appears to be powernow-k8 specific, not ACPI specific.

please attach the output of grep POWERNOW .config

also, the powernow parts of the dmesg from the working kernel might be useful.

It's an ACPI bug, not a PowerNow! bug.

The PowerNow! driver calls acpi_processor_register_performance().  If that
fails, it tries to get the pstate data from the PSB BIOS structure.  Multicore
and Multiprocessor systems are not supported by the PSB BIOS structure, so the
driver has no pstate data and fails to instantiate.

If 2.6.18 worked, there is a regression in acpi_processor_register_performance()
in 2.6.20.

seeing a very similar message with kernel 2.6.18-8 on a dual AMDx86

PCI: Failed to allocate mem resource #6:20000@f8000000 for 0000:09:00.0
powernow-k8: MP systems not supported by PSB BIOS structure
powernow-k8: MP systems not supported by PSB BIOS structure

Again, this message happens when Linux can't find or decode the _PSS objects. 
Make sure you have the ACPI processor module enabled and loaded before enabling
powernow-k8

I have the same problem booting from CD (Gentoo, Ubuntu and Fedora core) iwth my
dual AMD64 X2.  Setting the kernel to acpi=off does not work either.  The kernel
panics.

I'm happy to test a new kernel but since I do not have a Linux install, it maybe
hard.  Still, please let me know (yann-AT-kierun-org) if I can test this. 

Can you pls attach acpidump output (best check for BIOS updates before and 
update, after doing that send acpidump output).

Yann: The kernel panics.
Why do you think this is related?
Can you give us a bit more details about the panic (last function accessed, 
best would be the whole backtrace of last processed functions).

Created attachment 10783 [details]
Just before kernel crash

This is just before the kernel crash.

Created attachment 10784 [details]
Actual kernel diump trace

This is the actual kernel dump trace.

Created attachment 10785 [details]
Just before crash with apci=off option

Just before the kernel apci=off crashes

Created attachment 10786 [details]
First part of the kernel trace

First part of kernel apci=off trace

Created attachment 10787 [details]
Final part of the kernel trace.

Final part of the kernel apci=off trace.

All the pictures I've just uploaded are from a Fedor Core 6 install DVD.  There
are two trace, the first is from the default kernel, the second from booting
with "linux text apci=off smp=off" to remove as many things as possible. 
Gentoo, Open Suse and Ubuntu all kernel dump as well.  If you really want and it
would help, I can take pictures of all of them. 

The system I am running is as follows:
 AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 5000+
 MSI K9A Platinum Crossfire (Socket AM2)
 OCZ 2GB (2 x 1GB) PC2-6400 Dual Channel Platinu
 Sapphire ATI Radeon X1950 Pro ULTIMATE SILENT

I'd love to be able to compile a 2.6.21 kernel (or any other) but I cannot
install Linux so do not have access to gcc or anything like that. 

Any help would be much appreciated.  

Is there a way to force the APCI processor module to load before the powernow_k8
module on your systems?  The failure of the ACPI processor module to load is
what is causing PowerNow! to fail.

Mark, 

I do not think so.  I have no running system and all installers I have (Gentoo,
Fedora Core 6, Ubuntu and OpenSuse) do not have much option in what to do.  I
can pass some arguments to the default kernel but that's it.  

I believe that I reported the same issue to the Gentoo bug tracker:

http://bugs.gentoo.org/show_bug.cgi?id=178585

and I've just sent a possible 1 line Kconfig fix to LKML:

http://lkml.org/lkml/2007/5/15/352

Does this patch need more testing? Yann, does it resolve your problem?
Thanks.

It worked for me.  Actually, fedora 7 installed on my machine so it's fine. 

Thanks guys.

Hi guys, I had the same issue here, but kernel 2.6.22:
# uname -a
Linux localhost 2.6.22-gentoo #5 SMP Mon Jul 16 15:08:03 MSD 2007 i686 AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4200+ AuthenticAMD GNU/Linux
# modprobe powernow-k8
FATAL: Error inserting powernow_k8 (/lib/modules/2.6.22-gentoo/kernel/arch/i386/kernel/cpu/cpufreq/powernow-k8.ko): No such device

# dmesg | tail -n 3
powernow-k8: Found 2 AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 4200+ processors (version 2.00.00)
powernow-k8: MP systems not supported by PSB BIOS structure
powernow-k8: MP systems not supported by PSB BIOS structure

Created attachment 12059 [details]
kernel config

If you have the ACPI Processor module loaded and it's still failing, then your BIOS does not report the _PSS objects in a way that Linux understands.  Update your BIOS.

I've now had this same problem. I've contact my motherboard manufacturer (Asus) and they have totally failed to help.

Clearly it is a BIOS problem and the correct solution is for the BIOS to be fixed. I'm still e-mailing Asus but I'm not hopeful.

I'm wondering if there's some way to fake the data. This would have to be done by hard-coding the values into the module. This blatantly sucks but I can't see any other way. This is also inappropriate for the mainline kernel as it's the Wrong Way to do it.

re-categorizing to ACPI/Power-Processor
from Power-Management/cpufreq

There is a fix/patch from Joshua in comment #16.
IMO this makes sense and should find its way to mainline, Dave?

Comment #19-#22 are about an Asus BIOS lacking cpufreq ACPI tables -> unrelated.

IMO this one can be closed (if Dave agrees with above patch and commits it).

(In reply to comment #17)
> Does this patch need more testing? Yann, does it resolve your problem?
> Thanks.

I have installed Fedora core 7 in text mode as i was getting this error so how do i need to make below change into kernal and resovle it.

CONFIG_X86_POWERNOW_K8=y
CONFIG_X86_ACPI_CPUFREQ=m

I'm novice to Linux please help me

Dave Jones and Daniel Drake have accepted the patch, and its idea was incorporated and later included into new x86 arch. The bug can be closed.

http://lkml.org/lkml/2007/5/29/362