X86 install without xwindows. Help Please on SDL in console mode.

dabone

I'm trying to do a x86 retropie install without xwindows running.

Ubuntu 14.04 install.

Does anyone have a walkthru on getting sdl working on console mode?

Thanks.

vbs

I generally like the idea and took a look into it already also. But as far as I could find out, several emulators (and also Retropie itself) assumes X11 support when they see x86 platform. So I guess it would make a lot of modifications necessary to make that work.

For example from system.sh:

function platform_x86() {
    __default_cflags="-O3 -march=native"
    __default_asflags=""
    __default_makeflags="-j$(nproc)"
   __platform_flags="x11"
    __has_binaries=0
}

BuZz

@dabone It's not supported, and wouldn't work (even if 2d worked on framebuffer, you would lose all he accelerated scaling etc)

vbs

@BuZz
Just out of interest: I thought "normal" Retropie on RPi hardware is doing it that way also (without X11, directly onto framebuffer). How does it manage to preserve hardware acceleration? Sorry, but I would really love to learn that.

BuZz

It does - because the hardware driver supports it. I'm not saying some x86 machines could do the same depending on GPU, but I don't see any advantage and would require drivers that support 3d acceleration on the framebuffer.

see things like http://stackoverflow.com/questions/3036650/using-opengl-without-x-window-system

vbs

@BuZz
Ok thanks for the answer. Well I hoped for some performance improvements. But no idea if it would be even noticeable.

BuZz

You wouldn't get any performance improvements.

vbs

@BuZz
Hm, thats not that much... ;)