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Every time I am installing Linux I have the same problem - how do I find out what hardware is in the box, and if it is compatible with Linux.

This would have been made a lot easier if there was a shortcut on the desktop of a LiveCD that said "Check my hardware". But before that shortcut can be put there, an application has to be made to do the work.

This program should perform an inventory of the hardware and compare it to a database of known good components. The most common parts of this database could be put on the CD and the rest could be on a website where it could be amended.

I am sure the good people in this forum could come up with far more innovative names for an application like this, but I hope you understand what I have in mind.

Yes, a lot of this is basic Linux stuff. But it is really difficult sometimes to check the hardware. I live in Brazil and here it is routine to use stickers that will break if you open the case of your computer. They will then deny you any warranty, even if the components in the PC still is under warranty from their respective manufacturers! So if I have a PC like that in front of me, I can not visually inspect what is in it!

A second use case for an application or function like this would be when a less knowledgeable user would like to upgrade his system, say he would like to add RAM. What kind and speed etc should he buy? If he could run this inventory check, write down what it say on the RAM tab and take to a shop, he could get the correct RAM and go home to install it. I know a lot of people that are ok with opening the box and adding more RAM, but they are uncertain about what type they should add.

I have searched for hardware in the brainstorming forum, but could so far not find anything similar to what I have suggested.

As soon as something like this is made, I think Gnome will follow up with something similar and if an online database is made, they should be able to use it as well.

A good example of an online database that I think works very well is MusicBrainz. Something along those lines could be used for hardware where people could add new hardware and the specs, others could add comments on how well it worked and vote each item up or down in terms of compatibility, reliability etc.

Only Distributions have accurate information on what a particular release is able to support, however it is the developers of the Kernel and other various projects that determine the support level of a hardware device.

Thus this is quite hard to add from KDE / GNOME's point of view.

bcooksley wrote:Thus this is quite hard to add from KDE / GNOME's point of view.

I sense that this can quickly become one of those topics that get sent from area to area and everyone is pointing to someone else...

You say it it might become difficult... But not impossible?

It would need to be open enough to work for any distro. It needs the input of kernel developers. But they can not possibly test all scenarios. So this is where a database comes in where one can make a comment like "It works for me" or "It freezes totally". This would then be an excellent place to look for hints about special versions of drivers that fixes problems etc.

Difficulties with hardware can be a major hurdle for anyone trying to do a new installation. An application that is able to detect your hardware and list the summary for it from the database would help a lot.

It would be good to have the help of the kernel devs. to get some info for the database. But making an app that lists the hardware in a system should not need the help of either the distro people or the kernel devs? Someone has to make a first step, and this would be a good part of the way.

This is something that a lot of people have tried to get running over the past few years. What ended up happening in most cases was that it was an overwhelming amount of work for the developer, and there was almost no interest from other developers, so the project would be abandoned. I helped out with one such project for a while ("Dohickey," developed by Martin Owens), and it was just a huge struggle to gain any significant momentum. At one point, there was a little user interest (at least in terms of testing the app), but never enough experienced and talented developers to keep it moving forward.

I don't think anything like this is going to happen until someone a) finds an organization to fund something like this and b) actually manages to gather a semi-organized group of developers that care enough to spend a lot of time on it (or get paid to do it).

I'm just speaking from experience in this case. It's hard to realize how many hours and how much work something like this requires until you've seen someone struggle with it.

This is a task probably best done in the distributions, however it isn't impossible for KDE to do it, just a bit insane to control due to the differences that the distros incorporate with their releases. Ubuntu/Kubuntu have a Hardware Database and an application that will actually run tests on your machine. Sound, Network, Video, Keyboard, and what not get tested and then you can even submit your info to the database. Honestly, I don't know if this project is still being updated and utilized, but I know it once was because I worked on it.

I wondered why so many of these projects had died, I figured it might be due to lack of testers since obviously this needs access to a lot of hardware for testing.

This really does sound like something distro makers would have to do and agree on as a standard. It might be pie-in-the-sky but I'd love this feature in pretty much any way, so I'm for it.

I absolutely agree that it will probably be a lot of work. All projects are. But I really do not understand why the people making the distributions would be in a better position to do it...

Detecting a soundcard and displaying the make and model should be universal. The same with registering it in a database. Of course, making an assessment if this particular piece of hardware is suitable for a particular distribution would be something that should be the job of the distributions. But this is the very last part of it. Everything else (IMHO) is as general as, say the freedb database?

I would say that the right place for the detection app would be in the control panel of KDE. If the database part of the suggestion makes it difficult for you to picture this in your mind, then don't think about it. Just think about an application running on your PC that can detect the hardware in use. If you want to see an app that do a lot of what I am thinking about, take a look at CPU-Z. They also make GPU-Z. These are Windows apps, but very well done. I use these apps a lot as I have not found anything that give this kind of info (in one app and place) in Linux. Take the functionality of these apps, add some more to it and you are beginning to understand what I am thinking about.

One more thing that should be added:

The fact that it is hard to do does not make an idea a bad idea. The first thing you should ask yourself is:

"Does this add real value and usability to KDE and Linux?" If the answer is yes, then please add your positive vote. But if you truly believe that nobody would benefit from it, you should of course vote it down!

Also remember - the fact that you as a seasoned Linux user can use a ton of commandline tricks to find this information is no excuse to vote it down

I thought that, if Linux didn't have support for hardware, it simply wouldn't detect it at all... O.o

I think a lot of hardware can be detected, but it does not necessarily mean that this hardware will behave in a good manner with whatever Linux version you are using. Even the BIOS can detect hardware and tell you some of the things that is in your PC. But it will not tell the all the facts about motherboard versions, RAM, graphics card, USB devices, soundcards etc.