Amlogic Video Decode Driver Posted For The Linux Kernel

[Gusar]

why these browsers prevents hardware acceleration decoding?

Mozilla doesn't care enough about Linux to bother implementing it. A big problem is not actually decoding the video, it's integrating it into the webpage. That requires accelerated layers compositing, which never worked right on Linux and is turned off by default. Things might change once Webrender (Mozilla's new way of accelerated layers compositing) is complete, but that will take a while, not even Windows has Webrender yet.

Google doesn't care about Linux either, there's a patch for video decoding on their bug tracker, but it's been there for over a year and it doesn't look like it'll be checked in anytime soon: https://chromium-review.googlesource.com/c/532294

[Azrael5]

You can force enable HW acceleration and HW video decoding on Chrome/-ium and Firefox. These being not enabled by default is not the fault of Nvidia/AMD but rather Google's and Mozilla's.

why these browsers prevents hardware acceleration decoding?

[kiffmet]

I know that those processor proide hardware acceleration decoding but it is not used on browsers as chrome...

You can force enable HW acceleration and HW video decoding on Chrome/-ium and Firefox. These being not enabled by default is not the fault of Nvidia/AMD but rather Google's and Mozilla's.

[boxie]

Hi Michael, driver author here. It is being developed by Baylibre, not Bootlin . Most of the Amlogic mainlining efforts are coming out of Baylibre.



We're still a long way from here, but it's going forward nicely. The biggest blocker we have right now is that the decoder is single instance (can't do multiple videos open at the same time), while Amlogic's custom driver supports multi-instance. We're also missing several features (like VP9 decoding).


For anyone interested in this driver, here's my tree with support for the other mentioned compression standards (H.264, HEVC 10-bit etc.): https://github.com/Elyotna/linux/com...18/v4l2-m2m-pr

keep up the good work! I hope one day that your work supersedes that of the binary blobs!

[Elyotna]

In addition to the embedded Linux experts at Bootlin having worked on the Allwinner VPU open-source support this summer they have also been developing an Amlogic video decode driver for the Linux kernel.

Hi Michael, driver author here. It is being developed by Baylibre, not Bootlin . Most of the Amlogic mainlining efforts are coming out of Baylibre.

if the vendors support it, then maybe our (commercial) stbs in the future will have an all open stack and a much more modern kernel - that'd be nice

We're still a long way from here, but it's going forward nicely. The biggest blocker we have right now is that the decoder is single instance (can't do multiple videos open at the same time), while Amlogic's custom driver supports multi-instance. We're also missing several features (like VP9 decoding).


For anyone interested in this driver, here's my tree with support for the other mentioned compression standards (H.264, HEVC 10-bit etc.): https://github.com/Elyotna/linux/com...18/v4l2-m2m-pr

[Azrael5]

AMD does provide open source stack including UVD support for a long time. Time to leave your cryo chamber!

I know that those processors provide hardware acceleration decoding but it is not used on browsers as chrome...

[Azrael5]

AMD does provide open source stack including UVD support for a long time. Time to leave your cryo chamber!

why there is no hardware acceleration decoding in chrome/ium? What the fuck is a cryo chamber? how to see if firefox provides decoding hardware acceleration?

[simburde]

Will be never provided video decode for Nvidia and AMD graphic processors?

AMD does provide open source stack including UVD support for a long time. Time to leave your cryo chamber!

[Azrael5]

Will be never provided video decode for Nvidia and AMD graphic processors?

[boxie]

if the vendors support it, then maybe our (commercial) stbs in the future will have an all open stack and a much more modern kernel - that'd be nice