"Unredirect Fullscreen Windows" can cause significant tearing on fullscreen windows (especially playing video)

Bug Description

[Impact]

Tearing on some drivers in some video applications.

[Test Case]

Use intel graphics and run http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCPkOpMHB7g in full screen mode. No tearing should be spotted.

[Regression Potential]

None, restores current behavior for the specific applications as a driver/application workaround.

---

Using "Unredirect Fullscreen Windows" can cause significant tearing in the fullscreen window being unredirected.

This is an unavoidable consequence of "Unredirect Fullscreen Windows". Removing compiz from the equation and allowing windows to render directly to the screen means compiz has no control over the window and cannot prevent tearing any more.

Workaround (1):
CCSM > Composite > Unredirect Fullscreen Windows = OFF
-or-
Workaround (2):
Check the settings of the application running fullscreen. It should have an option called something like "sync to vblank" which you can enable. If not, use a different app.

Note: This bug is set to Won't Fix because it is impossible to fix in Compiz. If you find this unacceptable then please use Workaround (1) above.

In progress, surprisingly. The plan is to disallow unredirection for video players at least. So you can have tear-free video playback but still full speed direct rendering in games. It should be configurable.

Fix committed into lp:compiz at revision 3498, scheduled for release in Compiz 0.9.9.0
Fix committed into lp:compiz/0.9.8 at revision 3425, scheduled for release in Compiz 0.9.8.8

This bug was fixed in the package compiz - 1:0.9.9~daily12.12.05-0ubuntu1

---------------
compiz (1:0.9.9~daily12.12.05-0ubuntu1) raring; urgency=low

[ Michael Terry ]
* debian/control:
- Update Vcs-Bzr
* debian/patches/100_expo_layout.patch:
- Fix to apply
* Automatic snapshot from revision 3451 (bootstrap)
- Fix crash from writing to static memory (LP: #1065814)
- Fix maximized windows changing workspaces (LP: #1071791)
- Respect Zoom Factor setting (LP: #1066187)
- Respect Show Window Title setting (LP: #1009999)
- Restore text background transparency (LP: #1042132)
- Restore screenshot selection rectangle transparency (LP: #1047788)
- Restore top and bottom cube transparency (LP: #1048272)
- Fix scaleaddon window highlighting being solid (LP #1068503)
- Make resize hint overlay disappear when changing edges (LP: #839602)
- Preserve grid IDs during drag (LP: #1067812, LP: #1048855)
- Save current display before doing snap preview (LP: #1068173)
- Ignore inactive keybindings (LP: #1053280)
- Handle <primary> in keyboard shortcuts (LP: #936840)
- Make sure showdesktop plugin is loaded after unityshell (LP: #1067534)
- Fix grid build failure (LP: #1067577)
- Fix Jenkins test failures (LP: #1058577)
- Don't allow duplicate static symbols when linking (LP: #1067964)
- Make external templates C++0x compatible (LP: #1067598)
- Make sure to initialize class members (LP: #1033877)
- Don't duplicate templates in plugins (LP: #1066793, LP: #1066803,
LP: #1066804, LP: #1066805, LP: #1066799, LP: #1066796,
LP: #1066795, LP: #1066798, LP: #1067218, LP: #1067219)
- Don't needlessly set gsettings keys (LP: #1064791)
- Remove unused code (LP: #1037142, LP: #1067234)
- Fix syntax highlighting for trunk xml files (LP: #1066823)
- Fix documentation for building with python2 (LP: #1070211)

[ Stephen M. Webb ]
* Windows open below panel and launcher, grid does not work at all,
window animations missing, and general plugin chaos if built on
raring (cmake >= 2.8.10) (LP: #1085581)

[ Iven Hsu ]
* KDE Appmenu doesn't work with compiz decorators (LP: #1082265)
* compiz 0.9.8.6 fails to build from source in KDE4-window-decorator
with latest KDE 4.10 beta (LP: #1082152)
* kde4-window-decorator crashes when starting up with oxygen theme
(LP: #1050776)

[ sampo555 ]
* Grid: Window management - resize preview does not show when moving a
window from the semi-maximised state to the maximised state in a
single action (LP: #1071689)

[ Timo Jyrinki ]
* HTML5 video in Firefox continues to tear (LP: #1086337)

[ MC Return ]
* Workspacenames Plug-in: Wishlist: Default Appearance values not
ideal (LP: #1075600)
* Resizeinfo Plug-in: No possibility to change the color and
transparency of the rounded background outline (LP: #1070297)
* Resizeinfo Plug-in: Gradient color 2 and 3 settings are ignored and
no background gradient is rendered (LP: #1070233)
* Expo animations "Fade + Zoom" & "Vortex" result in a black screen
(LP: #875311)
* Workspacenames Plug-in: Wishlist: No default values...

Fix committed to lp:compiz-core/0.9.7 at revision 3128, scheduled for release in Compiz Core 0.9.7.12

Hello Daniel, or anyone else affected,

Accepted compiz into quantal-proposed. The package will build now and be available at http://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/compiz/1:0.9.8.6-0ubuntu1 in a few hours, and then in the -proposed repository.

Please help us by testing this new package. See https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Testing/EnableProposed for documentation how to enable and use -proposed. Your feedback will aid us getting this update out to other Ubuntu users.

If this package fixes the bug for you, please add a comment to this bug, mentioning the version of the package you tested, and change the tag from verification-needed to verification-done. If it does not fix the bug for you, please add a comment stating that, and change the tag to verification-failed. In either case, details of your testing will help us make a better decision.

Further information regarding the verification process can be found at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/QATeam/PerformingSRUVerification . Thank you in advance!

Updated from quantal-proposed on Intel sandybridge graphics, went to the youtube clip via guest account -> no tearing.

Hello Daniel, or anyone else affected,

Accepted compiz into precise-proposed. The package will build now and be available at http://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/compiz/1:0.9.7.12-0ubuntu1 in a few hours, and then in the -proposed repository.

Please help us by testing this new package. See https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Testing/EnableProposed for documentation how to enable and use -proposed. Your feedback will aid us getting this update out to other Ubuntu users.

If this package fixes the bug for you, please add a comment to this bug, mentioning the version of the package you tested, and change the tag from verification-needed to verification-done. If it does not fix the bug for you, please add a comment stating that, and change the tag to verification-failed. In either case, details of your testing will help us make a better decision.

Further information regarding the verification process can be found at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/QATeam/PerformingSRUVerification . Thank you in advance!

Also fixed on precise.

The verification of this Stable Release Update has completed successfully and the package has now been released to -updates. Subsequently, the Ubuntu Stable Release Updates Team is being unsubscribed and will not receive messages about this bug report. In the event that you encounter a regression using the package from -updates please report a new bug using ubuntu-bug and tag the bug report regression-update so we can easily find any regresssions.

This bug was fixed in the package compiz - 1:0.9.8.6-0ubuntu1

---------------
compiz (1:0.9.8.6-0ubuntu1) quantal-proposed; urgency=low

* New upstream release.
- Enable Unredirect Fullscreen Windows by default. It seems to be
stable enough with all the major graphics drivers now, as at Ubuntu
12.10 (with updates). (LP: #1063690)
- Grid: Reset the currently handled window in the GridWindow
destructor only if the destroyed window was the handled one.
(LP: #1048855) (LP: #1067812)
- Grid: Set GridWindow->lastTarget to GridMaximize only if the
window was fully maximized. (LP: #1071689)
* Cherry-pick related fixes from upstream:
- Fixed: unredirected fullscreen windows sliding offscreen were
staying unredirected (always visible), because compiz thought
they were fullscreen on a different monitor. Add extra smarts
to tell the difference between fullscreen and offscreen.
(LP: #1084401)
- Add an option to specify which windows are allowed to be unredirected
when they are fullscreen. Default: Allow unredirection on all window
types except common video players: Totem, MPlayer, Vlc or Plugin-
container (Flash or other nested browser windows). (LP: #1051802)
- Add Firefox to the unredirect exceptions. (LP: #1086337)
-- Timo Jyrinki <email address hidden> 2012年12月04日 12:41:40 +0200

Tearing on Google Chrome when using default PPAPI flash player: /opt/google/chrome/PepperFlash/libpepflashplayer.so
There is no tearing when using NPAPI flash player: /usr/lib/flashplugin-installer/libflashplayer.so

NVIDIA proprietary driver.

This bug was fixed in the package compiz - 1:0.9.7.12-0ubuntu1

---------------
compiz (1:0.9.7.12-0ubuntu1) precise-proposed; urgency=low

[ Łukasz 'sil2100' Zemczak ]
* debian/patches/revert_fix_994841.patch,
debian/patches/revert_fix_933776_955035.patch
- Removed, upstreamed
* debian/watch:
- Changed to the correct LP tarball path
* debian/patches/compiz-package-gles2.patch:
- Updated GLES patches to properly apply to the new compiz version

[ Timo Jyrinki ]
* New upstream release.
- Compiz won't start if "unredirect fullscreen windows" is enabled
(LP: #980663)
- "Unredirect Fullscreen Windows" stay on top (unredirected) even
when they're not on top any more (or the output is transformed)
(LP: #1041047)
- Unredirect Fullscreen Windows sometimes fails to unredirect fullscreen
windows at all (LP: #1041066)
- "Unredirect Fullscreen Windows" stay on top (unredirected) even when
an RGBA window is stacked above it (LP: #1046661)
- scale mode is not visible if a fullscreen window is unredirected
(LP: #1047168)
- Unredirecting a fullscreen window on a secondary monitor causes that
monitor to flicker (LP: #1050749)
- "Unredirect Fullscreen Windows" makes multi-monitor rendering much
slower (LP: #1051885)
- [regression] Maximized window gets unredirected when it's not
fullscreen (LP: #1053902)
- Unredirected fullscreen windows freeze and stay on top when wall
sliding (Ctrl+Alt+Left/Right) (LP: #1084401)
- "Unredirect Fullscreen Windows" can cause significant tearing on
fullscreen windows (especially playing video) on some drivers
(LP: #1051802)
- HTML5 video in Firefox continues to tear (LP: #1086337)
- Add support for blacklisting some drivers from using unredirected
fullscreen windows. By default intel and nouveau on Mesa 8.0
are blacklisted, configurable via ccsm. Users can upgrade to
Mesa 9.0 around 12.04.2 time. (LP: #1089246)
- Unredirect fullscreen windows should be the default for optimal
performance (LP: #1063690)
* debian/patches/workaround_broken_drivers.patch:
- Updated to apply.
* debian/patches/force_unredirect_enabling.patch:
- Enable unredirect_fullscreen_windows unconditionally. Because of
gconf hurdles we can't easily migrate existing users into the
new default otherwise. Unredirection can be easily disabled with
the new unredirect_match option, by blanking it completely,
including removing the '(any)' part.
* debian/patches/compiz-package-gles2.patch:
- Update for the new blacklisting feature as well
* debian/patches/blacklist_no_xml_double_escaping.patch:
- Cherry-pick fix for the default string (LP: #1091103)

[ Michael Terry ]
* debian/patches/blacklist_no_xml_double_escaping.patch:
- Update to also blacklist Mesa 9.0, which precise users may have from
the x-updates PPA. 9.0 seems to have similar problems as 8.0 on
Intel hardware.
-- Timo Jyrinki <email address hidden> 2012年12月14日 10:41:24 +0200

marking as closed (0.9.8 series is obsolete)

FYI, this was either broken again or remains unfixed on newest nvidia: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/compiz/+bug/1307144