TB16 Dock Linux Support

I've got the XPS 13 9360 with stock 16.04.

I got a TB16 from work to try replacing my WD15, which has been causing me a lot of issues: Black screen crash and freezes when logging in, rebooting, when resuming from sleep, or when hot-plugging.

I got the latest BIOS, and tried the latest kernels from 4.4.x and from 4.9.x. I booted onto Windows (from USB drive, pretty neat) and updated all chipsets, drivers and firmware to no avail: my system simply would not behave well with the WD15.

Enter TB16: All problems gone. Even the annoying Chrome flickering on the external display seems to be gone.My 4k monitor hotplugs over DP without problems, whereas with the WD15 it would either go black screen, or have jittery cursor movement at 4k. In any combination of suspending and pulling and plugging the USB-C cable, I cannot make it crash.

My only complaint is the loudness of the TB16, but it's definitely worth it. Whereas I would have to hard-power-off the laptop about every day using the WD15, I have not had to reboot once since I got the TB16.

I also noted some problems with the ethernet connection at work, but at home it was fine - I'm assuming this is because of having a 1 gbps connection at work, and a 100 mbps connection at home.

I'm using XPS 13 9360 (maxed out) with Ubuntu 17.04 (fresh install) with kernel 4.10.0.

I'm using the TB16 dock. I have an up to date BIOS.

I have not been able to update Thunderbolt firmware as it is Windows only from what I can figure out.

Here is what works/doesn't work/my opinion:

• Good: DisplayPort to a 1080p monitor works
• Bad: Video acceleration seems to not work on the external monitor. Menus in Chrome are exceptionally slow to appear, among other things, but only on the monitor connected through the dock
• Bad: As others have commented, the ethernet doesn't work correctly. I've only tried Gigabit. I understand that 100mbit may work, but have not tried that.
• Bad: The dock has a noticeable background sound (in a quiet room).
• Bad: The cable is very short. I've had to prop the dock up on some books to extend its reach.
• Bad: The USB ports seem very flaky. I copied some files to a USB drive and then back off again to test it for this post. Doing so caused a bunch of kernel error messages: gist.github.com/.../cb253bfaaa08389f4efd5526cfa733aa

All in all I am disappointed in the dock. It's better than nothing given I can use an external monitor with it, but for just one semi-usable port it seems very poor.

I'm generally disappointed in the XPS 13. I had high expectations and had been looking at buying one for months. Now I wish I had chosen something else. I also have the coil whine issue which I suppose is my biggest beef with it, but the experience with this dock has soured me a lot too.

As far as I'm aware, you definitely need the latest chipset drivers in order to use the TB16.

Small tip: If you don't want to dual-boot Windows on the laptop, you can create and boot off a USB drive (which has space enough for Windows 10) using http://www.easyuefi.com/wintousb/

Note that you need a Windows computer in order to use the above software.

You can download a Windows 10 ISO from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10ISO?OCID=WIP_r_Win10_Body_AddPC 

Once you are ready to boot off the stick, make sure you disable secure boot and enable legacy boot and all that in the XPS bios. Note that it takes a long time to install and boot Windows on the external drive, but it worked well for me.

I'd love to update the firmware. I don't have any Windows computer, nor any Windows licenses, however. Presumably to use that ISO I would need at least the latter?

I'd love to update the firmware. I don't have any Windows computer, nor any Windows licenses, however. Presumably to use that ISO I would need at least the latter?

Running opensuse tumbleweed.

I use the TB16 with the XPS9360 on 1 external 4K display, works fine most of the time.

Ethernet works a few minutes, then loses it completely. I've given up making it work.

USB sometimes work, sometimes not.

I don't understand why the TB16 runs the fan so often (and so loud) though, there seems to be absolutely no reason for it.

Kernel 4.11 is normally bringing some usb-c and thunderbolt improvement.

@madchap: Are you maybe suffering from the known gigabit ethernet connection problem?

Regarding fan noise, it is the same problem when running Windows, so this is not because of the OS or the kernel. Either my/our TB16 has some fault, or it is the combination of XPS 9360 and TB16. I have other colleagues with different Dell models, and they report their new TB16 being quiet as grave.

The noise from it is fairly quiet. I have to listen carefully to hear it. I was just very surprised because I didn't expect it to make any noise at all or have any fans. It's not a huge problem, just odd I suppose.

By the way regarding the USB flakiness issue, I've been using my USB mouse in one of the back ports without issue for the past couple days.

Network hasn't worked for me in quite a while with the TB16.  It was working wonderfully when I first had it delivered but at some point it simply stopped.  Video still works.  USB doesn't.

I have reinstalled the original recovery image and updated with no luck.  I have installed regular Ubuntu 16.10 and 17.04 seperatly but with no joy and now using Ubuntu Gnome 17.04 with no sucesss either.

Unsure what has caused it to stop.  The network lights are on but no one home.

The computer does not recognise there is any NIC available.

Perhaps there is a set of drivers that haven't made their way upstream and need to be manually installed?

"Enter TB16: All problems gone."

I have a Dell Precision 5520 running stock Ubuntu 16.04 with TB16 and two 2560x1600 Dell U3011 external monitors, each hooked up via DisplayPort and mini DisplayPort to dual link DVI adapter. Laptop BIOS is latest and Thunderbolt firmware is the latest.

Here's the problem: After undocking and then suspending the laptop will never resume properly; the keyboard and power button start to glow after resume but the screen always stays black. At this point my only option is a hard reboot. Docking at this point also doesn't help :-(

@tfnico have you tried suspend / resume after undocking? Does it work for you?

After a few weeks with the TB16, I have a more sober impression and have discovered a few nits.

Here's the setup:

• Laptop: XPS 13 9360 DE with UHD
• OS: Stock Ubuntu 16.04 with kernel 4.9.22.
• Peripherals: External display is Dell P2715Q connected via mini-DisplayPort in the TB16 at 4k (3840x2160). Some Logitech USB webcam and a USB headset. Bluetooth mouse & keyboard.

Check-list for the TB16:

• Charging: Works. No issues.
• External display: Works with full 4k. No issues. Hot plugging shows a messed up layout for a second before it corrects itself. No resuming from suspend crashes or login freezes (like I experienced with the WD15).
• USB: They work but sometimes they will crash, or hang, and I have to retreat to the ports on the laptop. Rebooting laptop seems to be the only fix for this.
• Ethernet: Works, BUT only with 100 mbps connection (gigabit connection corrupts plenty of data), and I have noticed that using the ethernet port is what triggers the crazy fan activity! Super weird. 
• Headset jack (front): "USB Audio Analog Stereo" is recognized as an input device, but not as an output device. Weird.
• Audio line out (back): Does not work at all.

For reference, on the WD15, the headset jack in the front, ethernet and USB ports worked fine. Audio line out in the back didn't work there either. 

@carriagereturn: When I shut the laptop when connected to the external display (see my setup in previous post), the system and the external display remains on. Only the internal display is disabled. Opening the laptop re-activates the internal display again. So that works quite smooth at least.

@tfnico thanks for the suggestions.

I have the stock Ubuntu kernel supplied by Dell for the Precision 5520 which I suspect is not the 4.9 version but I'll check later when I have access to the laptop. Did you upgrade the kernel yourself and if so, how easy is it to do / do you have the instructions?

Regarding the internal display then I went for the FHD display in order to maximize battery life.

Regarding one or two monitors: I tried all combinations of no external monitors, 1 DisplayPort external monitor, 1 mini DisplayPort external monitor, and both external monitors. But whenever there's an external monitor connected and I undock and suspend, then the subsequent resume results in the black screen issue. Undocking, suspending and resume works fine if no external monitors are connected to the dock.

Regarding upgrading via Windows: I created a Windows to go USB drive to update via Windows and updated the on laptop Thunderbolt firmware. I assumed that the chipset updates were all Windows specific. Or do you think they have some sort of effect on Ubuntu?

@Simon: The stock kernel for Ubuntu is 4.4.x for now. `uname -a` will show which one you have.

I definitely had very poor experiences with kernel 4.4.x on both TB16 and WD15. I chose 4.9 because it is a designated LTS version from the kernel developers (not the Ubuntu developers, mind).

I upgraded the kernel myself. It is pretty easy if you are comfortable using the console, sudo and apt-get. Just google "ubuntu upgrade mainline kernel" for instructions.

Regarding installing drivers on Windows, I have no idea which chipset drivers actually end up patching the firmware vs which are just used within Windows. So I simply installed everything I could find inside the categories "Chipset" and "Dock". There are some detailed instructions on what order to install them here, but I just installed them randomly myself.