How to set 32 bit display in guest Ubuntu?

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kchung
Posts: 3
Joined: 24. Oct 2008, 01:47

How to set 32 bit display in guest Ubuntu?

Post by kchung »

Host OS: Windows XP
Guest OS: Ubuntu 8.04
Guest addtion installed.

When starting on ubuntu, there is a warning from VirtualBox:

"This virtual machine windown is optimized to work in 32 bit color mode, but the color quality of the virtual display is currently set to 16 bit."

How do I set the display to 32 bit in ubuntu?

Thanks. :lol:
JshWright
Volunteer
Posts: 119
Joined: 13. Sep 2007, 00:33
Primary OS: Debian Lenny
VBox Version: OSE self-compiled
Guest OSses: Many...

Post by JshWright »

Are you using the vboxvideo video driver? You may need to manually configure your xorg.conf to use it.

Note that "32 bit" is really a misnomer. It's 24 bit + an 8 bit alpha layer (which is implied), so in linux you're looking for 24 bit video.

~JW
kchung
Posts: 3
Joined: 24. Oct 2008, 01:47

Post by kchung »

I have the following xorg.conf. Guess it was generated and I haven't modify it. Should I add a "driver vboxvideo" to screen section? Guess I'll need to read up on xorg.conf man page. Thanks.

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Generic Keyboard"
Driver "kbd"
Option "XkbRules" "xorg"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbLayout" "us"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Configured Mouse"
Driver "vboxmouse"
Option "CorePointer"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Configured Video Device"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
Device "Configured Video Device"
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
Screen "Default Screen"
EndSection
Sasquatch
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Primary OS: Debian other
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Guest OSses: Windows XP, Windows 7, Linux
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Post by Sasquatch »

Should I add a "driver vboxvideo" to screen section?
No, you need to set it to the Device Section where it mentions the video card. Screen is a section for your display.
Read the Forum Posting Guide before opening a topic.
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Online User Manual: A must read if you want to know what we're talking about.
Howto: Install Linux Guest Additions
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See the Tutorials and FAQ section at the top of the Forum for more guides.
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kchung
Posts: 3
Joined: 24. Oct 2008, 01:47

Post by kchung »

Adding a "driver vboxvideo" to the device section didn't seem to help. :( I'll live with the warning for now, and figure out how to fix it later. Thanks.
JesseT77
Posts: 1
Joined: 24. Nov 2008, 13:12

I think I fixed it

Post by JesseT77 »

I had essentially the same problem.

After reading through endless flamewars on the ubuntu forums of people being incensed about the "marketing hype" of 32 bit color, and noone addressing the true issue of "what to do when app X (in this case a vbox host system) complains about wanting 32 bit color", I found this thread.

So, my xorg.conf exactly matched kchungs. reading man docs, the directive:
Driver "vboxvideo"

should be added to the Device section. Note: Capitol D in driver and double quotes around vboxvideo.

I tried exactly this, using "24" as my bit depth (for some reason my install wanted to default to 16 *shrug*) and now Vbox no longer complains about my video mode. *win!*

I hope this data helps out more folk. :)

- - Jesse
jvuz
Posts: 17
Joined: 5. Feb 2009, 14:34

Post by jvuz »

And how did you add that to the device section (where do I find the device section)?

Jvuz
Sasquatch
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Post by Sasquatch »

jvuz wrote:And how did you add that to the device section (where do I find the device section)?

Jvuz
This should be in your Xorg.conf file in /etc/X11. However, later versions of Ubuntu, like 8.10 and the new 9.04, no longer use that file for initial settings. You can still use it to change a few settings, but most is done by HAL. There are plenty of example xorg.conf settings here on the forum. Just tweak that a bit until you're satisfied.
Read the Forum Posting Guide before opening a topic.
VirtualBox FAQ: Check this before asking questions.
Online User Manual: A must read if you want to know what we're talking about.
Howto: Install Linux Guest Additions
Howto: Use Shared Folders on Linux Guest
See the Tutorials and FAQ section at the top of the Forum for more guides.
Try searching the forums first with Google and add the site filter for this forum.
E.g. install guest additions site:forums.virtualbox.org

Retired from this Forum since OSSO introduction.
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