Linux Mint on Chuwi Hi10 & Hi12 Tablets

[gshegosh]

I love that You’re able to make some progress with Linux drivers on Chuwi Hi10. I’d love to be able to use Linux on my tablet.

I’m a software developer and tinker with electronics, but have not much idea about Linux internals and drivers. I’d love to help, though. I can test stuff on my Chuwi, I’d also be glad to donate some money so You’re more motivated to keep on going 🙂

So, the internal sound driver is near, what about the touch screen? Any hope there from what You can see now?

[Scalpos]

Hello Tikilou. Thank you very much for your efforts at using the Hi10 devices with alternative Os and at documenting this !

Too bad your touchscreen is now defective… Does it seem to be a hardware issue ?

How does Linux perform when installed on this Lexar USB 3 flash drive ?

I’ll try later too playing with GRUB and EFI settings once I received my flash drive too (same as yours).

BTW, as you’re probably french, giving more visibility to your work on HFR [TU] Chuwi Vi8 Hi8 Vi10 Hi10 Hi12 – Windows & Android – dedicated thread might help, but I suspect you’re already here, under another pseudo ;-P

[Tikilou]

gshegosh wrote:

I love that You’re able to make some progress with Linux drivers on Chuwi Hi10. I’d love to be able to use Linux on my tablet. I’m a software developer and tinker with electronics, but have not much idea about Linux internals and drivers. I’d love to help, though. I can test stuff on my Chuwi, I’d also be glad to donate some money so You’re more motivated to keep on going ? So, the internal sound driver is near, what about the touch screen? Any hope there from what You can see now?

Thanks, but i don’t want any money, i will be happy if you and other people can help about hardware support of this tablet, and contact Intel/Google about GPL violation by chuwi because they don’t wan’t release the source of Android/Linux Kernel/Drivers. I’m not a developer and i’m doing what i can do, contact other people (like here https://github.com/hadess/rtl8723bs/issues/80 ) for better support of the tablet. 🙂

About the touchscreen, I know it’s a “chipon icn8683” but i don’t know if they are a support of it on Linux, but i suspect kernel have the capability to use many things of this tablet (especially Intel Soc), but can’t know he can, because this tablet use customs ACPI Hardware IDs, so if you can, with DSDT ACPI table  and Windows Peripheral Manager, make a list of Hardware peripheral who don’t work actually and associate the good ID. After that, maybe it would be possible to insert them in drivers sources code, for indicate to the system to recognize it and load the good module.

Another good new, it’s seems i’ve solved ther problem with thermald bios config, the kernel need add a boot setting ACPI “i915.modeset=1 vt.handoff=7 acpi_backlight=intel acpi_osi=’!Windows2012′” , working well with Kernel 4.6.

Scalpos wrote:

Hello Tikilou. Thank you very much for your efforts at using the Hi10 devices with alternative Os and at documenting this ! Too bad your touchscreen is now defective… Does it seem to be a hardware issue ? How does Linux perform when installed on this Lexar USB 3 flash drive ? I’ll try later too playing with GRUB and EFI settings once I received my flash drive too (same as yours). BTW, as you’re probably french, giving more visibility to your work on HFR [TU] Chuwi Vi8 Hi8 Vi10 Hi10 Hi12 – Windows & Android – dedicated thread might help, but I suspect you’re already here, under another pseudo ;-P

Thanks, unfortunatly my screen touch is broken, so… I’ve bought two other on aliexpress (just in case…). i’m happy to help people with my experience, but i would be great if you, and other people can  report with me all documentation about this tablet on this wiki, in french, and english : http://wiki.osremix.com/fr/tablettes/chuwi/hi10

And yes i’m french (Mon anglais est si mauvais que ça ? ^_^ ) and i have many pseudo, bingo-crepuscule on HFR and NextInpact, Billou on Ubuntu-Fr forum.

Lexar 128Gb work perfectly, i’ts seems to be more speed than the internal memory, i’ve proceed like that to install Manjaro.

First, on windows, i’ve make a backup of EFI partition, after that, i’ve copied ISO Manjaro Gnome with Lili USB creator on USB stick and added shellx64.efi to the root of USBstick. Reboot => Bios settings => Load EFI Shell => FS3: => cd EFI => cd Boot => loader.efi and quickly press enter to the first setting (otherwise it’s freeze).

For Manjaro installation, i’ve choose to create 3 partitions on USB stick, one of 100Mb EFI in fat16, one of 20Gb in ext4 for system root / , and one for /home.

I’ve mounted EFI internal memory partition to /boot/efi without format, added all partition, and install on USB stick 128Gb. (We can’t install in internal memory, Kernel 4.4 have errors with the controller). After installing, i’ve copied /boot/efi/manjaro/grubx64.efi to the primary FAT 16 EFI partition of the USB Stick (bootx64.efi) and added shellx64.efi too, juste in case… Because sometime the bios is little buggy, and after change settings, he reset all UEFI boot entries except Windows Manager… So with that, we will everything able to boot directly with this USB stick.

Other information, i don’t know why, but Manjaro replace by himself the Android Entrie,so after installation, the Dual switch screen , when i select android, GRUB of Manjaro appears. So we can restore the backup of UEFI partition with EasyUEFI, and copy again /efi/boot/manjaro folder in EFI internal memory partition and… Add a new boot entrie with EasyUEFI.

After first boot of Manjaro, think to update Kernel to 4.6, select PCI in bios for SDIO controller, install wifi and bluetooth drivers . 🙂

ABount sound, if you wan’t an alternative, you can share your wifi connection with your smartphone, connect your tablet under Linux on it, and install “Soundwire” server on tablet, and the client on Android. It transform your smartphone in speaker for the tablet. 🙂

[gshegosh]

About the touch panel, I believe the driver needs to upload a firmware for it to work. Does this thread help? https://github.com/onitake/gslx680-acpi/issues/4 or perhaps we could try to get in touch with those people?

[zak]

Hi,

I have  successfully transformed my CHUWI HI10 Q64G42160201032 single boot to DUAL BOOT mode.

And now i am runing android, now i will focus on linux

Thanks to Tikilou

Attachments:

You must be logged in to view attached files.

[Scalpos]

Tikilou wrote:

And yes i’m french (Mon anglais est si mauvais que ça ? ^_^ ) and i have many pseudo, bingo-crepuscule on HFR and NextInpact, Billou on Ubuntu-Fr forum.

Non, pas si mauvais ;-P I was quite sure about you having another nickname on HFR, that’s all =)

zak wrote:

I have successfully transformed my CHUWI HI10 Q64G42160201032 single boot to DUAL BOOT mode.

Did you achieve to transform a single boot Hi10 (Win10?) into a dualboot one, by flashing the BIOS, using software only ? Could you please provide more details if that’s the case ?
I recently tried myself many times to upgrade the P02A_C106.0X60D x64 BIOS to E406_C106_E.224 x64 with no success… Same 4216 serial as yours. Based on many forum posts, only hardware flash can do that.

[Tikilou]

zak wrote:

Hi,

I have successfully transformed my CHUWI HI10 Q64G42160201032 single boot to DUAL BOOT mode.

And now i am runing android, now i will focus on linux

Thanks to Tikilou

Your welcome, welcome back Zak, i’m happy to see your here again, hope we all gonna found a way for full hardware support. If we successfully do that and report patches for Linux Kernel, there will be a possibility to get marshmallow, android updates and custom roms like cyanogenmod too. 🙂

[Tikilou]

gshegosh wrote:

About the touch panel, I believe the driver needs to upload a firmware for it to work. Does this thread help? https://github.com/onitake/gslx680-acpi/issues/4 or perhaps we could try to get in touch with those people?

Maybe this is the good way, but i can’t do anything with my broken touch screen… Try every possibilies and let us know what results you have. 🙂

[zak]

Scalpos wrote:

Tikilou wrote:

And yes i’m french (Mon anglais est si mauvais que ça ? ^_^ ) and i have many pseudo, bingo-crepuscule on HFR and NextInpact, Billou on Ubuntu-Fr forum.

Non, pas si mauvais ;-P I was quite sure about you having another nickname on HFR, that’s all =)

zak wrote:

I have successfully transformed my CHUWI HI10 Q64G42160201032 single boot to DUAL BOOT mode.

Did you achieve to transform a single boot Hi10 (Win10?) into a dualboot one, by flashing the BIOS, using software only ? Could you please provide more details if that’s the case ? I recently tried myself many times to upgrade the P02A_C106.0X60D x64 BIOS to E406_C106_E.224 x64 with no success… Same 4216 serial as yours. Based on many forum posts, only hardware flash can do that.

Hi

Flashing the BIOS with bios.bin from (Tikilou) http://vavar60.online.fr/share/tablet/chuwi_hi10/bios_chuwi_Hi10-DualOS_E4D6_C106_E0511.224.7z

with eeprom programmer here is the how to http://techtablets.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Recovering-a-Bricked-Chuwi-Hi12-caused-by-Corrupt-Bios.pdf

[Scalpos]

zak wrote:

Hi Flashing the BIOS with bios.bin from (Tikilou) http://vavar60.online.fr/share/tablet/chuwi_hi10/bios_chuwi_Hi10-DualOS_E4D6_C106_E0511.224.7z with eeprom programmer here is the how to http://techtablets.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Recovering-a-Bricked-Chuwi-Hi12-caused-by-Corrupt-Bios.pdf

Ok, I thought a moment it was possible without opening the tablet + using the eeprom programmer… BTW Zak, were you able to proceed without damaging the tablet guts, or you can’t avoid cutting some parts like the sticky foam layer ?

Could the whole Android image provided by Chuwi and copied onto a USB flashdrive be used as another bootable system with proper UEFI setup ?

[Lupo]

zak wrote:

Hi Flashing the BIOS with bios.bin from (Tikilou) http://vavar60.online.fr/share/tablet/chuwi_hi10/bios_chuwi_Hi10-DualOS_E4D6_C106_E0511.224.7z with eeprom programmer here is the how to http://techtablets.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Recovering-a-Bricked-Chuwi-Hi12-caused-by-Corrupt-Bios.pdf

My Chuwi Hi10 died some time ago … no any way to switch it on, no charging indicator and etc …

I have tested all this instructions here:

Hi 10 Doesn't boot – fixes??

Chuwi Hi10 Cannot Power Potentially Solved

but with no Luck. I have unsoldered and soldered back the battery but the tablet is dead …

I read many posts that this is a common problem with this tablet model and I hope that this problem is fixed in the newer hardware ……. because I’m going to order a new Android + Win dual boot tablet in order to make it triple boot one with Linux Mint 🙂

Thanks to the info posted by zak, I’ll try to reflash the BIOS chip now … I hope it will wake it up.

[zak]

Scalpos wrote:

zak wrote:

Hi Flashing the BIOS with bios.bin from (Tikilou) http://vavar60.online.fr/share/tablet/chuwi_hi10/bios_chuwi_Hi10-DualOS_E4D6_C106_E0511.224.7z with eeprom programmer here is the how to http://techtablets.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Recovering-a-Bricked-Chuwi-Hi12-caused-by-Corrupt-Bios.pdf

Ok, I thought a moment it was possible without opening the tablet + using the eeprom programmer… BTW Zak, were you able to proceed without damaging the tablet guts, or you can’t avoid cutting some parts like the sticky foam layer ? Could the whole Android image provided by Chuwi and copied onto a USB flashdrive be used as another bootable system with proper UEFI setup ?

Without eeprom programmer you can’t, this guy show how to open the hi10 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVENVovN068

Android image provided by Chuwi and copied onto a USB flashdrive be used as another bootable system with proper UEFI setup ?  no i have already tested it and no luck the tablet gonna reboot constantly you should flash bios and after this you will be able to use android image provided by Chuwi

[Tikilou]

Ive found something interesting in the DSDT ACPI table about the touchscreen, the hardware ID is CHPN0001, and this touchscreen seems to be compatible with PNP0C50 ID generic driver on windows but i don’t know if he exist on Linux. https://github.com/torvalds/linux/blob/master/drivers/hid/i2c-hid/ seems be the good way too.
The first way gonna to help the kernel (with a patch driver) to recognize this ACPI Hardware ID (CHPN0001) and purpose him to use this driver (purposed in PM by Zak) or PNP0C50 driver if he is present, exactly like here ( https://github.com/hadess/rtl8723bs/issues/80 ). I’ts seems be the same way for all drivers, Chuwi SoftTeam have choosed to use ACPI call, not PCI calls, energy efficient but it’s require more work for include all theses Hardware ID in the existings kernels drivers, but can’t be used actually because kernel&drivers can’t recognize it without thems :

Scope (I2C6)
{
Device (TCS1)
{
Name (_ADR, Zero) // _ADR: Address
Name (_HID, “CHPN0001”) // _HID: Hardware ID
Name (_CID, “PNP0C50” /* HID Protocol Device (I2C bus) */) // _CID: Compatible ID
Name (_SUB, “HAMP0003”) // _SUB: Subsystem ID
Name (_S0W, Zero) // _S0W: S0 Device Wake State
Name (_DEP, Package (0x02) // _DEP: Dependencies

[zak]

We need the kernel and driver source code without this things there is nothing to do with this tablet

[Tikilou]

zak wrote:

We need the kernel and driver source code without this things there is nothing to do with this tablet

I agree and disagree. It will be more easy with the Linux kernel and modules source code of Android build for Hi10, but we can’t abandon, most of unsupported devices are now supported, and other hardware are supported but the kernel don’t know ACPI Hardware IDs of our tablet and can’t purpose to use an existant compatible module.
Yes, this is work, but i think it’s possible to look existant drivers on Github repositories, and compare compatible driver used in Windows and ask a patch compatibility on github & cie.

[Author]

Posts