| Apple-TV to run Linux soon? |
Jun. 06, 2007
 Apple's Apple-TV (A-TV) is based on a more-or-less standard Intel PC architecture, according to an in-depth "under-the-hood" analysis. Additionally, a community project has already reported success in getting a Linux kernel and various device drivers to operate on the platform.
(Click for larger view of Apple-TV)
Apparently, Apple TV is based on a 1GHz Intel Pentium M processor of the Crofton family, along with an Intel QG82945 northbridge and PC82801 southbridge. The graphics processor is an NVidia GeForce 7300. Wireless LAN capabilities are relegated to an off-board daughtercard, for easier FCC approval process negotiation as new standards emerge. Currently, the daughtercard appears to be a Broadcom 802.11abgn "dual-band diversity" transceiver.
Despite its standard PC architecture, however, the Apple-TV apparently does not welcome standard PC OSes with open arms. A post at the Mactel-Linux Project's Apple TV Linux Wiki page reads, in part, "It is known that the 'EFI' Executables on the AppleTV are protected. The AppleTV refuses to boot any free EFI Executables."
In other words, the Apple-TV appears to be "Tivo-ized," to borrow Richard Stallman's coinage.
Undeterred, the Mactel-Linux Project participants apparently devised a clever way around the obstruction. The Wiki page continues, "The simple idea was to build a mach-o binary and let boot.efi do its magic. The loader sits in the mach-o binary, also the linux kernel itself."
Currently, the project's improvised bootloader appears to be working, with support for DHCP and ext3 filesystems. Also reportedly working are:- USB, with "irqpoll" kernel commandline option
- NV Xorg and Nvidia proprietary drivers
- Speedstep (CPU Frequency scaling)
- WLAN with ndiswrapper
- Sound (patch required for optical digital out)
Despite early success, the project's labors are "not ready for prime time yet," according to the Wiki page. EFI is not fully working yet, and the instructions appear to be incomplete and apparently still evolving. The Wiki page concludes, "I just wanna put some info up to get people informed that the wait for Linux is nearly over."
Along with the i-Phone, the A-TV was one of two high-profile embedded products announced by Steve Jobs at this January's MacWorld expo in San Francisco. Flush with iPod success, and having dropped the word "computer" from its name, Jobs said both products would run an embedded version of Mac OS X. Apple started shipping the A-TV last month, while the iPhone is expected to go on sale June 29th, the company has said.
According to an "under-the-hood" survey at Video Imaging DesignLine, the A-TV features:- Pretty standard Intel PC architecture
- Modularized WiFi radio daughtercard, to facilitate quick FCC approval as standards evolve
- Ultra-simple media distribution model in which content is downloaded to a PC, then simply synchronized to the device for output on HD rendering devices
- Small size of 7-3/4 x 7-3/4 x 1.1 inches (197 x 197 x 28 mm)
- HDMI, USB, Ethernet, RCA audio, optical audio, IrDA, etc
Additional details can be found in the Video Imaging DesignLine coverage, here. Or, check out the Apple TV coverage on Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols's Practical Technology blog.
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