Blast from the past sz220 problem with Ubuntu

I've posted on the Ubuntu forums with no solution but I thought that you guys might be able to shed some light on this issue. I have a Windows7/Ubuntu 10.04 dual boot with 3gb Ram and a 320Gb Hdd. This computer is still a great piece of hardware imo but I have an issue with this new install of 10.04. When I choose to boot into Linux with the battery in it will start to boot but will shut off before the Ubuntu screen pops up. To get my computer to turn back on (pressing the button after it turns off will not turn it back on) I have to remove the battery and remove the power cord. Then I can press the power button and it will turn on like nothing ever happened. No error screens or anything that I can see appears before it turns off. Now if I boot into Windows I can have the battery in and everything goes as it should. Here's where the interesting part comes in. If I remove the battery before I select the operating system I can boot into Ubuntu and everything works peachy. I can even put the battery in and it will charge and operate as it should within Ubuntu. Can anyone suggest what is happening here? The battery is a replacement naturally but I bought it from a reputable battery maker. I just would like to be able to pinpoint the problem so I can work on a solution. My only guess so far is that somehow the Ubuntu power manager doesn't enable the power management in a way that is compatible with the laptop.

 

You would be correct. The Vaio Management software in Windows has an interface with low level battery management. Turn off all battery management features in Windows and it will translate over to Ubuntu. Ubuntu currently has no way of modifying the power settings on Vaio's because it's so specific to certain models. It has the same effect on new Windows Installations, where when you don't have all the Sony Utilities installed upon bootup (especially with newer models) upon booting into Windows it will immediately shut itself down.

 

I actually don't have any of the VAIO components installed with Win 7 and everything works perfectly. The switch for graphics and everything works as well. My model is over 4 years old now and was purchased before the Vista upgrade was available lol.

 

Sadly it didn't work. It seemed like it was and then it shut down on me again. Is there anything I can do from the Ubuntu side?? I don't know a whole lot about the problem obviously and I kinda need a direction to research in so that I don't mess up this beautiful install of Ubuntu. It's just the way that I want it and everything works great!

 

Try adding "acpi=off" (without the quotes) to the boot line in grub.
Of course, you'll lose all ACPI controlled settings, including battery monitors, extra function keys and thermal throttling, but it might let you boot.