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Fil Bergamo, 07/30/2019 08:40 PM

1 1 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
h1. Graphics
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3 11 Fil Bergamo
By default, Replicant devices use the Android software renderer, which relies on the CPU for graphics rendering. Using the dedicated graphics processor (GPU) currently requires non-free software on all of the supported devices. As free-software replacements are not yet available, the GPU cannot be used with Replicant for the moment (see [[GraphicsResearch]]). The software rendering is the reason why Replicant devices appear slow at times and is responsible for a lot of crashes that can happen during usage.
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5 2 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
llvmpipe has more complete EGL support than the Android software renderer (see #705), so more apps work with it, like Firefox-based browsers or more recent webviews (see #1780). Unfortunately, llvmpipe is still too slow to be the default renderer, but it is possible to switch back and forth between llvmpipe and the Android software renderer.
6 1 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
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h2. Enabling llvmpipe as software renderer
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Make sure [[ADB]] is running as root and the system partition [[ADB#Modifying-the-system-partition|is mounted writable]].
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The following command switches the software renderer implementation:
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<pre>
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adb shell "grep -q "ro.libagl=1" /system/build.prop && sed "s/ro.libagl=1/ro.libagl=0/" -i /system/build.prop || sed "s/ro.libagl=0/ro.libagl=1/" -i /system/build.prop" 
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</pre>
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16 6 Jeremy Rand
Then reboot the device. llvmpipe should now be enabled. To switch back to the default Android software renderer, run the above command again and reboot the device.
17 1 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
18 5 Jeremy Rand
There are also issues with certain apps when using llvmpipe, although crashes should be less frequent. Usually, the screen stays black if an app does not work with llvmpipe. Apps where this happens include the gallery app and Orbot.
19 2 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
20 3 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
h2. Known issues with the Android software renderer
21 1 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
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* Selecting the third option besides photo and video will crash the camera app. This is the panorama mode.
23 2 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
* Video playback in the browser does not work (issue #1533)
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* Screenshots do not work (see [[Screenshots]] for a workaround)
25 1 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
* Selecting wallpapers from storage does not work
26 7 Jeremy Rand
* Screen content is sometimes shortly visible before unlocking (issue #1275, happens with llvmpipe as well)
27 2 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
* Previews of the windows in the tasks switcher are missing
28 4 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
* Switching between apps, apps and the launcher or different views inside an app is sometimes slow and the device may seem unresponsive
29 2 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
* There are issues with using folders with the Trebuchet launcher (issue #1790, happens with llvmpipe as well)
30 1 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
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h3. Popular apps from F-Droid that do not work
32 2 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
33 5 Jeremy Rand
* all Firefox-based browsers like "IceCatMobile":https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdfilter=icecat&fdid=org.gnu.icecat and Orfox
34 2 Wolfgang Wiedmeyer
* "Document Viewer":https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdfilter=document+viewer&fdid=org.sufficientlysecure.viewer
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* "LibreOffice Viewer":https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdfilter=libreoffice&fdid=org.documentfoundation.libreoffice
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* "RedReader":https://f-droid.org/repository/browse/?fdfilter=redreader&fdid=org.quantumbadger.redreader cannot display images ("upstream bug":https://github.com/QuantumBadger/RedReader/issues/279)
37 8 Denis 'GNUtoo' Carikli
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h2. See also
39 9 Denis 'GNUtoo' Carikli
40 8 Denis 'GNUtoo' Carikli
* There is a page about [[GraphicsResearch]] that gather information to improve graphics support