">3.4.3 The min and max settings in <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code> didn't take effect!</a>
70<li><a href="#Section%203.4">3.4.4 One sensor isn't hooked up on my board!</a>
71<li><a href="#Section%203.4">3.4.5 I need help with <code>sensors.conf</code>!</a>
72<li><a href="#Section%203.4">3.4.6 Do you have a database of <code>sensors.conf</code> entries for specific boards?</a>
[1968]73</ul>
[1526]74<li><a href="#Section%203.5">3.5 What about the <code>No such file or directory</code> warnings when I compile?</a>
75<li><a href="#Section%203.6">3.6 I get all kinds of weird compilation errors?</a>
76<ul>
77<li><a href="#Section%203.6">3.6.1 <code>No rule to make target xxxx needed by xxxx</code> - how to fix?</a>
[1968]78</ul>
[1526]79<li><a href="#Section%203.7">3.7 It still does not compile or patch!</a>
80<li><a href="#Section%203.8">3.8 <code>make install</code> fails on Mandrake kernels</a>
81<li><a href="#Section%203.9">3.9 I get unresolved symbols when I <code>modprobe</code> modules (Red Hat especially)</a>
82<li><a href="#Section%203.10">3.10 I2C_DRIVERID_ADM1024 undefined (Red Hat especially)</a>
[1968]83</ul>
[2114]84<li><a name="toc_Problems"></a>
85    <a href="#Problems">4 Problems</a>
[1526]86<ul>
87<li><a href="#Section%204.1">4.1 My fans report exactly half/double their values compared to the BIOS?</a>
88<ul>
89<li><a href="#Section%204.1">4.1.1 Fans sometimes/always read 0!!</a>
90<li><a href="#Section%204.1">4.1.2 I doubled the fan divisor and the fan still reads 7000!</a>
[1968]91</ul>
[1526]92<li><a href="#Section%204.2">4.2 Why do my two LM75's report "-48 degrees"?</a>
93<li><a href="#Section%204.3">4.3 Why do I have two Vcore readings, I have only one processor!</a>
94<li><a href="#Section%204.4">4.4 How do those ALARMS work? The current value is within range but there is still an ALARM warning!</a>
95<li><a href="#Section%204.5">4.5 My voltage readings seem to drift a bit. Is something wrong?</a>
96<li><a href="#Section%204.6">4.6 Some measurements are way out of range. What happened?</a>
97<li><a href="#Section%204.7">4.7 What are VID lines? Why is the VID reading wrong?</a>
98<li><a href="#Section%204.8">4.8 I read sensor values several times a second, but they are only updated only each second or so. Why?</a>
99<li><a href="#Section%204.9">4.9 It sometimes seems to take almost a second before I see the sensor reading results. Why?</a>
100<li><a href="#Section%204.10">4.10 Can I be alerted when an ALARM occurs?</a>
101<li><a href="#Section%204.11">4.11 SMBus transactions on my PIIX4 simply don't work (timeouts happen).  Why?</a>
102<li><a href="#Section%204.12">4.12 My BIOS reports a much higher CPU temperature than your modules!</a>
103<li><a href="#Section%204.13">4.13 I try to read the raw <code>/proc</code> files, but the values are strange?!?</a>
104<li><a href="#Section%204.14">4.14 How do I set new limits?</a>
105<ul>
106<li><a href="#Section%204.14">4.14.1 I set new limits and it didn't work?</a>
[1968]107</ul>
[1526]108<li><a href="#Section%204.15">4.15 Some sensors are doubly detected?</a>
109<li><a href="#Section%204.16">4.16 I ran sensors-detect, but now I get very strange readings?!?</a>
110<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17 Bad readings from particular chips</a>
111<ul>
112<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.1 Bad readings from the AS99127F!</a>
113<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.2 Bad readings from the VIA 686A!</a>
114<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.3 Bad readings from the MTP008!</a>
115<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.4 Bad temperature readings from the SIS5595!</a>
116<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.5 Bad readings from a w8378[12]d!</a>
117<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.6 Bus hangs on Ali 1543 on Asus P5A boards!</a>
118<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.7 Bad readings from LM75!</a>
119<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.8 Bad readings from LM78!</a>
120<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.9 Bad readings from LM80!</a>
121<li><a href="#Section%204.17">4.17.10 Bad readings from it87!</a>
[1968]122</ul>
[1526]123<li><a href="#Section%204.18">4.18 How do I configure two chips (LM87) differently?</a>
124<li><a href="#Section%204.19">4.19 Dmesg says <code>Upgrade BIOS</code>! I don't want to!</a>
125<ul>
126<li><a href="#Section%204.19">4.19.1 Dmesg says <code>use force_addr=0xaddr</code>! What address do I use?</a>
[1968]127</ul>
128<li><a href="#Section%204.20">4.20 Sensors says <code>Can't access <code>/proc</code> file</code></a>
[1526]129<li><a href="#Section%204.21">4.21 Sensors says <code>No sensors found!</code></a>
130<li><a href="#Section%204.22">4.22 Sensors output is not correct!</a>
131<li><a href="#Section%204.23">4.23 What is at I2C address XXX?</a>
132<ul>
133<li><a href="#Section%204.23">4.23.1 What is at I2C address 0x69?</a>
134<li><a href="#Section%204.23">4.23.2 What is at I2C addresses 0x50 - 0x57?</a>
135<li><a href="#Section%204.23">4.23.3 What is at I2C addresses 0x30 - 0x37?</a>
[1968]136</ul>
[1526]137<li><a href="#Section%204.24">4.24 Sensors-detect doesn't work at all</a>
138<ul>
139<li><a href="#Section%204.24">4.24.1 Sensors-detect says "Couldn't open /proc/bus/i2c?!?"</a>
140<li><a href="#Section%204.24">4.24.2 Sensors-detect says "Can't open /dev/i2c[-/]0"</a>
141<li><a href="#Section%204.24">4.24.3 Sensors-detect doesn't find any sensors!</a>
[1968]142</ul>
[1526]143<li><a href="#Section%204.25">4.25 Sensors says <code>Error: Line xxx: zzzzzzz</code></a>
144<li><a href="#Section%204.26">4.26 Sensors only gives the name, adapter, and algorithm for my chip</a>
145<li><a href="#Section%204.27">4.27 Sensors says <code>ERROR: Can't get xxxxx data!</code></a>
146<li><a href="#Section%204.28">4.28 Sensors doesn't find any sensors, just eeproms.</a>
147<li><a href="#Section%204.29">4.29 Inserting modules hangs my board</a>
148<li><a href="#Section%204.30">4.30 Inserting modules slows down my board</a>
149<li><a href="#Section%204.31">4.31 Problems on particular motherboards</a>
150<ul>
151<li><a href="#Section%204.31">4.31.1 Asus P4B</a>
152<li><a href="#Section%204.31">4.31.2 Tyan 2460, 2462</a>
153<li><a href="#Section%204.31">4.31.3 Tyan 2466</a>
154<li><a href="#Section%204.31">4.31.4 Tyan 2688</a>
[1968]155</ul>
[1733]156<li><a href="#Section%204.32">4.32 Problems on particular systems</a>
[1968]157</ul>
[2114]158<li><a name="toc_Help"></a>
159    <a href="#Help">5 How to Ask for Help</a>
[1526]160<ul>
161<li><a href="#Section%205.1">5.1 What to send us when asking for help</a>
162<li><a href="#Section%205.2">5.2 What to do if a module won't insert?</a>
163<li><a href="#Section%205.3">5.3 What to do if it inserts, but nothing happens?</a>
164<li><a href="#Section%205.4">5.4 What to do if I read only bogus information?</a>
165<li><a href="#Section%205.5">5.5 What to do if you have other problems?</a>
166<li><a href="#Section%205.6">5.6 What if it just works like a charm?</a>
167<li><a href="#Section%205.7">5.7 How do I update a ticket?</a>
168<li><a href="#Section%205.8">5.8 How do I follow up on a ticket?</a>
[1968]169</ul>
[2114]170<li><a name="toc_Contribute"></a>
171    <a href="#Contribute">6 How to Contribute</a>
[1526]172<ul>
173<li><a href="#Section%206.1">6.1 How to write a driver</a>
174<li><a href="#Section%206.2">6.2 How to get CVS access</a>
175<li><a href="#Section%206.3">6.3 How to donate hardware to the project</a>
176<li><a href="#Section%206.4">6.4 How to join the project mailing list</a>
177<li><a href="#Section%206.5">6.5 How to access mailing list archives</a>
178<li><a href="#Section%206.6">6.6 How to submit a patch</a>
179<li><a href="#Section%206.7">6.7 How to REALLY help</a>
[2114]180<li><a href="#Section%206.8">6.8 How to get release announcements</a>
181<li><a href="#Section%206.9">6.9 How to block spam on the project mailing list</a>
[1968]182</ul>
[2114]183<li><a name="toc_Version%201%20Specifics"></a>
184    <a href="#Version%201%20Specifics">7 Version 1 Specific Questions</a>
[1526]185<ul>
186<li><a href="#Section%207.1">7.1 My manufacturer swears that my mainboard has an SMBus, but your code reports that it can't find it.  What's wrong?</a>
187<li><a href="#Section%207.2">7.2 The modules won't load, saying 'SMBus not detected'.</a>
188<li><a href="#Section%207.3">7.3 I try to read <code>/proc/sensors</code>, and I get a "No sensor data yet (try again in a few moments)" message. Why?</a>
189<li><a href="#Section%207.4">7.4 On my Dell, a LM80 is detected, but all readings are 0!</a>
[1968]190</ul>
[2114]191<li><a name="toc_Document%20Revisions"></a>
192    <a href="#Document%20Revisions">Appendix A Revision History of This Document</a>
[1968]193</ul>
[1526]194
195<p><hr>
196Node:<a name="Top">Top</a>,
[2114]197Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Overview">Overview</a>,
198Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#dir">(dir)</a>
[1526]199<br>
200
[2114]201<h2>lm_sensors</h2>
[1526]202
[1968]203<p>The lm_sensors package includes a collection of modules for general SMBus
[1526]204access and hardware monitoring.  NOTE: this requires special support which
205is not in standard 2.2-vintage kernels.
206
[1968]207<ul>
[2114]208<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Overview">Overview</a>:                 PC and Sensor Overview
209<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Basics">Basics</a>:                   Sensor and Bus Basics
210<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Installation">Installation</a>:             Installation and Management
211<li><a accesskey=4 href="#Problems">Problems</a>:                 Problems
212<li><a accesskey=5 href="#Help">Help</a>:                     How to Ask for Help
213<li><a accesskey=6 href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>:               How to Contribute
214<li><a accesskey=7 href="#Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>:      Version 1 Specific Questions
215<li><a accesskey=8 href="#Document%20Revisions">Document Revisions</a>:       Revision History of This Document
[1526]216</ul>
217
218<p><hr>
219Node:<a name="Overview">Overview</a>,
[2114]220Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Basics">Basics</a>,
221Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Top">Top</a>,
222Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]223<br>
224
[2114]225<h2>1 PC and Sensor Overview</h2>
[1526]226
[1968]227<ul>
[2114]228<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Section%201.1">Section 1.1</a>:              What sensors are available on my PC?
229<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Section%201.2">Section 1.2</a>:              What can a sensor chip like the "LM78" do?
230<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Section%201.3">Section 1.3</a>:              Where do I find out more about any of these chips?
[1526]231</ul>
232
233<p><hr>
234Node:<a name="Section%201.1">Section 1.1</a>,
[2114]235Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%201.2">Section 1.2</a>,
236Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Overview">Overview</a>
[1526]237<br>
238
[2114]239<h3>1.1 What sensors are available on my PC?</h3>
[1526]240
[1968]241<p>Most PC's built since late 1997 now come with a
[1526]242hardware health monitoring chip. This chip may be accessed via the
243ISA bus or the SMBus, depending on the motherboard.
244
[1968]245<p>Some motherboard chipsets, notably the Via 686 and the SiS 5595,
[1526]246contain hardware monitor functions.
247
[1968]248<p>This FAQ frequently refers to the "LM78". This chip has been
[1526]249obsoleted by National Semiconductor. Most motherboards today contain
250a chip with similar functions.
251
252<p><hr>
253Node:<a name="Section%201.2">Section 1.2</a>,
[2114]254Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%201.3">Section 1.3</a>,
255Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%201.1">Section 1.1</a>,
256Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Overview">Overview</a>
[1526]257<br>
258
[2114]259<h3>1.2 What can a sensor chip like the "LM78" do?</h3>
[1526]260
[1968]261<p>The LM78 is a chip made by National Semiconductor which can monitor 7
[1526]262voltages (5 positive, 2 negative) from 0 to 4.08V.  The inputs are usually in
263series with voltage dividers which lower the +/- 12V and +/- 5V supplies to
264measurable range.  Therefore, the readings for such inputs need to be
265re-scaled appropriately by software.
266
[1968]267<p>The LM78 also has 3 fan speed monitoring inputs, an internal
[1526]268temperature sensor, a chassis intrusion sensor, and a couple maskable interrupt
269inputs.  The LM78 can also relay the processor's (P6 or Pent II) VID lines
270which are hardwired and used to indicate to the power regulator (usually on
271the mainboard close to the processor socket/slot) what voltage to supply to
272the processor.
273
[1968]274<p>The LM78 can be interfaced to a system via the ISA bus and/or the
[1526]275SMBus.
276
[1968]277<p>Most other sensor chips have comparable functionality. Each supported
[1526]278chip is documented in the <code>doc/chips</code> directory.
279
280<p><hr>
281Node:<a name="Section%201.3">Section 1.3</a>,
[2114]282Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%201.2">Section 1.2</a>,
283Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Overview">Overview</a>
[1526]284<br>
285
[2114]286<h3>1.3 Where do I find out more about any of these chips?</h3>
[1526]287
[1968]288<p>Most semiconductor companies have comprehensive documentation,
[1526]289including complete datasheets, on their websites. Analog Devices,
290Dallas Semiconductor, Maxim, and National Semiconductor have the widest selection
291of sensor chips. Their websites are:
292
[1968]293<ul>
[1526]294  <li><a href="http://www.analog.com">http://www.analog.com</a>
295  <li><a href="http://www.dalsemi.com">http://www.dalsemi.com</a>
296  <li><a href="http://www.maxim-ic.com">http://www.maxim-ic.com</a>
297  <li><a href="http://www.national.com">http://www.national.com</a>
298</ul>
299
[1968]300<p>Please see the file <a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/useful_addresses.html">http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/useful_addresses.html</a>
[1526]301for links to other companies' websites.
302
303<p><hr>
304Node:<a name="Basics">Basics</a>,
[2114]305Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Installation">Installation</a>,
306Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Overview">Overview</a>,
307Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]308<br>
309
[2114]310<h2>2 Sensor and Bus Basics</h2>
[1526]311
[1968]312<ul>
[2114]313<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Section%202.1">Section 2.1</a>:              What sensors are available on my PC?
314<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Section%202.2">Section 2.2</a>:              What can a sensor chip like the "LM78" do?
315<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Section%202.3">Section 2.3</a>:              Where do I find out more about any of these chips?
316<li><a accesskey=4 href="#Section%202.4">Section 2.4</a>:              What sensors are available on my PC?
317<li><a accesskey=5 href="#Section%202.5">Section 2.5</a>:              What can a sensor chip like the "LM78" do?
318<li><a accesskey=6 href="#Section%202.6">Section 2.6</a>:              Where do I find out more about any of these chips?
[1526]319</ul>
320
321<p><hr>
322Node:<a name="Section%202.1">Section 2.1</a>,
[2114]323Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%202.2">Section 2.2</a>,
324Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Basics">Basics</a>
[1526]325<br>
326
[2114]327<h3>2.1 How are these sensors read?</h3>
[1526]328
[1968]329<p>Sensor chips reside on either the ISA bus, the SMBus, or both.
[1526]330See the file <code>doc/chips/SUMMARY</code> in our package for a list.
331
[1968]332<p>To communicate with chips on the ISA bus, the software uses
[1526]333simple I/O reads and writes.
334
[1968]335<p>To communicate with chips on the SMBus, the software must
[1526]336use an SMBus interface device, explained below.
337
338<p><hr>
339Node:<a name="Section%202.2">Section 2.2</a>,
[2114]340Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%202.3">Section 2.3</a>,
341Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%202.1">Section 2.1</a>,
342Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Basics">Basics</a>
[1526]343<br>
344
[2114]345<h3>2.2 What is the SMBus? And the I2C bus?</h3>
[1526]346
[1968]347<p>The SMBus is the "System Management Bus".  More specifically, it is a
[1526]3482-wire, low-speed serial communication bus used for basic health monitoring
349and hardware management. It is a specific implementation of the more
350general I2C (pronunciation: I-squared-C) bus. In fact, both I2C devices
351and SMBus devices may be connected to the same (I2C) bus.
352
[1968]353<p>The SMBus (or I2C bus) starts at the host controller, used for
[1526]354starting transactions on the SMBus.  From the host interface, the
355devices communicated with are the <dfn>slave</dfn> devices.  Each slave device has a
356unique 7-bit address which the host uses to refer to that device.
357
[1968]358<p>For each supported SMBus host, there is a separate kernel module
[1526]359which implements the communication protocol with the host. Some SMBus hosts
360really operate on the SMBus level; these hosts can not cope with pure I2C
361devices. Other hosts are in fact I2C hosts: in this case, we implement
362the SMBus protocol in terms of I2C operations. But these hosts can also
363talk to pure I2C devices.
364
365<p><hr>
366Node:<a name="Section%202.3">Section 2.3</a>,
[2114]367Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%202.4">Section 2.4</a>,
368Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%202.2">Section 2.2</a>,
369Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Basics">Basics</a>
[1526]370<br>
371
[2114]372<h3>2.3 I don't have an ISA bus!</h3>
[1526]373
[1968]374<p>We promise, you do, even if you don't have any old ISA slots.
[1526]375The "ISA Bus" exists in your computer even if you don't have ISA slots;
376it is simply a memory-mapped area, 64KB in size (0x0000 - 0xFFFF)
377where many "legacy" functions, such as keyboard and interrupt controllers,
378are found. It isn't necessarily a separate physical bus.
379See the file <code>/proc/ioports</code> for a list of devices living on
380the "ISA Bus" in your system. If you don't like the term "ISA Bus"
381think "I/O Space".
382
383<p><hr>
384Node:<a name="Section%202.4">Section 2.4</a>,
[2114]385Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%202.5">Section 2.5</a>,
386Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%202.3">Section 2.3</a>,
387Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Basics">Basics</a>
[1526]388<br>
389
[2114]390<h3>2.4 What sensors do processors have?</h3>
[1526]391
[1968]392<p>Most new processors contain a thermal diode on the die itself.
[1526]393The electical properties of all diodes and transistors vary
394slightly with temperature. The thermal diode is exceptionally accurate
395because it is directly on the die. Newer temperature sensor chips,
396like the Analog Devices ADM1021 and clones, and the Winbond chips,
397have circuitry for measuring the the electrical properties of
398an external diode and converting this data to a temperature.
399Any sensor chip listed in <code>doc/chips/SUMMARY</code> in our package which
400has support for more than one temperature supports external temperature sensing.
401
[1968]402<p>Older motherboards and processors without this feature generally use
[1526]403an LM75 placed close to the processor. This is much less accurate.
404
[1968]405<p>The Pentium 2 'boxed' processor usually has an LM75 very close to the
[1526]406base of the box. It can be read through the SMBus to report the approximate
407temperature of the processor.  The processor also contains an internal
408temperature sensor (of low accuracy) used as a fail-safe to disable the
409processor in case it gets much too hot (usually around 130 degrees C).  And,
410the Pentium 2 also has a hard-wired signal (VID lines) on it's SEC (single
411edge connector) which indicates what power supply is required to operate the
412processor.
413
[1968]414<p>The P6 (Pentium-Pro) may have an LM75 in or just under the socket.
[1526]415P6's also have VID lines.
416
[1968]417<p>Pentiums and Pentium w/ MMX do not have VID lines, and sometimes have
[1526]418LM75's under the sockets (depends on the mainboard, and how 'modern' the
419mainboard is).
420
[1968]421<p>The P2 Xeon was the first Intel processor to include the SMBus
[1526]422interface on the P2 Xeon SEC.
423
424<p><hr>
425Node:<a name="Section%202.5">Section 2.5</a>,
[2114]426Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%202.6">Section 2.6</a>,
427Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%202.4">Section 2.4</a>,
428Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Basics">Basics</a>
[1526]429<br>
430
[2114]431<h3>2.5 How often are the sensor values updated?</h3>
[1526]432
[1968]433<p>The LM78, and most other sensor chips like it, reads its sensors one
[1526]434by one. A complete scanning sweep will take about 1.5 seconds. The LM78 stops
435readings sensors if you try to access it, so if you access it very often
436(by reading sensor values; writing new limits is safe) it will not find the
437time to update its sensor values at all! Fortunately, the kernel module takes
438care not to do this, and only reads new values each 1.5 seconds. If you
439read the values again, you will get the 'old' values again.
440
441<p><hr>
442Node:<a name="Section%202.6">Section 2.6</a>,
[2114]443Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%202.5">Section 2.5</a>,
444Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Basics">Basics</a>
[1526]445<br>
446
[2114]447<h3>2.6 How are alarms triggered?</h3>
[1526]448
[1968]449<p>It is possible to monitor each sensor and have an alarm go off if
[1526]450it crosses some pre-determined limits.  There are two sorts of interrupts
451which can be generated by sensor chips if this happens (it depends a bit on
452the actual chip if both are supported; the LM80, for example, has only
453IRQ interrupts): IRQ interrupts and SMI interrupts.  IRQ stands for
454Interrupt Request and are the interrupt lines you can find in <code>/proc/interrupts</code>.
455SMI stands for System Management Interrupt, and is a special interrupt which
456puts the processor in a secure environment independent of any other things
457running.  SMI is currently not supported by the Linux kernel.  IRQs are
458supported, of course.
459
[1968]460<p>Even if no interrupt is generated, some bits in a status register
[1526]461will be set until the register is read the next time. If the alarm condition
462persists after that, the bits will be set on the next scanning sweep, etc.
463
[1968]464<p>Most drivers in our package do not support interrupts at this time.
[1526]465
466<p><hr>
467Node:<a name="Installation">Installation</a>,
[2114]468Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Problems">Problems</a>,
469Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Basics">Basics</a>,
470Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]471<br>
472
[2114]473<h2>3 Installation and Management</h2>
[1526]474
[1968]475<ul>
[2114]476<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Section%203.1">Section 3.1</a>:      Why so many modules, and how do I cope with them?
477<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Section%203.2">Section 3.2</a>:      How do I know which chips I own?
478<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Section%203.3">Section 3.3</a>:      Which modules should I insert?
479<li><a accesskey=4 href="#Section%203.4">Section 3.4</a>:      Do I need the configuration file <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>?
480<li><a accesskey=5 href="#Section%203.5">Section 3.5</a>:      What about the <code>No such file or directory</code> warnings
481<li><a accesskey=6 href="#Section%203.6">Section 3.6</a>:      I get all kinds of weird compilation errors?
482<li><a accesskey=7 href="#Section%203.7">Section 3.7</a>:      It still does not compile or patch!
483<li><a accesskey=8 href="#Section%203.8">Section 3.8</a>:      <code>make install</code> fails on Mandrake kernels
484<li><a accesskey=9 href="#Section%203.9">Section 3.9</a>:      I get unresolved symbols when I <code>modprobe</code> modules
[1526]485<li><a href="#Section%203.10">Section 3.10</a>:     I2C_DRIVERID_ADM1024 undefined (Red Hat especially)
486</ul>
487
488<p><hr>
489Node:<a name="Section%203.1">Section 3.1</a>,
[2114]490Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.2">Section 3.2</a>,
491Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]492<br>
493
[2114]494<h3>3.1 Why so many modules, and how do I cope with them?</h3>
[1526]495
[1968]496<p>We tried to make this package as modular as possible. This makes it
[1526]497easy to add new drivers, and unused drivers will take no precious kernel
498space. On the other hand, it can be a bit confusing at first.
499
[1968]500<p>Here are two simple guidelines:
501<ul>
[1526]502  <li>Run <code>sensors-detect</code> and do what it tells you.
503  <li>Always use <code>modprobe</code>, not <code>insmod</code>.
504</ul>
505
[1968]506<p>Further information is in <code>doc/modules</code>.
[1526]507
[1968]508<p><a name="How%20do%20I%20know%20which%20chips%20I%20own"></a>
[1526]509<p><hr>
510Node:<a name="Section%203.2">Section 3.2</a>,
[2114]511Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.3">Section 3.3</a>,
512Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.1">Section 3.1</a>,
513Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]514<br>
515
[2114]516<h3>3.2 How do I know which chips I own?</h3>
[1526]517
[1968]518<p>We have an excellent program that scans all your hardware.
[1526]519It is called <code>sensors-detect</code> and is installed in <code>/usr/local/sbin</code>
520by <code>make install</code>. Just execute this script, and it will tell you.
521
[1968]522<p>Chip detection in the drivers is fairly good. That means that it is
[1526]523usually harmless to insert more chip drivers than you need. However, this
524can still lead to problems, so we do not recommend it.
525
[1968]526<p>If sensors-detect didn't find any sensors, either you don't have
[1526]527any, or the ones you have, we don't support. (Look at your motherboard
528for candidates, then see <a href="#Help">Help</a>)
529
[1968]530<p><a name="Section%203.2.1"></a>
[1526]531
[2114]532<h4>3.2.1 What chips are on motherboard XYZ?</h4>
[1526]533
[1968]534<p><strong>!!!!!!!!! YES THIS IS THE MOST FREQUENT QUESTION WE GET !!!!!!!!!</strong>
[1526]535
[1968]536<p>We have no idea. Here is what you should do:
537<ol type=1 start=1>
538  </p><li>Run sensors-detect.
539</ol>
[1526]540
[1968]541<p>If that doesn't work:
542<ol type=1 start=2>
543</p><li>Look at your motherboard.
[1526]544<li>Check the manufacturer's website or ask their support
545<li>Check the <a href="http://mbm.livewiredev.com/">Motherboard Monitor</a> website and the
546<a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/cvs/lm_sensors2/doc/useful_addresses.html">"links"</a>
547page on <a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/">our website</a> some good cross-references.
[1968]548</ol>
[1526]549
[1968]550<p><a name="Section%203.2.2"></a>
[1526]551
[2114]552<h4>3.2.2 Do you support motherboard XYZ?</h4>
[1526]553
[1968]554<p>We don't support boards, we support chips. See <a href="#Section%203.2.1">What chips are on motherboard XYZ</a>.
[1526]555
[1968]556<p><a name="Section%203.2.3"></a>
[1526]557
[2114]558<h4>3.2.3 Do you support chip XYZ?</h4>
[1526]559
[1968]560<p>This we have good answers for.
561<ul>
[1526]562<li>Sorted by Manufacturer:   <code>README</code>
563<li>Sorted by Manufacturer:   <a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/supported.html">http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/supported.html</a>
564<li>Sorted by Sensor Driver:  <code>doc/chips/SUMMARY</code>
565<li>Newest Driver Status:     <a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/newdrivers.html">http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/newdrivers.html</a>
566</ul>
567
[1968]568<p><a name="Section%203.2.4"></a>
[1526]569
[2114]570<h4>3.2.4 Anybody working on a driver for chip XYZ?</h4>
[1526]571
[1968]572<p>Newest Driver Status: <a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/newdrivers.html">http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/newdrivers.html</a>
[1526]573
574<p><hr>
575Node:<a name="Section%203.3">Section 3.3</a>,
[2114]576Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.4">Section 3.4</a>,
577Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.2">Section 3.2</a>,
578Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]579<br>
580
[2114]581<h3>3.3 Which modules should I insert?</h3>
[1526]582
[1968]583<p><code>sensors-detect</code> will tell you. Take the <code>modprobe</code> lines it
[1526]584recommends and paste them into the appropriate <code>/etc/rc.d/xxxx</code> file
585to be executed at startup.
586
[1968]587<p>You need one module for each sensor chip and bus adapter you own;
[1526]588if there are sensor chips on the ISA bus, you also need <code>i2c-isa.o</code>.
589for each type of chip you own. That's all. On my computer, I could use the
590following lines:
[1968]591<ul>
[1526]592<li><code>modprobe i2c-isa</code>
593<li><code>modprobe i2c-piix4</code>
594<li><code>modprobe lm78</code>
595<li><code>modprobe lm75</code>
596<li><code>modprobe i2c-dev</code>
597<li><code>sensors -s</code>
598</ul>
599
600<p><hr>
601Node:<a name="Section%203.4">Section 3.4</a>,
[2114]602Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.5">Section 3.5</a>,
603Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.3">Section 3.3</a>,
604Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]605<br>
606
[2114]607<h3>3.4 Do I need the configuration file <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>?</h3>
[1526]608
[1968]609<p>Yes, for any applications that use <code>libsensors,</code> including the
[1526]610<code>sensors</code> application included in our package.
611It tells libsensors how to translate the values the chip
612measures to real-world values. This is especially important for voltage
613inputs. The default configuration file should usually do the trick.
614It is automatically installed as <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>, but it will not
615overwrite any existing file with that name.
616
[1968]617<p><a name="Section%203.4.1"></a>
[1526]618
[2114]619<h4>3.4.1 The labels for the voltage and temperature readings in <code>sensors</code> are incorrect!</h4>
[1526]620
[1968]621<p>Every motherboard is different. You can customize the labels
[1526]622in the file <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>. That's why it exists!
623The default labelling (in <code>lib/chips.c</code> and <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>) is just
624a template.
625
[1968]626<p><a name="Section%203.4.2"></a>
[1526]627
[2114]628<h4>3.4.2 The min and max for the readings in <code>sensors</code> are incorrect!</h4>
[1526]629
[1968]630<p>You can customize them in the file <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>. See above.
[1526]631
[1968]632<p><a name="Section%203.4.3"></a>
[1526]633
[2114]634<h4>3.4.3 The min and max settings in <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code> didn't take effect!</h4>
[1526]635
[1968]636<p>You forgot to run <code>sensors -s</code>. See above.
[1526]637
[1968]638<p><a name="Section%203.4.4"></a>
[1526]639
[2114]640<h4>3.4.4 One sensor isn't hooked up on my board!</h4>
[1526]641
[1968]642<p>Use an <code>ignore</code> line in <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code> so it isn't
[1526]643displayed in <code>sensors</code>.
644
[1968]645<p><a name="Section%203.4.5"></a>
[1526]646
[2114]647<h4>3.4.5 I need help with <code>sensors.conf</code>!</h4>
[1526]648
[1968]649<p>There is detailed help at the top of that file.
[1526]650
[1968]651<p><a name="Section%203.4.6"></a>
[1526]652
[2114]653<h4>3.4.6 Do you have a database of <code>sensors.conf</code> entries for specific boards?</h4>
[1526]654
[1968]655<p>No. Good idea though. If you would like to set one up on your website
[1526]656send us mail and we will set up a link to it.
657
658<p><hr>
659Node:<a name="Section%203.5">Section 3.5</a>,
[2114]660Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.6">Section 3.6</a>,
661Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.4">Section 3.4</a>,
662Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]663<br>
664
[2114]665<h3>3.5 What about the <code>No such file or directory</code> warnings when I compile?</h3>
[1526]666
[1968]667<p>Don't worry about them. The dependency files (which tell which
[1526]668files should be recompiled when certain files change) are created
669dynamically. They are not distributed with the package. The <code>make</code> program
670notices they are not there, and warns about that - and the first thing
671it will do is generate them. So all is well.
672
673<p><hr>
674Node:<a name="Section%203.6">Section 3.6</a>,
[2114]675Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.7">Section 3.7</a>,
676Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.5">Section 3.5</a>,
677Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]678<br>
679
[2114]680<h3>3.6 I get all kinds of weird compilation errors?</h3>
[1526]681
[1968]682<p>Check that the correct i2c header files are used. Depending on
[1526]683how you installed, they should be under either <code>/usr/local/include</code> or
684<code>/usr/src/linux*/include</code>. Try to edit the <code>Makefile</code> for the other setting.
685
[1968]686<p><a name="Section%203.6.1"></a>
[1526]687
[2114]688<h4>3.6.1 <code>No rule to make target xxxx needed by xxxx</code> - how to fix?</h4>
[1526]689
[1968]690<ul>
[1526]691<li>See <a href="#Section%203.6">I get all kinds of weird compilation errors</a>, also try <code>make clean</code> in <code>lm_sensors</code>.
692<li>If that doesn't work, try <code>make clean</code> in <code>i2c</code>.
693<li>If that doesn't work, try <code>make clean</code> in the kernel.
694<li>Also make sure <code>/usr/include/linux</code> points to <code>/usr/src/linux/include/linux</code>.
695</ul>
696
697<p><hr>
698Node:<a name="Section%203.7">Section 3.7</a>,
[2114]699Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.8">Section 3.8</a>,
700Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.6">Section 3.6</a>,
701Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]702<br>
703
[2114]704<h3>3.7 It still does not compile or patch!</h3>
[1526]705
[1968]706<p>Have you installed the matching version of the i2c package? Remember,
[1526]707compilation is not enough, you also need to install it for the header
708files to be found!
709
[1968]710<p>If you want to patch the kernel, you will have to apply the i2c
[1526]711patches first!
712
713<p><hr>
714Node:<a name="Section%203.8">Section 3.8</a>,
[2114]715Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.9">Section 3.9</a>,
716Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.7">Section 3.7</a>,
717Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]718<br>
719
[2114]720<h3>3.8 <code>make install</code> fails on Mandrake kernels</h3>
[1526]721
[1968]722<p>Mandrake uses a non-standard <code>version.h</code> file which confuses our <code>Makefile</code>.
[1526]723Edit our <code>Makefile</code> on the <code>MODDIR :=</code> line to hard-code the module directory.
724
725<p><hr>
726Node:<a name="Section%203.9">Section 3.9</a>,
[2114]727Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%203.10">Section 3.10</a>,
728Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.8">Section 3.8</a>,
729Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]730<br>
731
[2114]732<h3>3.9 I get unresolved symbols when I <code>modprobe</code> modules (Red Hat especially)</h3>
[1526]733
[1968]734<p>Example:
[2114]735<br><pre>*** Unresolved symbols in /lib/modules/2.4.5/kernel/drivers/i2c/i2c-i810.o
[1968]736i2c_bit_add_bus_R8c3bc60e
737i2c_bit_del_bus_R92b18f49
738</pre>
[1526]739
[1968]740<p>You can also run <code>depmod -a -e</code> to see all unresolved symbols.
[1526]741
[1968]742<p>These are module versioning problems. Generally you did not compile
[1526]743against the kernel you are running. Sometimes the Red Hat source you
744have is not for the kernel you are running.
745You must compile our package against the source for the kernel you
746are running with something like <code>make LINUX=/usr/src/linux-2.4.14</code>.
747
[1968]748<p>Try the following to be sure:
[1526]749
[1968]750<ul>
[1526]751<li><code>nm --extern MODULE.o</code>
752Filter out the kernel symbols, like <code>kmalloc</code>, <code>printk</code> etc. and note the
753number code behind them, like <code>printk_R1b7d4074</code>. If there is no numeric
754code after them, note this too.
755<li><code>grep SYMBOL /proc/ksyms</code>
756Substitute SYMBOL by the basename of the symbols above, like <code>kmalloc</code>,
757<code>printk</code> etc. Note the number code behind them, or the lack thereof.
758<li>Compare both sets of symbols. Are they the same? If so, the problem
759lies somewhere else. Are they different? If so, you have a module
760versioning problem.
761</ul>
762
763<p><hr>
764Node:<a name="Section%203.10">Section 3.10</a>,
[2114]765Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%203.9">Section 3.9</a>,
766Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Installation">Installation</a>
[1526]767<br>
768
[2114]769<h3>3.10 I2C_DRIVERID_ADM1024 undefined (Red Hat especially)</h3>
[1526]770
[1968]771<p>In some versions of Redhat, an RPM is included to provide i2c support.
[1526]772However, this RPM does not place the header files in the kernel directory
773structure.  When you update kernels, they may persist.  To get rid of
774these obsolete header files, at a command prompt:
775
[1968]776<ol type=1 start=1>
777</p><li><code>rpm -qa | grep i2c</code>
[1526]778<li>Look for <code>kernel-i2c,</code> or a similar rpm in the output
779<li>&lt;as root&gt;
780<code>rpm -ev kernel-i2c</code> (or the name of the similar package)
781If this complains about dependencies, you can try adding
782<code>--nodeps</code>, but this *MAY* break something else.  Not likely,
783as you have upgraded kernels, and nothing should be using the
784old i2c stuff anymore anyway.  Just don't use it with abandon.
785<li>Try (in the build directory of <code>lm_sensors)</code>
[2114]786<br><pre><code>make clean</code>
[1968]787<code>make</code>
788</pre>
789<li><em>If</em> you still have problems, you may have to replace the include
[1526]790paths in the <code>.c/.h</code> files with absolute paths to the header files.
791More of a workaround than a real fix, but at least you can get it
792to work.
[1968]793</ol>
[1526]794
795<p><hr>
796Node:<a name="Problems">Problems</a>,
[2114]797Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Help">Help</a>,
798Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Installation">Installation</a>,
799Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]800<br>
801
[2114]802<h2>4 Problems</h2>
[1526]803
[1968]804<ul>
[2114]805<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Section%204.1">Section 4.1</a>:          My fans report exactly half/double their values?
806<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Section%204.2">Section 4.2</a>:          Why do my two LM75's report "-48 degrees"?
807<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Section%204.3">Section 4.3</a>:          Why do I have two Vcore readings?
808<li><a accesskey=4 href="#Section%204.4">Section 4.4</a>:          How do those ALARMS work?
809<li><a accesskey=5 href="#Section%204.5">Section 4.5</a>:          My voltage readings seem to drift a bit. What's wrong?
810<li><a accesskey=6 href="#Section%204.6">Section 4.6</a>:          Some measurements are way out of range. What happened?
811<li><a accesskey=7 href="#Section%204.7">Section 4.7</a>:          What are VID lines? Why is the VID reading wrong?
812<li><a accesskey=8 href="#Section%204.8">Section 4.8</a>:          Sensor are only updated each second or so. Why?
813<li><a accesskey=9 href="#Section%204.9">Section 4.9</a>:          It takes a second before reading sensor results. Why?
[1526]814<li><a href="#Section%204.10">Section 4.10</a>:         Can I be alerted when an ALARM occurs?
815<li><a href="#Section%204.11">Section 4.11</a>:         SMBus transactions on my PIIX4 simply don't work. Why?
816<li><a href="#Section%204.12">Section 4.12</a>:         My BIOS reports a higher CPU temperature than you!
817<li><a href="#Section%204.13">Section 4.13</a>:         I read strange values from the raw <code>/proc</code> files!
818<li><a href="#Section%204.14">Section 4.14</a>:         How do I set new limits?
819<li><a href="#Section%204.15">Section 4.15</a>:         Some sensors are doubly detected?
820<li><a href="#Section%204.16">Section 4.16</a>:         I ran sensors-detect, but now I get strange readings?!
821<li><a href="#Section%204.17">Section 4.17</a>:         Bad readings from particular chips
822<li><a href="#Section%204.18">Section 4.18</a>:         How do I configure two chips (LM87) differently?
823<li><a href="#Section%204.19">Section 4.19</a>:         Dmesg says <code>Upgrade BIOS</code>! I don't want to!
[1968]824<li><a href="#Section%204.20">Section 4.20</a>:         Sensors says <code>Can't access <code>/proc</code> file</code>
[1526]825<li><a href="#Section%204.21">Section 4.21</a>:         Sensors says <code>No sensors found!</code>
826<li><a href="#Section%204.22">Section 4.22</a>:         Sensors output is not correct!
827<li><a href="#Section%204.23">Section 4.23</a>:         What is at I2C address XXX?
828<li><a href="#Section%204.24">Section 4.24</a>:         Sensors-detect doesn't work at all
829<li><a href="#Section%204.25">Section 4.25</a>:         Sensors says <code>Error: Line xxx: zzzzzzz</code>
830<li><a href="#Section%204.26">Section 4.26</a>:         Sensors only gives the name, adapter, and algorithm!
831<li><a href="#Section%204.27">Section 4.27</a>:         Sensors says <code>ERROR: Can't get xxxxx data!</code>
832<li><a href="#Section%204.28">Section 4.28</a>:         Sensors doesn't find any sensors, just eeproms.
833<li><a href="#Section%204.29">Section 4.29</a>:         Inserting modules hangs my board
834<li><a href="#Section%204.30">Section 4.30</a>:         Inserting modules slows down my board
835<li><a href="#Section%204.31">Section 4.31</a>:         Problems on particular motherboards
[1733]836<li><a href="#Section%204.32">Section 4.32</a>:         Problems on particular systems
[1526]837</ul>
838
839<p><hr>
840Node:<a name="Section%204.1">Section 4.1</a>,
[2114]841Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.2">Section 4.2</a>,
842Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]843<br>
844
[2114]845<h3>4.1 My fans report exactly half/double their values compared to the BIOS?</h3>
[1526]846
[1968]847<p>The problem with much of the sensor data is that it is impossible to
[1526]848properly interpret some of the readings without knowing what the hardware
849configuration is.  Some fans report one 'tick' each rotation, some report
850two 'ticks' each rotation. It is easy to resolve this through the
851configuration file <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>:
852
[2114]853<br><pre>chip lm78-*             # Or whatever chip this relates to
[1968]854compute fan1 2*@,@/2    # This will double the fan1 reading
855                        # -- or --
856compute fan1 @/2,2*@    # This will halve the fan1 reading
857</pre>
[1526]858
[1968]859<p>See <code>doc/fan-divisors</code> in our package for further information.
[1526]860
[1968]861<p><a name="Fans%20sometimes%2falways%20read%200!"></a>
[1526]862
[2114]863<h4>4.1.1 Fans sometimes/always read 0!!</h4>
[1526]864
[1968]865<p>You may not have a three-wire fan, which is required.
[1526]866
[1968]867<p>You may need to increase the 'fan divisor'. See <code>doc/fan-divisors</code>
[1526]868in our package for further information.
869
[1968]870<p><a name="I%20doubled%20the%20fan%20divisor%20and%20the%20fan%20still%20reads%207000"></a>
[1526]871
[2114]872<h4>4.1.2 I doubled the fan divisor and the fan still reads 7000!</h4>
[1526]873
[1968]874<p>Believe it or not, doubling the 'fan divisor' will not halve
[1526]875the fan reading. You have to add a compute line in <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>.
876See <a href="#Section%204.1">My fans report exactly half/double their values compared to the BIOS</a>,
877and see <code>doc/fan-divisors</code> in our package for further information.
878
879<p><hr>
880Node:<a name="Section%204.2">Section 4.2</a>,
[2114]881Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.3">Section 4.3</a>,
882Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.1">Section 4.1</a>,
883Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]884<br>
885
[2114]886<h3>4.2 Why do my two LM75's report "-48 degrees"?</h3>
[1526]887
[1968]888<p>For starters, those aren't LM75's.  Your mainboard actually has the
[1526]889Winbond W83781D which emulates two LM75's, but many systems which use the
890Winbond chip (such as the Asus P2B) don't have the thermo-resisters connected
891to the chip resulting in these strange -48 degree readings.
892
[1968]893<p>If you have an Asus P2B and want more information on adding thermal sensing capability, check out:
[1526]894<a href="http://ultimatepc.fsn.net/techinfo/p2bthermistor/p2bthermistor.htm">http://ultimatepc.fsn.net/techinfo/p2bthermistor/p2bthermistor.htm</a>
895
[1968]896<p>In upcoming versions, you will be able to disable non-interesting
[1526]897readings.
898
899<p><hr>
900Node:<a name="Section%204.3">Section 4.3</a>,
[2114]901Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.4">Section 4.4</a>,
902Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.2">Section 4.2</a>,
903Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]904<br>
905
[2114]906<h3>4.3 Why do I have two Vcore readings, I have only one processor!</h3>
[1526]907
[1968]908<p>The LM78 has seven voltage sensors. The default way of
[1526]909connecting them is used in the configuration file. This includes a VCore2,
910even if you do not have one. You can easily edit the configuration file
911to give it another name, or make this reading disappear using
912an <code>ignore</code> line.
913
[1968]914<p>Note that Vcore2 is often the same as Vcore on motherboards which
[1526]915only support one processor. Another possibility is that Vcore2 is not
916connected at all and will not have a valid reading at all.
917A third possibility, is that Vcore2 monitors something
918else, so you should not be too surprised if the values are completely
919different.
920
921<p><hr>
922Node:<a name="Section%204.4">Section 4.4</a>,
[2114]923Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.5">Section 4.5</a>,
924Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.3">Section 4.3</a>,
925Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]926<br>
927
[2114]928<h3>4.4 How do those ALARMS work? The current value is within range but there is still an ALARM warning!</h3>
[1526]929
[1968]930<p>The ALARM indications in <code>sensors</code> are those reported by the
[1526]931sensor chip itself. They are NOT calculated by <code>sensors</code>. <code>sensors</code>
932simply reads the ALARM bits and reports them.
933
[1968]934<p>An ALARM will go off when a minimum or maximum limit is crossed.
[1526]935The ALARM is then latched - that is, it will stay there until the
936chip's registers are next accessed - which will be the next time
937you read these values, but not within (usually) 1.5 seconds since the last
938update.
939
[1968]940<p>Reading the registers clears the ALARMS, unless the current
[1526]941value is still out of range.
942
[1968]943<p>The purpose of this scheme is to tell you if there has been
[1526]944a problem and report it to the user. Voltage or temperature spikes
945get detected without having to read the sensor chip hundreds of times
946a second. The implemetation details depend a bit on the kind of chip.
947See the specific chip documentation in <code>doc/chips</code> and the
948chip datasheet for more information.
949
950<p><hr>
951Node:<a name="Section%204.5">Section 4.5</a>,
[2114]952Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.6">Section 4.6</a>,
953Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.4">Section 4.4</a>,
954Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]955<br>
956
[2114]957<h3>4.5 My voltage readings seem to drift a bit. Is something wrong?</h3>
[1526]958
[1968]959<p>No, probably not. If your motherboard heats up a bit, the sensed
[1526]960voltages will drift a bit. If your power supply is loaded (because a disk
961gets going, for example), the voltages may get a bit lower. Heavy
962processor activity, in particular, dramatically increases core voltage
963supply load which will often cause variation in the other supplies.
964As long as they stay within a sensible range (say 5% of the nominal value
965for CPU core voltages, and 10% for other voltages), there is no
966reason to worry.
967
968<p><hr>
969Node:<a name="Section%204.6">Section 4.6</a>,
[2114]970Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.7">Section 4.7</a>,
971Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.5">Section 4.5</a>,
972Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]973<br>
974
[2114]975<h3>4.6 Some measurements are way out of range. What happened?</h3>
[1526]976
[1968]977<p>Each module tries to set limits to sensible values on initialization,
[1526]978but a module does not know how a chip is actually connected. This is
979described in the configuration file, which is not read by kernel modules.
980So limits can be strange, if the chip is connected in a non-standard way.
981
[1968]982<p>Readings can also be strange; there are several reasons for this.
[1526]983Temperature sensors, for example, can simply not be present, even though
984the chip supports them. Also, it can be that the input is used in a
985non-standard way. You can use the configuration file to describe how this
986measurement should be interpreted; see the comments the example file for
987more information.
988
989<p><hr>
990Node:<a name="Section%204.7">Section 4.7</a>,
[2114]991Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.8">Section 4.8</a>,
992Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.6">Section 4.6</a>,
993Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]994<br>
995
[2114]996<h3>4.7 What are VID lines? Why is the VID reading wrong?</h3>
[1526]997
[1968]998<p>These describe the core voltage for your processor. They are
[1526]999supported for most processors, however they are not always
1000correctly connected to the sensor chip, so the readings may be invalid.
1001A reading of 0V, +3.5V or +2.05V is especially suspect.
1002If this is the case, add a line <code>ignore vid</code> to <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>,
1003and change the min and max settings for the Processor Core voltage
1004(often in0_min and in0_max) in that file so that they don't depend on vid.
1005
1006<p><hr>
1007Node:<a name="Section%204.8">Section 4.8</a>,
[2114]1008Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.9">Section 4.9</a>,
1009Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.7">Section 4.7</a>,
1010Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1011<br>
1012
[2114]1013<h3>4.8 I read sensor values several times a second, but they are only updated only each second or so. Why?</h3>
[1526]1014
[1968]1015<p>If we would read the registers more often, it would not find the
[1526]1016time to update them. So we only update our readings once each 1.5 seconds
1017(the actual delay is chip-specific; for some chips, it may not be needed
1018at all).
1019
1020<p><hr>
1021Node:<a name="Section%204.9">Section 4.9</a>,
[2114]1022Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.10">Section 4.10</a>,
1023Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.8">Section 4.8</a>,
1024Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1025<br>
1026
[2114]1027<h3>4.9 It sometimes seems to take almost a second before I see the sensor reading results. Why?</h3>
[1526]1028
[1968]1029<p>ISA bus access is fast, but SMBus access is really slow. If you have
[1526]1030a lot of sensors, it just takes a lot of time to access them. Fortunately,
1031this has almost no impact on the system as a whole, as another job can run
1032while we are waiting for the transaction to finish.
1033
1034<p><hr>
1035Node:<a name="Section%204.10">Section 4.10</a>,
[2114]1036Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.11">Section 4.11</a>,
1037Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.9">Section 4.9</a>,
1038Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1039<br>
1040
[2114]1041<h3>4.10 Can I be alerted when an ALARM occurs?</h3>
[1526]1042
[1968]1043<p>No, you can't; and it may well be never supported.
[1526]1044
[1968]1045<p>Almost no mainboard we have encountered have actually connected the
[1526]1046IRQ-out pin of sensor chips. That means that we could enable IRQ reporting, but
1047nothing would happen. Also, even if a motherboard has it connected, it is
1048unclear what interrupt number would be triggered. And IRQ lines are a scarce
1049facility, which means that almost nobody would be able to use it anyway.
1050
[1968]1051<p>The SMI interrupt is only available on a few types of chips. It is
[1526]1052really a very obscure way to handle interrupts, and supporting it under Linux
1053might be quite hard to do.
1054
[1968]1055<p>Your best bet would be to poll the alarm file with a user-land daemon
[1526]1056which alerts you if an alarm is raised. I am not aware of any program which
1057does the job, though you might want to examine one of the graphical monitor
1058programs under X, see <a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/useful_addresses.html">http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/useful_addresses.html</a> for addresses.
1059
1060<p><hr>
1061Node:<a name="Section%204.11">Section 4.11</a>,
[2114]1062Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.12">Section 4.12</a>,
1063Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.10">Section 4.10</a>,
1064Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1065<br>
1066
[2114]1067<h3>4.11 SMBus transactions on my PIIX4 simply don't work (timeouts happen).  Why?</h3>
[1526]1068
[1968]1069<p>Some chips which mainboard makers connect to the SMBus are not SMBus
[1526]1070devices.  An example is the 91xx clock generator chips.  When read, these
1071devices can lock up the SMBus until the next hard reboot.  This is because
1072they have a similar serial interface (like the I2C), but don't conform to
1073Intel's SMBus standard.
1074
[1968]1075<p>Why did they connect these devices to the SMBus if they aren't
[1526]1076compatible?  Good question! :')  Actually, these devices may support being
1077written to, but lock things up when they are read.
1078
1079<p><hr>
1080Node:<a name="Section%204.12">Section 4.12</a>,
[2114]1081Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.13">Section 4.13</a>,
1082Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.11">Section 4.11</a>,
1083Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1084<br>
1085
[2114]1086<h3>4.12 My BIOS reports a much higher CPU temperature than your modules!</h3>
[1526]1087
[1968]1088<p>We display the actual temperature of the sensor. This may not be the
[1526]1089temperature you are interested in, though.  If a sensor should measure
1090the CPU temperature, it must be in thermal contact with it.  In practice,
1091it is just somewhere near it. Your BIOS may correct for this (by adding,
1092for example, thirty degrees to the measured temperature).  The correction
1093factor is regrettably different for each mainboard, so we can not do this
1094in the module itself. You can do it through the configuration file, though:
1095
[2114]1096<br><pre>chip lm75-*-49                      # Or whatever chip this relates to
[1968]1097label temp "Processor"
1098compute temp @*1.2+13,(@-13)/1.2    # Or whatever formula
1099</pre>
[1526]1100
1101<p><hr>
1102Node:<a name="Section%204.13">Section 4.13</a>,
[2114]1103Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.14">Section 4.14</a>,
1104Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.12">Section 4.12</a>,
1105Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1106<br>
1107
[2114]1108<h3>4.13 I try to read the raw <code>/proc</code> files, but the values are strange?!?</h3>
[1526]1109
[1968]1110<p>Remember, these values do not take the configuration file
[1526]1111<code>compute</code> lines in account. This is especially obvious for voltage readings
1112(usually called in? or vin?). Use a program linked to libsensors (like
1113the provided <code>sensors</code> program) instead.
1114
1115<p><hr>
1116Node:<a name="Section%204.14">Section 4.14</a>,
[2114]1117Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.15">Section 4.15</a>,
1118Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.13">Section 4.13</a>,
1119Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1120<br>
1121
[2114]1122<h3>4.14 How do I set new limits?</h3>
[1526]1123
[1968]1124<p>Change the limit values in <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code> and then run
[1526]1125<code>sensors -s</code>.
1126
[1968]1127<p><a name="I%20set%20new%20limits%20and%20it%20didnt%20work"></a>
[1526]1128
[2114]1129<h4>4.14.1 I set new limits and it didn't work?</h4>
[1526]1130
[1968]1131<p>You forgot to run <code>sensors -s</code>. Put it in a <code>/etc/rc.d/...</code> file
[1526]1132after the modprobe lines to run at startup.
1133
1134<p><hr>
1135Node:<a name="Section%204.15">Section 4.15</a>,
[2114]1136Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.16">Section 4.16</a>,
1137Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.14">Section 4.14</a>,
1138Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1139<br>
1140
[2114]1141<h3>4.15 Some sensors are doubly detected?</h3>
[1526]1142
[1968]1143<p>Yes, this is still a problem. It is partially solved by alias detection
[1526]1144and confidence values in sensors-detect, but it is really tough.
1145
[1968]1146<p>Double detections can be caused by two things:
[1526]1147sensors can be detected to both the ISA and the SMBus (and if you have
1148loaded the approprate adapter drivers, it will be detected on both), and
1149some chips simulate other chips (the Winbond W83781D simulates LM75 chips
1150on the SMBus, for example). Remove the offending adapter or chip driver, or
1151run sensors-detect and add the <code>ignore=</code> modprobe parameters it suggests.
1152
1153<p><hr>
1154Node:<a name="Section%204.16">Section 4.16</a>,
[2114]1155Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.17">Section 4.17</a>,
1156Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.15">Section 4.15</a>,
1157Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1158<br>
1159
[2114]1160<h3>4.16 I ran sensors-detect, but now I get very strange readings?!?</h3>
[1526]1161
[1968]1162<p>Your SMBus (PIIX4?) is probably crashed or hung. There are some mainboards
[1526]1163which connect a clock chip to the SMBus. Unfortunately, this clock chip
1164hangs the PIIX4 if it is read (it is an I2C device, but not SMBus compatible).
1165We have found no way of solving this, except for rebooting your computer.
1166Next time when you run sensors-detect, you may want to exclude addresses
11670x69 and/or 0x6a, by entering <kbd>s</kbd> when you are asked whether you want to
1168scan the PIIX4.
1169
1170<p><hr>
1171Node:<a name="Section%204.17">Section 4.17</a>,
[2114]1172Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.18">Section 4.18</a>,
1173Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.16">Section 4.16</a>,
1174Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1175<br>
1176
[2114]1177<h3>4.17 Bad readings from particular chips</h3>
[1526]1178
[1968]1179<p>See below for some particularly troublesome chips.
[1526]1180Also be sure and check <code>doc/chips/xxxxx</code> for the particular driver.
1181
[1968]1182<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20the%20AS99127F"></a>
[1526]1183
[2114]1184<h4>4.17.1 Bad readings from the AS99127F!</h4>
[1526]1185
[1968]1186<p>The Asus AS99127F is a modified version of the Winbond W83781D.
[1526]1187Asus will not release a datasheet. The driver was developed by tedious
1188experimentation. We've done the best we can. If you want to make adjustments
1189to the readings please edit <code>/etc/sensors.conf.</code> Please don't ask us to
1190fix the driver. Ask Asus to release a datasheet.
1191
[1968]1192<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20the%20VIA%20686A"></a>
[1526]1193
[2114]1194<h4>4.17.2 Bad readings from the VIA 686A!</h4>
[1526]1195
[1968]1196<p>The Via 686A datasheet is incomplete.
[1526]1197Via will not release details. The driver was developed by tedious
1198experimentation. We've done the best we can. If you want to make adjustments
1199to the readings please edit <code>/etc/sensors.conf.</code> Please don't ask us to
1200fix the driver. Ask Via to release a better datasheet.
1201Also, don't forget to <code>modprobe i2c-isa</code>.
1202
[1968]1203<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20the%20MTP008"></a>
[1526]1204
[2114]1205<h4>4.17.3 Bad readings from the MTP008!</h4>
[1526]1206
[1968]1207<p>The MTP008 has programmable temperature sensor types.
[1526]1208If your sensor type does not match the default, you will have to change it.
1209See <code>doc/chips/mtp008</code> for details.
1210Also, MTP008 chips seem to randomly refuse to respond, for
1211unknown reasons. You can see this as 'XX' entries in i2cdump.
1212
[1968]1213<p><a name="Bad%20temperature%20readings%20from%20the%20SIS5595"></a>
[1526]1214
[2114]1215<h4>4.17.4 Bad temperature readings from the SIS5595!</h4>
[1526]1216
[1968]1217<p>This chip can use multiple thermistor types and there are also
[1526]1218two different versions of the chip. We are trying to get the driver
1219working better and develop formulas for different thermistors
1220but we aren't there yet. Sorry.
1221Also, many times the chip isn't really a sis5595 but it was
1222misidentified. We are working on improving that too.
1223
[1968]1224<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20a%20w8378%5b12%5dd"></a>
[1526]1225
[2114]1226<h4>4.17.5 Bad readings from a w8378[12]d!</h4>
[1526]1227
[1968]1228<p>Do you own an ASUS motherboard?  Perhaps your chip is being
[1526]1229misidentified.  Look on the motherboard (or at
1230<a href="http://mbm.livewiredev.com">http://mbm.livewiredev.com</a>) for a 'Winbond' or Asus chip.
1231Often the real device is an Asus as99127f. If so, the driver can be
1232forced to recognize the as99127f with
1233<code>force_as99127f=BUS,0x2d</code> where <code>BUS</code> is your i2c bus number.
1234Cat /proc/bus/i2c to see a list of bus numbers.
1235Read the w83781d module documentation (<code>doc/chips/w83781d</code>)
1236for more details.
1237
[1968]1238<p><a name="Bus%20hangs%20on%20Ali%201543%20on%20Asus%20P5A%20boards"></a>
[1526]1239
[2114]1240<h4>4.17.6 Bus hangs on Ali 1543 on Asus P5A boards!</h4>
[1526]1241
[1968]1242<p>The SMBus tends to hang on this board and it seems to get worse
[1526]1243at higher temperatures. Use ISA accesses to reliably use the w83781d
1244monitor chip on this board and use the <code>ignore=1,0x2d</code> or similar option
1245to the w83781d module to prevent i2c accesses.
1246
[1968]1247<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20LM75"></a>
[1526]1248
[2114]1249<h4>4.17.7 Bad readings from LM75!</h4>
[1526]1250
[1968]1251<p>The LM75 detection is poor and other hardware is often misdetected
[1526]1252as an LM75. Figure out what you really have See <a href="#Section%203.2.1">What chips are on motherboard XYZ</a>.
1253
[1968]1254<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20LM78"></a>
[1526]1255
[2114]1256<h4>4.17.8 Bad readings from LM78!</h4>
[1526]1257
[1968]1258<p>The LM78 is no longer manufactured by National Semiconductor.
[1526]1259You probably don't have a real LM78 but something similar that we
1260do not recogize or support. Figure out what you really have See <a href="#Section%203.2.1">What chips are on motherboard XYZ</a>.
1261
[1968]1262<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20LM80"></a>
[1526]1263
[2114]1264<h4>4.17.9 Bad readings from LM80!</h4>
[1526]1265
[1968]1266<p>The LM80 detection is poor and other hardware is often misdetected
[1526]1267as an LM80. Figure out what you really have See <a href="#Section%203.2.1">What chips are on motherboard XYZ</a>.
1268
[1968]1269<p><a name="Bad%20readings%20from%20it87"></a>
[1526]1270
[2114]1271<h4>4.17.10 Bad readings from it87!</h4>
[1526]1272
[1968]1273<p>The it87 temperature sesnsors are configured, unfortunately,
[1526]1274in a way different from w83781d. They cannot be configured from
1275<code>/etc/sensors.conf</code>; they must be set at modprobe insertion with
1276<code>modprobe it87 temp_type=0xXX</code>. See <code>doc/chips/it87</code> for details.
1277
1278<p><hr>
1279Node:<a name="Section%204.18">Section 4.18</a>,
[2114]1280Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.19">Section 4.19</a>,
1281Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.17">Section 4.17</a>,
1282Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1283<br>
1284
[2114]1285<h3>4.18 How do I configure two chips (LM87) differently?</h3>
[1526]1286
[1968]1287<p>There is a SuperMicro board with two LM87's on it that are
[1526]1288not hooked up in the same way, so they need different defaults.
1289For example, both CPU temperatures go to one LM87.
1290
[1968]1291<p>Make two different sections in <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code> as follows:
[2114]1292<br><pre>chip "lm87-i2c-*-2c"
[1968]1293    put configuration for the chip at 0x2c here
1294chip "lm87-i2c-*-2d"
1295    put configuration for the chip at 0x2d here
1296</pre>
[1526]1297
[1968]1298<p>There is a commented example in <code>sensors.conf.eg</code> which should
[1526]1299be helpful.
1300
1301<p><hr>
1302Node:<a name="Section%204.19">Section 4.19</a>,
[2114]1303Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.20">Section 4.20</a>,
1304Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.18">Section 4.18</a>,
1305Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1306<br>
1307
[2114]1308<h3>4.19 Dmesg says <code>Upgrade BIOS</code>! I don't want to!</h3>
[1526]1309
[1968]1310<p>If the problem is a PCI device is not present in <code>lspci</code>, the solution
[1526]1311is complex. For the ALI M7101 device, there is a solution which uses the
13122.4 kernel's <code>hotplug</code> facility. See <code>prog/hotplug</code> in our package.
1313For other PCI devices, you can try to modify
1314the m7101 solution in <code>prog/hotplug</code>.
1315
[1968]1316<p>If dmesg says <code>try force_addr</code>, see below. Other drivers generally do not
[1526]1317support the force_addr parameter. Sorry. Check the documentation
1318for your driver in <code>doc/[chips,busses]</code> and if we don't support it
1319you can send us your request.
1320
[1968]1321<p><a name="Dmesg%20says%20use%20force_addr%3d0xaddr!%20What%20address%20do%20I%20use"></a>
[1526]1322
[2114]1323<h4>4.19.1 Dmesg says <code>use force_addr=0xaddr</code>! What address do I use?</h4>
[1526]1324
[1968]1325<p>If the problem is a PCI device whose base address is not set,
[1526]1326you may be able to set the address with a force parameter. The via686a
1327and sis5595 chip drivers, and some bus drivers, support the command line
1328<code>modprobe via686a force_addr=0xADDRESS</code> where ADDRESS
1329is the I/O address. You must select an address that is not in use.
[1968]1330<code>cat <code>/proc/ioports</code></code> to check (carefully) for conflicts. A high number like
[1526]13310xf000 is generally safe.
1332
1333<p><hr>
1334Node:<a name="Section%204.20">Section 4.20</a>,
[2114]1335Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.21">Section 4.21</a>,
1336Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.19">Section 4.19</a>,
1337Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1338<br>
1339
[2114]1340<h3>4.20 Sensors says <code>Can't access <code>/proc</code> file</code></h3>
[1526]1341
[1968]1342<ul>
[1526]1343<li>(release 2.6.0 and later) Did you <code>modprobe i2c-proc</code>? Check <code>lsmod</code>.
1344<li>(release 2.5.5 and earlier) Did you 'modprobe sensors'? Check 'lsmod'.
1345<li>If you did <code>sensors -s</code>, did you run it as root?
1346<li>Do you have <code>/proc</code> support in your kernel (is <code>/proc</code> there?)
1347</ul>
1348
1349<p><hr>
1350Node:<a name="Section%204.21">Section 4.21</a>,
[2114]1351Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.22">Section 4.22</a>,
1352Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.20">Section 4.20</a>,
1353Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1354<br>
1355
[2114]1356<h3>4.21 Sensors says <code>No sensors found!</code></h3>
[1526]1357
[1968]1358<ul>
[1526]1359<li>Did <code>sensors-detect</code> find sensors? (If not see <a href="#Sensors-detect%20doesnt%20find%20any%20sensors">Sensors-detect doesnt find any sensors</a>)
1360<li>Did you do what <code>sensors-detect</code> said?
1361<li>Did you <code>modprobe</code> your sensor modules?
1362<li>Did you <code>modprobe</code> your I2C adapter modules?
1363<li>Did you <code>modprobe i2c-isa</code> if you have ISA sensor chips?
1364<li>Check <code>lsmod</code>.
1365</ul>
1366
1367<p><hr>
1368Node:<a name="Section%204.22">Section 4.22</a>,
[2114]1369Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.23">Section 4.23</a>,
1370Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.21">Section 4.21</a>,
1371Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1372<br>
1373
[2114]1374<h3>4.22 Sensors output is not correct!</h3>
[1526]1375
[1968]1376<p>What specifically is the trouble?
1377<ul>
[1526]1378<li>Labels: See <a href="#Section%203.4.1">The labels for the voltage and temperature readings in sensors are incorrect</a>.
1379<li>Min/max readings: See <a href="#Section%203.4.2">The min and max for the readings in sensors are incorrect</a>, and See <a href="#Section%203.4.3">The min and max settings didnt take effect</a>.
1380<li>AS99127F: See <a href="#Section%204.16">I ran sensors-detect but now I get very strange readings?</a>.
1381<li>Via 686A: See <a href="#Section%204.16">I ran sensors-detect but now I get very strange readings?</a>.
1382<li>Other specific chips: See <a href="#Section%204.16">I ran sensors-detect but now I get very strange readings?</a>.
1383<li>No output for a particular sensors chip: See <a href="#Section%205.3">What to do if it inserts but nothing happens</a>.
1384<li>No output at all: See <a href="#Section%204.21">Sensors says No sensors found</a>, See <a href="#Section%205.3">What to do if it inserts but nothing happens</a>.
1385<li>Completely bad output for a particular sensor chip: See <a href="#Section%205.4">What to do if I read only bogus information</a>.
1386<li>One particular sensor readings:
[1968]1387<ul>
[1526]1388<li>Maybe it isn't hooked up? - tell 'sensors' to ignore it. See <a href="#Section%203.4.4">One sensor isnt hooked up on my board</a>.
1389<li>Maybe it is hooked up differently on your motherboard? - adjust <code>sensors.conf</code> calculation.
1390</ul>
[1968]1391</ul>
[1526]1392
1393<p><hr>
1394Node:<a name="Section%204.23">Section 4.23</a>,
[2114]1395Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.24">Section 4.24</a>,
1396Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.22">Section 4.22</a>,
1397Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1398<br>
1399
[2114]1400<h3>4.23 What is at I2C address XXX?</h3>
[1526]1401
[1968]1402<p>In general, we don't know. Start by running <code>sensors-detect</code>.
[1526]1403If it doesn't recognize it, try running <code>i2cdump</code>. A partial list
1404of manufacturers' IDs are at the bottom of <code>doc/chips/SUMMARY</code>.
1405
[1968]1406<p><a name="What%20is%20at%20I2C%20address%200x69"></a>
[1526]1407
[2114]1408<h4>4.23.1 What is at I2C address 0x69?</h4>
[1526]1409
[1968]1410<p>A clock chip. Often, accessing these clock chips in the wrong
[1526]1411way will instantly crash your computer. Sensors-detect carefully
1412avoids these chips. If you really really want to play with your clock
1413chip you can look at <code>kernel/chips/icspll.c</code> in our package. But we
1414do not recommend it. You have been warned.
1415
[1968]1416<p><a name="What%20is%20at%20I2C%20addresses%200x50%20-%200x57"></a>
[1526]1417
[2114]1418<h4>4.23.2 What is at I2C addresses 0x50 - 0x57?</h4>
[1526]1419
[1968]1420<p>EEPROMs on your SDRAM DIMMs. Load the eeprom module to
[1526]1421look at some basic data in <code>sensors</code> or use the program
1422<code>prog/eeprom/decode-dimms.pl</code> to get more information than you ever wanted.
1423
[1968]1424<p><a name="What%20is%20at%20I2C%20addresses%200x30%20-%200x37"></a>
[1526]1425
[2114]1426<h4>4.23.3 What is at I2C addresses 0x30 - 0x37?</h4>
[1526]1427
[1968]1428<p>These are often 'shadows' of your EEPROMs on your SDRAM DIMMs
[1526]1429at addresses 0x50 - 0x57. They aren't really there. If you try and
1430do a <code>i2cdump</code> on them you won't get anything. This is probably
1431caused by some timing problem on your motherboard or on the DIMMs.
1432We don't know the exact cause.
1433
1434<p><hr>
1435Node:<a name="Section%204.24">Section 4.24</a>,
[2114]1436Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.25">Section 4.25</a>,
1437Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.23">Section 4.23</a>,
1438Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1439<br>
1440
[2114]1441<h3>4.24 Sensors-detect doesn't work at all</h3>
[1526]1442
[1968]1443<p>It could be many things. What was the problem? See <a href="#Section%204.31">Problems on particular motherboards</a>.
[1526]1444
[1968]1445<p><a name="Sensors-detect%20says%20%22Couldnt%20open%20%2fproc%2fbus%2fi2c%3f!%3f%22"></a>
[1526]1446
[2114]1447<h4>4.24.1 Sensors-detect says "Couldn't open /proc/bus/i2c?!?"</h4>
[1526]1448
[1968]1449<p>You don't have i2c support in your kernel, or the i2c-core module
[1526]1450was not loaded and you did not run sensors-detect as root.
1451
[1968]1452<p><a name="Sensors-detect%20says%20%22Cant%20open%20%2fdev%2fi2c%5b-%2f%5d0%22"></a>
[1526]1453
[2114]1454<h4>4.24.2 Sensors-detect says "Can't open /dev/i2c[-/]0"</h4>
[1526]1455
[1968]1456<p>Your <code>/dev/i2c-0,</code> <code>/dev/i2c0</code>, or <code>/dev/i2c/0</code> files do not exist
[1526]1457or you did not run <code>sensors-detect</code> as root.
1458Run the script <code>prog/mkdev/mkdev.sh</code> to create the <code>/dev/i2c-x</code> files.
1459Run <code>devfs</code> in the kernel to get the <code>/dev/i2c/x</code> files.
1460
[1968]1461<p><a name="Sensors-detect%20doesnt%20find%20any%20sensors"></a>
[1526]1462
[2114]1463<h4>4.24.3 Sensors-detect doesn't find any sensors!</h4>
[1526]1464
[1968]1465<p>Either
1466<ol type=1 start=1>
1467</p><li>The board doesn't have any sensors.
[1526]1468<li>We don't support the sensors on the board.
1469<li>The sensors it has are on an I2C bus connected to an I2C bus adapter that we don't support.
1470<li>You don't have the latest version of lm_sensors.
[1968]1471</ol>
[1526]1472
[1968]1473<p>But in any case you should figure out what is on the board:
1474<ol type=1 start=1>
1475</p><li>Look at your motherboard.
[1526]1476<li>Check the manufacturer's website.
1477<li>Check the <a href="http://mbm.livewiredev.com/">Motherboard Monitor</a> website.
[1968]1478</ol>
[1526]1479
[1968]1480<p>When you know what chips you have, check the
[1526]1481<a href="http://www2.lm-sensors.nu/~lm78/newdrivers.html">Newest Driver Status</a> web page to
1482see if support has been added for your chip in a later release or in CVS.
1483
1484<p><hr>
1485Node:<a name="Section%204.25">Section 4.25</a>,
[2114]1486Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.26">Section 4.26</a>,
1487Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.24">Section 4.24</a>,
1488Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1489<br>
1490
[2114]1491<h3>4.25 Sensors says <code>Error: Line xxx: zzzzzzz</code></h3>
[1526]1492
[1968]1493<p>These are errors from the libsensors library in
[1526]1494reading the <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code> configuration file. Go to that line
1495number and fix it. If you have a parse error, perhaps you have
1496to put the feature name in double quotes.
1497
1498<p><hr>
1499Node:<a name="Section%204.26">Section 4.26</a>,
[2114]1500Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.27">Section 4.27</a>,
1501Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.25">Section 4.25</a>,
1502Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1503<br>
1504
[2114]1505<h3>4.26 Sensors only gives the name, adapter, and algorithm for my chip</h3>
[1526]1506
[1968]1507<p>If <code>sensors</code> only says this, for example, and doesn't
[1526]1508provide any actual data at all:
1509
[2114]1510<br><pre>it87-isa-0290
[1968]1511Adapter: ISA adapter
1512Algorithm: ISA algorithm
1513</pre>
[1526]1514
[1968]1515<p>Your chip is not currently supported by <code>sensors</code> and so all it
[1526]1516does is print out that information. Get the latest release
1517and be sure you are running the <code>sensors</code> program it installed
1518and not some older <code>sensors</code>.
1519
1520<p><hr>
1521Node:<a name="Section%204.27">Section 4.27</a>,
[2114]1522Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.28">Section 4.28</a>,
1523Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.26">Section 4.26</a>,
1524Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1525<br>
1526
[2114]1527<h3>4.27 Sensors says <code>ERROR: Can't get xxxxx data!</code></h3>
[1526]1528
[1968]1529<p>You have a <code>libsensors/sensors</code> mismatch. <code>sensors</code> is unable to
[1526]1530get a data entry from <code>libsensors</code>. You probably have an
1531old <code>libsensors</code> in your <code>/etc/ld.so.conf</code> path.
1532Make sure you did (as root) a <code>make install</code> followed by a <code>ldconfig</code>.
1533Then check the output of <code>ldconfig -v | grep libsensors</code> to
1534verify that there is only ONE <code>libsensors</code> entry and that it matches
1535the <code>libsensors</code> that was built in the <code>lib/</code> directory in <code>lm_sensors2</code>.
1536
1537<p><hr>
1538Node:<a name="Section%204.28">Section 4.28</a>,
[2114]1539Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.29">Section 4.29</a>,
1540Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.27">Section 4.27</a>,
1541Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1542<br>
1543
[2114]1544<h3>4.28 Sensors doesn't find any sensors, just eeproms.</h3>
[1526]1545
[1968]1546<p>See <a href="#Section%204.24">Sensors-detect doesnt work at all</a>, if <code>sensors-detect</code> failed to find any sensors.
[1526]1547
[1968]1548<p>If <code>sensors-detect</code> did find sensors, did you insert your modules? For chips on the ISA
[1526]1549bus, did you insert i2c-isa?
1550
[1968]1551<p>See <a href="#Section%205.2">What to do if a module wont insert</a>, if the modules didn't insert,
[1526]1552also <a href="#Section%204.21">Sensors says No sensors found</a>.
1553
1554<p><hr>
1555Node:<a name="Section%204.29">Section 4.29</a>,
[2114]1556Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.30">Section 4.30</a>,
1557Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.28">Section 4.28</a>,
1558Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1559<br>
1560
[2114]1561<h3>4.29 Inserting modules hangs my board</h3>
[1526]1562
[1968]1563<p>There are several possible causes:
1564<ol type=1 start=1>
1565</p><li>Bus driver problems. Insert the bus driver first, before you have inserted any chip drivers, to verify.
[1526]1566<li>Wrong chip driver. Verify that you have a chip supported by the chip driver, see <a href="#Section%203.2.1">What chips are on motherboard XYZ</a>.
1567<li>The chip driver is reinitializing the chip, which undoes critical initialization done by the BIOS.  Try the parameter <code>init=0</code> for the w83781d driver; this is the only driver supporting this parameter.
1568<li>Some chips on the bus don't like to be probed at all.  After inserting the bus driver (but not the chip drivers), run <code>i2cdetect</code> on the bus, then <code>i2cdump</code> on each address responding to <code>i2cdetect</code>. This may find the culprit.  Do not <code>i2cdump address 0x69</code>, the clock chip.
1569<li>The chip driver is incorrectly finding a second chip on the bus and is accessing it. For example, with the Tyan 2688 with a w83781d at 0x29, use <code>modprobe ignore_range=0,0x00,0x28,0,0x2a,0x7f</code> to prevent access to other addresses. (<code>init=0</code> also req'd for the Tyan 2688).
[1968]1570</ol>
[1526]1571
1572<p><hr>
1573Node:<a name="Section%204.30">Section 4.30</a>,
[2114]1574Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.31">Section 4.31</a>,
1575Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.29">Section 4.29</a>,
1576Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1577<br>
1578
[2114]1579<h3>4.30 Inserting modules slows down my board</h3>
[1526]1580
[1968]1581<p>Generally this is caused by an overtemperature alarm output from
[1526]1582the sensor chip. This triggers hardware on the board which
1583automatically slows down the CPU clock. Be sure that your
1584temperature limits are above the temperature reading. Put
1585the new limits in <code>/etc/sensors.conf</code> and run <code>sensors -s</code>.
1586
1587<p><hr>
1588Node:<a name="Section%204.31">Section 4.31</a>,
[2114]1589Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%204.32">Section 4.32</a>,
1590Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.30">Section 4.30</a>,
1591Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1526]1592<br>
1593
[2114]1594<h3>4.31 Problems on particular motherboards</h3>
[1526]1595
[1968]1596<p>The following boards have unique problems and solutions.
[1526]1597
[1968]1598<p><a name="Asus%20P4B"></a>
[1526]1599
[2114]1600<h4>4.31.1 Asus P4B</h4>
[1526]1601
[1968]1602<p>See <code>prog/hotplug/README.p4b</code> if your SMBus master is not found.
[1526]1603
[1968]1604<p><a name="Tyan%202460%202462"></a>
[1526]1605
[2114]1606<h4>4.31.2 Tyan 2460, 2462</h4>
[1526]1607
[1968]1608<p>See support tickets 805, 765, 781, 812, 813, and 867 for information.
[1526]1609
[1968]1610<p><a name="Tyan%202466"></a>
[1526]1611
[2114]1612<h4>4.31.3 Tyan 2466</h4>
[1526]1613
[1968]1614<p>See support tickets 941, 840, and 841 for information.
[1526]1615
[1968]1616<p><a name="Tyan%202688"></a>
[1526]1617
[2114]1618<h4>4.31.4 Tyan 2688</h4>
[1526]1619
[1968]1620<p>For board hangs, see support ticket 721 for information.
[1526]1621Also <a href="#Section%204.29">Inserting modules hangs my board</a>.
1622
1623<p><hr>
[1733]1624Node:<a name="Section%204.32">Section 4.32</a>,
[2114]1625Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%204.31">Section 4.31</a>,
1626Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Problems">Problems</a>
[1733]1627<br>
1628
[2114]1629<h3>4.32 Problems on particular systems</h3>
[1733]1630
[1968]1631<p>For IBM systems, see <code>README.thinkpad</code>.
[1733]1632
1633<p><hr>
[1526]1634Node:<a name="Help">Help</a>,
[2114]1635Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>,
1636Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Problems">Problems</a>,
1637Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]1638<br>
1639
[2114]1640<h2>5 How to Ask for Help</h2>
[1526]1641
[1968]1642<ul>
[2114]1643<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Section%205.1">Section 5.1</a>:   What to send us when asking for help
1644<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Section%205.2">Section 5.2</a>:   What to do if a module won't insert?
1645<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Section%205.3">Section 5.3</a>:   What to do if it inserts, but nothing happens?
1646<li><a accesskey=4 href="#Section%205.4">Section 5.4</a>:   What to do if I read only bogus information?
1647<li><a accesskey=5 href="#Section%205.5">Section 5.5</a>:   What to do if you have other problems?
1648<li><a accesskey=6 href="#Section%205.6">Section 5.6</a>:   What if it just works like a charm?
1649<li><a accesskey=7 href="#Section%205.7">Section 5.7</a>:   How do I update a ticket?
1650<li><a accesskey=8 href="#Section%205.8">Section 5.8</a>:   How do I follow up on a ticket?
[1526]1651</ul>
1652
1653<p><hr>
1654Node:<a name="Section%205.1">Section 5.1</a>,
[2114]1655Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%205.2">Section 5.2</a>,
1656Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1657<br>
1658
[2114]1659<h3>5.1 What to send us when asking for help</h3>
[1526]1660
[1968]1661<p>We are always willing to answer questions if things don't work out.
[1526]1662Please email <a href="mailto:sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com">sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com</a>, and not the individual authors,
1663unless you have something private to say.
1664
[1968]1665<p>Instead of using email, you can also use the web-based support
[1526]1666area, at <a href="http://secure.netroedge.com/~lm78/support.html">http://secure.netroedge.com/~lm78/support.html</a>. You will be helped
1667just as fast, and others may profit from the answer too. You will be
1668emailed automatically when your question has been answered.
1669
[1968]1670<p>Here's what you should send us:
[1526]1671
[1968]1672<ul>
[1526]1673<li>The dmesg or syslog output if applicable
1674<li>The output of (as root) <code>prog/detect/sensors-detect</code>
1675<li>The output of <code>lsmod</code>
1676<li>If a PCI chip problem:
[1968]1677<ul>
[1526]1678<li>The output of <code>lspci -n</code>
1679</ul>
[1968]1680<li>If an I2C sensor chip problem:
1681<ul>
[1526]1682<li>The output of (as root) <code>prog/detect/i2cdetect X</code>
1683where X = the bus number (run <code>i2cdetect</code> with no arguments to list the busses)
1684(please send this only if it's not all <code>XX</code>)
1685<li>The output of (as root) <code>prog/dump/i2cdump X 0xXX</code>
1686where XX = the address of each chip you see in the output of <code>i2cdetect</code>. (run once for each chip)
1687(please send this only if it's not all <code>ff</code>)
1688</ul>
[1968]1689<li>If an ISA sensor chip problem:
1690<ul>
[1526]1691<li>The output of (as root) <code>prog/dump/isadump 0x295 0x296</code> (only if it's not all <code>XX</code>)
1692</ul>
[1968]1693<li>Part numbers of chips on your motherboard you think are the sensor chips (look at your motherboard)
[1526]1694<li>Motherboard type
1695<li>Sensors version
1696<li>Kernel version
1697</ul>
1698
1699<p><hr>
1700Node:<a name="Section%205.2">Section 5.2</a>,
[2114]1701Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%205.3">Section 5.3</a>,
1702Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%205.1">Section 5.1</a>,
1703Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1704<br>
1705
[2114]1706<h3>5.2 What to do if a module won't insert?</h3>
[1526]1707
[1968]1708<p>Did you use <code>modprobe</code> instead of <code>insmod</code>??? Don't use insmod.
[1526]1709
[1968]1710<p>Were there unresolved symbols? Did you run <code>depmod -a</code>? Run
[1526]1711<code>depmod -a -e</code> to see where the symbol problem is.
1712
[1968]1713<p>ALWAYS inspect the output of <code>dmesg</code>. That's where the error
[1526]1714messages come out!!! Don't rely on the generic message from <code>modprobe</code>.
1715If you still can't figure it out, send us the information
1716listed above.
1717
1718<p><hr>
1719Node:<a name="Section%205.3">Section 5.3</a>,
[2114]1720Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%205.4">Section 5.4</a>,
1721Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%205.2">Section 5.2</a>,
1722Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1723<br>
1724
[2114]1725<h3>5.3 What to do if it inserts, but nothing happens?</h3>
[1526]1726
[1968]1727<p>For an ISA sensor chip, did you also <code>modprobe i2c-isa</code>? It must be inserted.
[1526]1728
[1968]1729<p>For an I2C sensor chip, did you also <code>modprobe i2c-xxx</code> where xxx is your
[1526]1730I2C bus adapter? It must be inserted.
1731
[1968]1732<p>Always inspect the output of <code>dmesg</code>. That's where the error
[1526]1733messages come out. If you still can't figure it out, send us the information
1734listed above.
1735
1736<p><hr>
1737Node:<a name="Section%205.4">Section 5.4</a>,
[2114]1738Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%205.5">Section 5.5</a>,
1739Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%205.3">Section 5.3</a>,
1740Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1741<br>
1742
[2114]1743<h3>5.4 What to do if I read only bogus information?</h3>
[1526]1744
[1968]1745<p>It may be that this was a mis-detection: the chip may not be
[1526]1746present. If you are convinced there is something wrong, verify that you
1747indeed have the devices on your motherboard that you think you do.
1748Look at the motherboard and make sure. If you are still stuck,
1749please send us the usual information (see <a href="#Help">Help</a>)
1750
1751<p><hr>
1752Node:<a name="Section%205.5">Section 5.5</a>,
[2114]1753Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%205.6">Section 5.6</a>,
1754Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%205.4">Section 5.4</a>,
1755Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1756<br>
1757
[2114]1758<h3>5.5 What to do if you have other problems?</h3>
[1526]1759
[1968]1760<p>Again, send the output listed above.
[1526]1761
1762<p><hr>
1763Node:<a name="Section%205.6">Section 5.6</a>,
[2114]1764Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%205.7">Section 5.7</a>,
1765Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%205.5">Section 5.5</a>,
1766Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1767<br>
1768
[2114]1769<h3>5.6 What if it just works like a charm?</h3>
[1526]1770
[1968]1771<p>Drop us a mail if you feel like it, mentioning the mainboard and
[1526]1772detected chip type. That way, we have some positive feedback, too!
1773
1774<p><hr>
1775Node:<a name="Section%205.7">Section 5.7</a>,
[2114]1776Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%205.8">Section 5.8</a>,
1777Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%205.6">Section 5.6</a>,
1778Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1779<br>
1780
[2114]1781<h3>5.7 How do I update a ticket?</h3>
[1526]1782
[1968]1783<p>You can't. Only developers can. Follow up by emailing us
[1526]1784at <a href="mailto:sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com">sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com</a> and reference your ticket number
1785in the subject. Please don't enter a new ticket with
1786follow-up information, email us instead. Thanks.
1787
1788<p><hr>
1789Node:<a name="Section%205.8">Section 5.8</a>,
[2114]1790Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%205.7">Section 5.7</a>,
1791Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Help">Help</a>
[1526]1792<br>
1793
[2114]1794<h3>5.8 How do I follow up on a ticket?</h3>
[1526]1795
[1968]1796<p>Follow up by emailing us at <a href="mailto:sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com">sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com</a>
[1526]1797and reference your ticket number in the subject.
1798
1799<p><hr>
1800Node:<a name="Contribute">Contribute</a>,
[2114]1801Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>,
1802Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Help">Help</a>,
1803Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]1804<br>
1805
[2114]1806<h2>6 How to Contribute</h2>
[1526]1807
[1968]1808<ul>
[2114]1809<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Section%206.1">Section 6.1</a>:   How to write a driver
1810<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Section%206.2">Section 6.2</a>:   How to get CVS access
1811<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Section%206.3">Section 6.3</a>:   How to donate hardware to the project
1812<li><a accesskey=4 href="#Section%206.4">Section 6.4</a>:   How to join the project mailing list
1813<li><a accesskey=5 href="#Section%206.5">Section 6.5</a>:   How to access mailing list archives
1814<li><a accesskey=6 href="#Section%206.6">Section 6.6</a>:   How to submit a patch
1815<li><a accesskey=7 href="#Section%206.7">Section 6.7</a>:   How to REALLY help
1816<li><a accesskey=8 href="#Section%206.8">Section 6.8</a>:   How to get release announcements
1817<li><a accesskey=9 href="#Section%206.9">Section 6.9</a>:   How to block spam on the project mailing list
[1526]1818</ul>
1819
1820<p><hr>
1821Node:<a name="Section%206.1">Section 6.1</a>,
[2114]1822Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.2">Section 6.2</a>,
1823Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1526]1824<br>
1825
[2114]1826<h3>6.1 How to write a driver</h3>
[1526]1827
[1968]1828<p>See <code>doc/developers/new_drivers</code> in our package for instructions.
[1526]1829
1830<p><hr>
1831Node:<a name="Section%206.2">Section 6.2</a>,
[2114]1832Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.3">Section 6.3</a>,
1833Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.1">Section 6.1</a>,
1834Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1526]1835<br>
1836
[2114]1837<h3>6.2 How to get CVS access</h3>
[1526]1838
[1968]1839<p>For anonymous CVS read access, see the instructions on our download page.
[1526]1840Sorry, we don't have automatically generated CVS tarballs.
1841
[1968]1842<p>For write access, run the script <code>doc/developers/genpasswd.pl</code> in
[1526]1843our package and follow the instructions. Let us know what part
1844of the package you would like to work on.
1845
1846<p><hr>
1847Node:<a name="Section%206.3">Section 6.3</a>,
[2114]1848Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.4">Section 6.4</a>,
1849Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.2">Section 6.2</a>,
1850Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1526]1851<br>
1852
[2114]1853<h3>6.3 How to donate hardware to the project</h3>
[1526]1854
[1968]1855<p>Send us email <a href="mailto:sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com">sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com</a>.
[1526]1856
1857<p><hr>
1858Node:<a name="Section%206.4">Section 6.4</a>,
[2114]1859Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.5">Section 6.5</a>,
1860Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.3">Section 6.3</a>,
1861Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1526]1862<br>
1863
[2114]1864<h3>6.4 How to join the project mailing list</h3>
[1526]1865
[1968]1866<p>Send us email <a href="mailto:sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com">sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com</a>. Sorry,
1867there is no automated subscribe/unsubscribe service yet
1868(but we're seriously thinking of switching to majordomo).
1869Please note that you do NOT need to be subscribed to the list
1870in order to post. If you simply need help as a user, post your
1871detailed problem and questions directly. Don't worry, you'll be
1872CC'd on all replies.
[1526]1873
1874<p><hr>
1875Node:<a name="Section%206.5">Section 6.5</a>,
[2114]1876Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.6">Section 6.6</a>,
1877Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.4">Section 6.4</a>,
1878Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1526]1879<br>
1880
[2114]1881<h3>6.5 How to access mailing list archives</h3>
[1526]1882
[1968]1883<p>The mailing list archive is at: <a href="http://archives.andrew.net.au/lm-sensors">http://archives.andrew.net.au/lm-sensors</a>
[1526]1884Sorry, it only contains messages since October 28, 2001.
1885
1886<p><hr>
1887Node:<a name="Section%206.6">Section 6.6</a>,
[2114]1888Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.7">Section 6.7</a>,
1889Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.5">Section 6.5</a>,
1890Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1526]1891<br>
1892
[2114]1893<h3>6.6 How to submit a patch</h3>
[1526]1894
[1968]1895<p>Check out the latest from CVS, then copy the directory to another
[1526]1896directory, and make your changes. Generate the diff with
1897<code>diff -u2 -r DIR1 DIR2</code>. Or you can generate the diff in CVS with
1898<code>cvs diff -u2</code>. Send us the patch in an email and tell us what it does.
1899
1900<p><hr>
1901Node:<a name="Section%206.7">Section 6.7</a>,
[2114]1902Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.8">Section 6.8</a>,
1903Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.6">Section 6.6</a>,
1904Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1526]1905<br>
1906
[2114]1907<h3>6.7 How to REALLY help</h3>
[1526]1908
[1968]1909<p>Believe it or not, what we really need help with are:
1910<ul>
[1526]1911<li>Answering email
1912<li>Answering support tickets
1913<li>Submitting patches to Linus, etc.
1914<li>Creating a sensors.conf database
1915<li>Creating RPM's
1916</ul>
1917
[1968]1918<p>Send us email <a href="mailto:sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com">sensors@stimpy.netroedge.com</a> if you can help.
[1526]1919No experience necessary :)
1920
1921<p><hr>
[1713]1922Node:<a name="Section%206.8">Section 6.8</a>,
[2114]1923Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%206.9">Section 6.9</a>,
1924Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.7">Section 6.7</a>,
1925Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
[1713]1926<br>
1927
[2114]1928<h3>6.8 How to get release announcements</h3>
[1713]1929
[2114]1930<p>We don't have a separate release announcement mailing list;
1931however, we put all our releases on freshmeat: <a href="http://freshmeat.net">http://freshmeat.net</a>
1932and you can register on our freshmeat project page  <a href="http://freshmeat.net/projects/lm_sensors">http://freshmeat.net/projects/lm_sensors</a>
1933to 'subscribe to new releases' and then freshmeat
1934will email you announcement.
1935
1936<p><hr>
1937Node:<a name="Section%206.9">Section 6.9</a>,
1938Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%206.8">Section 6.8</a>,
1939Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>
1940<br>
1941
1942<h3>6.9 How to block spam on the project mailing list</h3>
1943
[1968]1944<p>Sorry, we know the spam is a hassle.  It would be nice to have a
[1713]1945moderator who can screen everything, but that takes too much time and
1946delays emails.  Right now there is a procmail script which tags likely
1947spam and puts in a X-SBClass: header.  If it is followed by 'Spam', then
1948it is almost certainly spam, if it is followed by 'Blocked', then it
1949scores high as being potential spam.  You should be able to set some
1950rules in your mail client to throw those emails into a seperate folder.
1951It's not bullet proof (some legit mails get tagged wrong, and vice
1952versa), but it seems to be about 95% accurate in our experience.
1953
1954<p><hr>
[1526]1955Node:<a name="Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>,
[2114]1956Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Document%20Revisions">Document Revisions</a>,
1957Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Contribute">Contribute</a>,
1958Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]1959<br>
1960
[2114]1961<h2>7 Version 1 Specific Questions</h2>
[1526]1962
[1968]1963<ul>
[2114]1964<li><a accesskey=1 href="#Section%207.1">Section 7.1</a>:   My mainboard has an SMBus, your code can't find it.  Why?
1965<li><a accesskey=2 href="#Section%207.2">Section 7.2</a>:   The modules won't load, saying 'SMBus not detected'.
1966<li><a accesskey=3 href="#Section%207.3">Section 7.3</a>:   I get a "No sensor data yet (try again in a few moments)" msg.
1967<li><a accesskey=4 href="#Section%207.4">Section 7.4</a>:   On my Dell, a LM80 is detected, but all readings are 0!
[1526]1968</ul>
1969
[1968]1970<p>Note: Version 1 is very very old and is not recommended.
[1526]1971
1972<p><hr>
1973Node:<a name="Section%207.1">Section 7.1</a>,
[2114]1974Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%207.2">Section 7.2</a>,
1975Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>
[1526]1976<br>
1977
[2114]1978<h3>7.1 My manufacturer swears that my mainboard has an SMBus, but your code reports that it can't find it.  What's wrong?</h3>
[1526]1979
[1968]1980<p>Currently, our code only assumes that an SMBus exists if it originates
[1526]1981from the Intel PIIX4 (82371AB).  If your computer doesn't have one, or if your
1982SMBus originates from a different SMBus 'host', then you are out of luck. :'(
1983Our experience is, though, that most machines have a PIIX4, and that it is
1984where the SMBus is hosted.
1985
[1968]1986<p>Regarding the VIA chip set(s):
[1526]1987
[1968]1988<p>Right now, the SMBus code depends on the Intel PIIX4 chip to handle
[1526]1989SMBus transactions.  The VIA chip set is NOT supported at this time because
1990it forces much of the SMBus protocol to be implemented by software.
1991
[1968]1992<p>To implement the SMBus correctly with the VIA chip, it needs to be
[1526]1993written at a low level to be quick.  A more attractive alternative is to
1994use the Bios SMBus interface (not always available nor standard).
1995
[1968]1996<p>Version 2 supports the VIA chipset, and will support other chipsets.
[1526]1997Version 1 never will.
1998
1999<p><hr>
2000Node:<a name="Section%207.2">Section 7.2</a>,
[2114]2001Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%207.3">Section 7.3</a>,
2002Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%207.1">Section 7.1</a>,
2003Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>
[1526]2004<br>
2005
[2114]2006<h3>7.2 The modules won't load, saying 'SMBus not detected'.</h3>
[1526]2007
[1968]2008<p>This should no longer be an issue in 1.4.10 and later; it will
[1526]2009continue loading, but it won't support SMBus-connected devices, of course.
2010
2011<p><hr>
2012Node:<a name="Section%207.3">Section 7.3</a>,
[2114]2013Next:<a rel=next accesskey=n href="#Section%207.4">Section 7.4</a>,
2014Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%207.2">Section 7.2</a>,
2015Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>
[1526]2016<br>
2017
[2114]2018<h3>7.3 I try to read <code>/proc/sensors</code>, and I get a "No sensor data yet (try again in a few moments)" message. Why?</h3>
[1526]2019
[1968]2020<p>It takes about 1.5 seconds for the LM78 to update all its sensor
[1526]2021values.  If we would try to read it before it finished that, you would get
2022old garbage instead. So you have to wait 1.5 seconds after the module is
2023inserted before you can access <code>/proc/sensors</code>.
2024
[1968]2025<p>Module versions 1.3.7 and later let the process sleep if it tries
[1526]2026to access sensor data right after insertion time, and do not display this
2027message anymore.
2028
2029<p><hr>
2030Node:<a name="Section%207.4">Section 7.4</a>,
[2114]2031Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Section%207.3">Section 7.3</a>,
2032Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>
[1526]2033<br>
2034
[2114]2035<h3>7.4 On my Dell, a LM80 is detected, but all readings are 0!</h3>
[1526]2036
[1968]2037<p>This is a bug we have only observed on Dell computers. There is
[1526]2038probably a problem with the way the SMBus is accessed; but it is not yet
2039clear whether the problem is in our code or with the Dells.
2040
[1968]2041<p>There are very probably no sensor chips at all on your computer;
[1526]2042but until somebody contacts Dell about this and tells us the results, we
2043can not be sure.
2044
2045<p><hr>
2046Node:<a name="Document%20Revisions">Document Revisions</a>,
[2114]2047Previous:<a rel=previous accesskey=p href="#Version%201%20Specifics">Version 1 Specifics</a>,
2048Up:<a rel=up accesskey=u href="#Top">Top</a>
[1526]2049<br>
2050
[2114]2051<h2>Appendix A Revision History of This Document</h2>
[1526]2052
[1968]2053<ul>
[1837]2054<li>Rev 2.9 (CP) Converted to Gnu texinfo format, 20020910
[1526]2055<li>Rev 2.8 (MDS) Minor updates 20020710, released with lm_sensors 2.6.4
2056<li>Rev 2.7 (MDS) Minor updates 20020425
2057<li>Rev 2.6 (MDS) Minor updates 20020115, released with lm_sensors 2.6.3
2058<li>Rev 2.5 (MDS) Minor updates 20011111, released with lm_sensors 2.6.2
2059<li>Rev 2.4 (MDS) Minor updates 20010722
2060<li>Rev 2.3 (MDS) General update, 20010224, released with lm_sensors 2.6.0.
2061<li>Rev 2.2 (Frodo) Corrections for lm_sensors 2.4, 19990920
2062<li>Rev 2.1 (Frodo) Corrections for lm_sensors 2.2, 19990112
2063<li>Rev 2.0 (Frodo) Major revision for lm_sensors 2.1, 19981229
2064<li>Rev 1.10 (Frodo) Modified 3.8, updated some other things, 19980924
2065<li>Rev 1.9 (Frodo) Added 3.15, 19980906
2066<li>Rev 1.8 (Frodo) Added 3.14, 19980905
2067<li>Rev 1.7 (Phil) Added 3.13 and some other minor changes, 19980901
2068<li>Rev 1.6 (Frodo) Added 4, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 19980901
2069<li>Rev 1.5 (Frodo) Added 2.3, 2.4, 3.9, 3.10, 3.11, 19980826
2070<li>Rev 1.4 (Frodo) Added some more Winbond information, and 3.5-3.8, 19980817
2071<li>Rev 1.3 Added info on the Winbond chip, 19980816
2072<li>Rev 1.2 Adapation by Frodo Looijaard, 19980810
2073<li>Rev 1.1 Modifications by Philip Edelbrock, 19980809
2074<li>Rev 1.0 Written by Philip Edelbrock, 19980803
2075</ul>
2076
[1968]2077</body></html>
Note: See TracBrowser for help on using the browser.