Beyond Linux® From Scratch (systemd Edition) - Version r12.0-816

Chapter 24. Graphical Environments

Xorg-Server-21.1.9

Introduction to Xorg Server

The Xorg Server is the core of the X Window system.

[Note]

Note

Development versions of BLFS may not build or run some packages properly if LFS or dependencies have been updated since the most recent stable versions of the books.

Package Information

Additional Downloads

  • With the removal of the xf86-video-* drivers, the TearFree option is no longer functional. To work around this, upstream has added the TearFree option to the default modesetting driver. This patch backports this feature. Apply this patch if you are going to use Xorg in an environment without a compositor (such as TWM, IceWM, Openbox, Fluxbox, or Sawfish).

    Optional patch: https://www.linuxfromscratch.org/patches/blfs/svn/xorg-server-21.1.9-tearfree_backport-1.patch

Xorg Server Dependencies

Required

libxcvt-0.1.2, Pixman-0.42.2, Xorg Fonts (only font-util), and at runtime: xkeyboard-config-2.40

Recommended

libepoxy-1.5.10 (needed for glamor), libtirpc-1.3.4, Systemd-254 (runtime), and xorg-libinput-1.4.0 (runtime)

Optional

acpid-2.0.34 (runtime), Doxygen-1.9.8 (to build API documentation), fop-2.9 (to build documentation), libunwind-1.6.2, Nettle-3.9.1, libgcrypt-1.10.3, xcb-util-keysyms-0.4.1, xcb-util-image-0.4.1, xcb-util-renderutil-0.3.10, xcb-util-wm-0.4.2 (all four to build Xephyr), xmlto-0.0.28 (to build documentation), xkeyboard-config-2.40 (for tests), rendercheck (for tests), and xorg-sgml-doctools (to build documentation)

Kernel Configuration

The traditional Device Dependent X (DDX) drivers have been removed from BLFS in favor of the modesetting_drv driver which will be built as a part of this package. To use the modesetting_drv driver, the kernel must provide a Direct Rendering Manager (DRM) driver for your GPU.

If your GPU supports 3D acceleration and Mesa-23.1.8 provides a Gallium3D driver for utilizing its 3D capability, you should have already enabled the necessary kernel configuration options in Mesa Kernel Configuration. Otherwise, you need to find the kernel configuration option of the DRM driver for the GPU and enable it. Notably, the virtual GPUs provided by some virtual machine managers: 

Device Drivers --->
  Graphics support --->
    <*/M>   Direct Rendering Manager (XFree86 4.1.0 and higher DRI support) --->
                                                                      ...  [DRM]
    < /*/M> DRM driver for VMware Virtual GPU                       [DRM_VMWGFX]
    < /*/M> DRM Support for bochs dispi vga interface (qemu stdvga)  [DRM_BOCHS]
    < /*/M> Virtual Box Graphics Card                            [DRM_VBOXVIDEO]

If the kernel does not provide a DRM driver for your GPU, on most x86 systems the “simple frame buffer” DRM driver running on VESA or UEFI frame buffer can be used as a fallback. Enable the following options in the kernel configurations if you don't have a dedicated DRM driver for the GPU, or you want to keep the simple frame buffer driver as a fallback in case the dedicated driver fails: 

Device Drivers --->
  Firmware Drivers --->
    [*] Mark VGA/VBE/EFI FB as generic system framebuffer       [SYSFB_SIMPLEFB]
  Graphics support --->
    <*> Direct Rendering Manager (XFree86 4.1.0 and higher DRI support) --->
                                                                      ...  [DRM]
    <*> Simple framebuffer driver                                [DRM_SIMPLEDRM]

To allow the kernel to print debug messages at an early boot stage, CONFIG_DRM and CONFIG_DRM_SIMPLEDRM should not be built as kernel modules unless an initramfs will be used.

If you want to use the simple frame buffer driver on a system booted via BIOS (instead of UEFI), add the following line before the first menuentry block in the /boot/grub/grub.cfg file to initialize the VESA frame buffer: 

set gfxpayload=1024x768x32

You may replace 1024, 768, and 32 with a resolution and color depth setting suitable for your monitor.

If all of these DRM drivers do not work for you and you need to use a DDX driver with a non-DRM kernel GPU driver (usually named CONFIG_FB_* in the kernel configuration, or existing as out-tree kernel modules), or you need an device specific functionality requiring a DDX driver, consult a prior version of BLFS, or an even prior version for more DDX drivers.

Installation of Xorg Server

First, if you need the TearFree option to work around screen tearing, apply the backported patch: 

patch -Np1 -i ../xorg-server-21.1.9-tearfree_backport-1.patch

Install the server by running the following commands: 

mkdir build &&
cd    build &&

meson setup ..              \
      --prefix=$XORG_PREFIX \
      --localstatedir=/var  \
      -Dglamor=true         \
      -Dxkb_output_dir=/var/lib/xkb &&
ninja

To test the results, issue: ninja test. You will need to run ldconfig as the root user first or some tests may fail.

Now as the root user: 

ninja install &&
mkdir -pv /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d

Command Explanations

-Dglamor=true: Ensure building the Glamor module. It's needed to build the modesetting_drv driver which replaces the traditional Device Dependent X (DDX) drivers.

-Dsuid_wrapper=true: Builds the suid-root wrapper for legacy DDX driver support on rootless xserver systems.

-Dsystemd_logind=false: This switch disables systemd-logind integration, allowing Xorg Server to work without having the systemd PAM module configured.

-Dxephyr=true: This option allows building Xephyr if its dependencies are met.

Contents

Installed Programs: gtf, X, Xnest, Xorg, Xvfb, and optionally Xephyr
Installed Libraries: several under $XORG_PREFIX/lib/xorg/modules/ including the modesetting_drv driver
Installed Directories: /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d, $XORG_PREFIX/include/xorg, $XORG_PREFIX/lib/xorg, and $XORG_PREFIX/share/X11/xorg.conf.d

Short Descriptions

gtf

calculates VESA GTF mode lines

X

is a symbolic link to Xorg

Xephyr

is a nested X server which supports modern X extensions

Xnest

is a nested X server

Xorg

is the X11R7 X Server

Xvfb

is the virtual framebuffer X server for X Version 11

modesetting_drv.so

provides a video driver for machines using Kernel Mode Setting (KMS). This will use glamor if that has been enabled and the hardware offers acceleration