# Use iMac as Monitor for Linux Box

## boris_qd

Is it possible to use a new imac as a display for a linux box (running gentoo of course...).  The iMac has a DisplayPort input but I can only find evidence that it works with a direct mac DisplayPort -> DisplayPort connection.  

Are there graphic cards that run with linux that have DisplayPort outputs?  Is there a better way of accomplishing this?

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## Telemin

Well google will lead you to this...

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/690954-REG/Kanex_HDMIMDP_XD_for_Apple_iMac.html

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## boris_qd

The product you linked to does not support the 27in imac at its native resolution... I guess I should have been more specific - i'd like to use the imac as a monitor at full resolution - like a normal monitor.

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## boris_qd

Ideally I'm looking for a solution that sounds like: Buy video card X with a DisplayPort and connect to your monitor.  Use the Y driver and set this option.  The monitor will work.  

X and Y?

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## Telemin

Well there are a number of video cards which have displayport out.  Nvidia claim in a number of places that their linux drivers support displayport out.  So at the linux end things seem to be fine.

You have to be concerned with whether the iMac will accept any displayport input or whether it has to be apple branded in some way (let's hope not, but apple do have a history of interoperability issues with non apple products and general lack of openness regarding anything at all) which is a question I cannot answer.  Best way to get an answer to that is ask at your local apple store.

-Telemin-

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## gentoo_ram

We have some NVidia Quadro cards at work on Linux machines which have DisplayPort connectors on them.  They work fine with the newest NVidia drivers.

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## Gusar

From looking at many nvidia cards recently, I've found only those from Zotac have DisplayPort. Others have 2xDVI + miniHDMI. So get a Zotac nvidia card and pray the iMac display accepts a standard DisplayPort signal. Or you could look at the radeon camp, there DisplayPort is more frequent, but I personally would go nvidia.

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## Lupusceleri

It's a Dutch hardware comparison website - but it's the best I know mate, so I'm going to link you to it anyway.

Here are all the 200 videocards with a DisplayPort.

Here are all the 41 Nvidia cards with a DisplayPort.

Here are all the 62 videocards with a MiniDisplayPort.

Here are all the 2 Nvidia cards with a MiniDisplayPort.

As for whether or not the chipset is supported by Linux drivers, I'd recommend looking on the official driver lists.

For Nvidia, the latest stable proprietary driver and the cards it supports can be found here: http://www.nvidia.co.uk/object/linux-display-amd64-260.19.36-driver-uk.html

For ATI, there are two possibilities - opensource "radeon" driver, and proprietary "fglrx" driver.

http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/Fglrx

http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/Radeon

http://xorg.freedesktop.org/wiki/RadeonFeature

http://wiki.cchtml.com/index.php/Hardware

Hope that helps!

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