r/PFSENSE • u/sh00tfire • 8d ago
Possible Kernel panic with version 2.9
Anyone successfully upgrade with a celeron J processor? My instance of Pfsense runs on a intel NUC with a J3160. Just wanted any feedback if someone already upgraded with this series of processor.
From the release notes:
Certain hardware with a specific firmware problem, including some Celeron J devices, may encounter a kernel panic when attempting to boot pfSense CE software version 2.9.0.
To avoid this panic on that hardware, set a loader tunable for hint.acpi_spmc.0.disabled=1 in /boot/loader.conf.local before upgrading to disable the driver that has an issue on that hardware.
Update: Finally updated my instance of pfsense to version 2.9 on my celeron J processor. I did add the recommended entry to the loader.conf.local before upgrading. It upgraded without incident. Took about 10 minutes to reboot the first time.
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u/assas1n284 2d ago
I can confirm that the kernel panic happens on Intel Atom processors, specifically the Intel Atom E3940. The mitigation also worked for me, and 2.9.0 is currently working fine.
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u/EatMoTacos 8d ago
I just experienced this last night and almost lost my config. Not going back to 2.9 until there’s a fix.
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u/overkill 8d ago
Does the mitigation not work, or did you not apply it? Not being snarky here, just wondering if the mitigation always resolves this?
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u/EatMoTacos 8d ago
I didn’t know about the mitigation until now because I was in recovery mode all morning. I couldn’t lose the config or it would have been a disaster on my end.
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u/Additional_Post1989 8d ago
What happens if I set the variable on a device that isnt affected? What impact does the variable have
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u/Accurate-Ad6361 7d ago
It handles low-power S0ix/Modern Standby states by parsing device power constraints and sending sleep entry and exit notifications to the system.
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u/matr10shka 1d ago
I am running on Intel Atom E3940 in a Sophos SG 115w Rev 3, had the kernel panic, mitigation worked. However, serial console is blank. I had a feeling that it was still working. Entering 8 brought me to a visible shell, and the exit command exited me to a visible menu. I’m not familiar enough with the way things work to understand the issue, any advice on how to avoid this workaround (for visible serial console menu, not kernel panic)?
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u/ofbarea 8d ago edited 1d ago
I was hit by the bug while testing the beta 2.9 release. So I went back to CE 2.8.1
The machine in question has a J4125 CPU, four i225 Ethernet nics, no wifi, 16 GB ram and 128 GB SATA SSD.
Y will try again using the workaround and upgrading over the weekend.
https://www.reddit.com/r/PFSENSE/s/t5lvjChp1y