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LOOK before installing Mandrake 9.2

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  • LOOK before installing Mandrake 9.2

    Seems that installing Mandrake 9.2 on a PC that has an LG Electronics optical drive or a Dell computer can damage your optical drive.

    Look at the article on this page:


  • #2
    There's a discussion thread about it somewhere. Link is probably on http://www.linuxtoday.com where people are arguing who's fault it is.
    Gigabyte GA-K8N Ultra 9, Opteron 170 Denmark 2x2Ghz, 2 GB Corsair XMS, Gigabyte 6600, Gentoo Linux
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    • #3
      Yep, it's quite a mess isn't it?

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      • #4
        The problem's apparently in the experimental packet-writing support which Mandrake decided to ship in their kernel.

        Also, it seems to only affect certain CD-RW and combo models (do LG make non-combo DVD drives). CD-ROM drives are apparently unaffected by this.

        Edit: The above paragraph is wrong, it's the info I had at the time. Apparently now it's the CD-ROM drives which are affected, while CD-RW and combo drives are fine. But I don't think you should trust me on that anyway. In any case, the problem's actually that LG aren't following the ATAPI spec, with the result that a certain perfectly valid command trashes the drive firmware.
        Last edited by Ribbit; 28 October 2003, 11:20.
        Blah blah blah nick blah blah confusion, blah blah blah blah frog.

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        • #5
          well I have mandrake 9.1 and a LG-cdrw, And i think the LG has always been shite , even in windows. I am glad to have yet another reason never to buy an LG optical drive again. They are cheap and dodgy.

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          • #6
            Well, changing name from GoldStar didn't really change anything
            If there's artificial intelligence, there's bound to be some artificial stupidity.

            Jeremy Clarkson "806 brake horsepower..and that on that limp wrist faerie liquid the Americans call petrol, if you run it on the more explosive jungle juice we have in Europe you'd be getting 850 brake horsepower..."

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            • #7
              My sister had an LG DVD in her computer. It is shite. Her sister has the machine now and is changing it out for a LiteOn. In fact I am going down to Croydon on Wed. to sort it out for her
              [size=1]D3/\/7YCR4CK3R
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              • #8
                Update:

                A new page has been added at Mandrake that covers the LG drive problem:



                The problem was that the kernel would send a FLUSH_CACHE command to the LG CD-ROM drive which would destroy the drive. This is because LG CD-ROM drives are not compliant with the ATAPI specification. The specification does not require an implementation of the FLUSH_CACHE command in the driver, and returning an error (or doing nothing) would have been the correct behaviour for the drive. Likewise, reusing a command is against the specification and LG has reused the FLUSH_CACHE command to modify the firmware of the drive, but they are unwilling to disclose exactly what the command does.

                Solution: A new kernel (2.4.22-21mdk) has been released that fixes this problem in the kernel, although the CD-ROM devices are still not up to specification. New CDs and ISOs will be available shortly to correct these problems; they will come with the new kernel.

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                • #9
                  Unbeleivable. Doesn't ATAPI have to approve a drive for it to be sold for ATAPI spec or something?

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