This guide is intended to provide you details on how well this laptop works with Linux and which drivers you need to configure. For details on how to actually install and configure the required drivers have a look at our guides section for distribution specific instructions.

Page Contents Introduction Editing This Page Specifications Linux Compatibility Notes Related Resources Summary

If you are looking to purchase this laptop you can visit HP's Pavilion notebook page.

Introduction

This is a guide to running Linux with the Hewlett-Packard Pavilion dv9500t laptop.

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Specifications

Name	HP Pavilion dv9500t
Processor	Intel Core 2 Duo T7100 1.8GHz
Screen	17" WXGA+
RAM	1GB
HDD	160GB
Optical Drive	DVD+-RW
Graphics	Nvidia Geforce 8600M
Network	10/100/1000 Ethernet, Intel 4965AGN 802.11abgn Wireless, Bluetooth
Other	3 x USB2.0, 1 x Firewire

Linux Compatibility

Device	Compatibility	Comments
Processor	Yes
Screen	Yes
Optical Drive	Yes
Graphics	Yes	See notes below
Sound	Partial	See notes below
Ethernet	Yes
Wireless	Yes	See notes below
Bluetooth	Not Tested
56K Modem	Not Tested
USB	Yes
Firewire	Not Tested
SD Card Reader	Not Tested
ExpressCard Slot	Not Tested

Notes

For the NVIDIA GeForce 8600M found in the Pavilion dv9500t does not currently work with the open source 'nv' driver so you will need to use the proprietary 'nvidia' driver. For installation instructions, you can view our Configuring a nVidia graphics chip guide.

For the sound to function with the dv9500t you need to install ALSA version 1.0.15rc3 or greater. Unfortunately no currently Linux distribution includes this as default so you will need to compile and install this driver yourself. The upcoming Ubuntu 7.10 will not have this issue.

The Intel 4965AGN included with the dv9500t can be quite difficult to configure depending on the Linux distribution used. See the guide below for more details about this. An up to date Fedora 7 installation (one with all the latest updates) and the upcoming Ubuntu 7.10 supports this wireless controller as standard.

Related Resources

Preparing your laptop for Linux
Configuring a nVidia graphics chip
Configuring the audio
Configuring the iwl4965 driver for the Intel 4965AGN wireless controller
Increasing battery life

Summary

Currently the HP Pavilion dv9500t is quite difficult to configure at the moment as quite a bit of work is required. However upcoming Linux distributions should solve these issues.


Have you installed Linux on this laptop? If so how about leaving a comment about your success in the comments section below.