Ubuntu – Desktop for Ubuntu 19.10 ARM64 bit Raspberry Pi 4 Model B

19.10arm64lubunturaspberrypixubuntu

Originally this post was about asking if others had successfully ran Desktop Environments (DE) using Ubuntu 19.10 (Eoan Ermine) ARM 64 on a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B as I experienced a few problems, namely:

  • USB did not work initially
  • Xubuntu just started into a blank screen
  • Wifi connected and leased an address but there was no connectivity
  • No audio output

Since the original post, comments by @guiverc (thank you) and tomreyz IRC #xbuntu and other research I have fixes for the problems I experienced. As far as I am aware there are no outstanding issues and I have a fully functional desktop.

I can confirm that with few tweaks the desktops, xubuntu and probably lubuntu should work fine on Ubuntu 19.10 ARM 64.

Ubuntu 19.10 ARM 64 (server) image works with the published patch (for the USB problem)
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux-raspi2/+bug/1848703
although there was still apart a problem with the WiFi (see Wifi fix below).

Lubuntu package: Seems to install and work OK. (I have not retested with WiFi fix as my preference is probably the Xubuntu desktop)

Xubuntu package: Just started/booted to a blank screen but the workaround is to replace the default Xubuntu greeter with the slick-greeter (see comments and https://bluesabre.org/2019/10/20/install-xubuntu-19-10-on-a-raspberry-pi-4/)

The WiFi problem experienced was an IP address is be leased but there was no connectivity over IP. Applying the latest WiFi firmware fixed the problem: see https://wiki.ubuntu.com/ARM/RaspberryPi

There was no audio output (though my HDMI monitor). No output devices were found with:

aplay -l

Adding the following line to /boot/firmware/usercfg.txt and rebooting, fixed the audio:

dtparam=audio=on

Best Answer

I just tried Lubuntu using the RPi4 64 Bit image from https://ubuntu.com/download/raspberry-pi on a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B.

:)

I didn't experience the black screen, the USB bug, or any WiFi problems (managed to connect to a WPA2 network easily).

:(

However, I was unable to get the sound to work, even after fiddling with the usercfg.txt file.

After consulting the documentation (https://www.raspberrypi.org/documentation/configuration/config-txt/) I tried various combinations with these config parameters:

hdmi_force_edid_audio=1
hdmi_ignore_edid_audio=1
dtparam=audio=on

Unfortunately I could't get either the 3.5 mm jack or the HDMI audio output to work.

I'm about to try it again from scratch this time with Xubuntu as you'd reported success.

Hopefully I'll be able to report back a confirmation of your results soon.

...

Just finished trying Xubuntu with the same Pi. Initially I had the same problem as lubuntu.

:D

Fortunately after reviewing this link: https://forum.manjaro.org/t/rpi-4-audio-issue/103399 I managed to solve the audio problem.

The key command necessary to fix it was:

sudo amixer cset numid=3 1 numid=3,iface=MIXER,name='PCM Playback Route' ; type=INTEGER,access=rw------,v…

At the moment I have to call it manually after booting, so it is not a perfect fix but I'll probably add it to a boot script if there is no better solution.

My usercfg.txt file contents are:

dtparam=spi=on
dtoverlay=vc4-fkms-v3d
max_framebuffers=2

# Sound settings
dtparam=audio=on
hdmi_ignore_edid_audio=1

I tested it by calling the following command to produce static noise:

aplay -c 2 -f S16_LE -r 44100 /dev/urandom
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