2. Downloading the XFree86 4.0.3 binaries

XFree86 4.0.3 is an update release. The most recent full release (4.0.2) needs to be installed before installing this update. Information about downloading and installing 4.0.2 can be found in the installation document for that version, which can be found on the XFree86 web site.

We provide XFree86 4.0.3 update binaries for a range of operating systems at our ftp site. Often during releases our ftp site is heavily loaded. Instead of downloading directly from us we recommend that instead you use one of our mirror sites. Another advantage of using our mirror sites is that some of them support http access (ours does not).

Our binaries are organized by sub-directories which correspond to each of the OS/platforms for which we provide binaries. First go to the sub-directory that represents your OS platform. In some cases (e.g., Linux) there may be a number of choices depending on the architecture or libc version your platform uses. In all case we recommend that you first download the Xinstall.sh script, and run it as in the following example to find out which binary distribution you should download.

sh Xinstall.sh -check

The output of this utility tells you which is the correct set of binaries for you to download. If you are careful with this step you will save yourself a lot time and trouble from NOT downloading an incompatible distribution.

NOTE: the Xinstall.sh script must be downloaded in binary mode, otherwise it won't run correctly. If you get lots of "command not found" messages when you try to run it, then it is most likely because the script wasn't downloaded in binary mode. Some web browsers won't do this for files of that name, so we also have a copy of it called "Xinstall.bin", and most browsers should download that correctly. When downloading it under this name, select "save as" on your browser, and save the file under the name "Xinstall.sh".

Once you're run the Xinstall.sh script and found which binary update distribution is suitable for your system, download the necessary files. The five (5) mandatory files for all installations are listed below. If you have not downloaded all of the files, the installer script will complain.

1.   Xinstall.sh      The installer script
2.   extract          The utility for extracting tarballs
3.   Xupdate.tgz      Updated files except X server drivers/modules
4.   Xdocupd.tgz      Updated documentation
5.   Xdrivers.tgz     Updated X server drivers

NOTES:

• Some web browsers have a problem downloading the extract utility correctly. If you encounter this problem, download the version called extract.exe instead. This should fix the problem. (This is not a DOS/Windows executable.)
• The Darwin/Mac OS X distribution doesn't have or require the Xdrivers.tgz tarball.
• Some distributions may have additional mandatory tarballs. While rare, the installer script will tell you if any are missing.