Dell Precision M4800
The Dell Precision M4800 laptop is a mobile workstation released in late 2013.
Contents
System specifications
Parts list
CPU: Intel Core i7-4800MQ Processor (Quad Core, 6 MB Cache, 2.7 GHz, w/HD Graphics 4600)
Memory: 16 GB (2x8 GB) 1600 MHz DDR3L
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 1 TB Solid State Drive
Display: 39.6cm (15.6") UltraSharp QHD+ (3200x1800) Wide View Anti-Glare LED-backlit Premium Panel
Graphics: NVIDIA Quadro K2100M w/2GB GDDR5
Optical: 8X DVD+/-RW Drive Slot Load
Wireless networking: Dell Wireless 1601 2x2 802.11n+BT+60GHz (WiGig)
Keyboard: Internal English Backlit Dual Pointing Keyboard
lspci
# lspci
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation Xeon E3-1200 v3/4th Gen Core Processor DRAM Controller (rev 06) 00:01.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation Xeon E3-1200 v3/4th Gen Core Processor PCI Express x16 Controller (rev 06) 00:14.0 USB controller: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family USB xHCI (rev 04) 00:16.0 Communication controller: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family MEI Controller #1 (rev 04) 00:19.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation Ethernet Connection I217-LM (rev 04) 00:1a.0 USB controller: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family USB EHCI #2 (rev 04) 00:1b.0 Audio device: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset High Definition Audio Controller (rev 04) 00:1c.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #1 (rev d4) 00:1c.2 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #3 (rev d4) 00:1c.3 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #4 (rev d4) 00:1c.4 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #5 (rev d4) 00:1c.6 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #7 (rev d4) 00:1c.7 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family PCI Express Root Port #8 (rev d4) 00:1d.0 USB controller: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family USB EHCI #1 (rev 04) 00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation QM87 Express LPC Controller (rev 04) 00:1f.2 SATA controller: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family 6-port SATA Controller 1 [AHCI mode] (rev 04) 00:1f.3 SMBus: Intel Corporation 8 Series/C220 Series Chipset Family SMBus Controller (rev 04) 01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation GK106GLM [Quadro K2100M] (rev a1) 01:00.1 Audio device: NVIDIA Corporation GK106 HDMI Audio Controller (rev a1) 03:00.0 PCI bridge: Wilocity Ltd. Wil6200 PCI Express Root Port (rev 04) 04:00.0 PCI bridge: Wilocity Ltd. Wil6200 PCI Express Port (rev 04) 04:02.0 PCI bridge: Wilocity Ltd. Wil6200 Wireless PCI Express Port (rev 14) 04:03.0 PCI bridge: Wilocity Ltd. Wil6200 Wireless PCI Express Port (rev 14) 05:00.0 Network controller: Qualcomm Atheros AR9462 Wireless Network Adapter (rev 01) 15:00.0 SD Host controller: O2 Micro, Inc. Device 8520 (rev 01)
lsusb
# lsusb
Bus 004 Device 003: ID 0a5c:5800 Broadcom Corp. BCM5880 Secure Applications Processor Bus 004 Device 002: ID 8087:8000 Intel Corp. Bus 004 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub Bus 003 Device 003: ID 0c45:64d0 Microdia Bus 003 Device 002: ID 8087:8008 Intel Corp. Bus 003 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
Pre-installation notes
The M4800 comes with a legacy BIOS and UEFI. The Arch installation media, version 2014.04.01, may not properly boot or install if using legacy BIOS and/or a MS-DOS partition table. Using the UEFI option with a GPT-partitioned hard drive was required to successfully complete the installation process.
The M4800 will not give you a usable system unless nomodeset
is added to the kernel command line. This is required for both the Arch installation media and post-installation. Because nomodeset
is required even after booting, use of the Nouveau driver is not possible because Nouveau requires KMS.
What does not work
- The brightness up/down buttons do not work in Cinnamon or at the virtual console without X (untested on other desktop environments). Interestingly, redshift is able to adjust the display brightness.
- When Cinnamon locks the screen due to inactivity, pressing keys or moving the mouse does not automatically turn the display back on to allow unlocking the screen. A workaround is to press
Ctrl+Alt+F2
followed byCtrl+Alt+F1
, which switches from TTY1 to TTY2 and back again. - Switching TTYs with
Ctrl+Alt+FX
after X has started does not present the user with a usable TTY. - When closing the GUI (e.g. by logging out of Cinnamon), the screen goes black, and the virtual console does not appear like it should.