Content
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  1. Load the pkspkr.ko Kernel Driver Module (required)
  2. Add non-root users to the "beep" group
  3. Avoid using `beep`
  4. Example Usage


1. Load the pkspkr.ko Kernel Driver Module (required)
-----------------------------------------------------

To have a working PC speaker beep on Fedora >= 12, you must load the
kernel driver module `pcspkr.ko` first.

You can do this manually as root as follows:

    [root@host ~]# modprobe pcspkr

If you want the system to automatically load the pcspkr driver the
next time it boots, uncomment the

    alias platform:pcspkr pcspkr

line in the `/etc/modprobe.d/beep.conf` config file.

You can check whether pcspkr.ko is loaded by running

    [root@host ~]# lsmod | grep pcspkr

as root.

When pcspkr is loaded, you can run

    [root@host ~]# beep

as root and verify that you hear the beep coming from the PC speaker.


2. Add non-root users to the "beep" group
-----------------------------------------

To add user `jane` to the `beep` group, have root run

    [root@host ~]# usermod jane -a -G beep

You can check which users are members of the `beep` group by running

    [user@host ~]$ getent group beep
    beep:x:951:jane,bill
    [user@host ~]$

However, any user newly added to the `beep` group must re-login so
their processes can pick up the group membership. A user can check
their group membership as follows:

    [jane@host ~]$ id
    uid=1000(jane) gid=1000(jane) groups=1000(jane),10(wheel),951(beep) context=unconfined_u:unconfined_r:unconfined_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023
    [jane@host ~]$

To check the permission of the PC speaker device file, run

    [user@host ~]$ ls -lH /dev/input/by-path/platform-pcspkr-event-spkr
    crw-rw----+ 1 root input 13, 85 29. Dez 02:52 /dev/input/by-path/platform-pcspkr-event-spkr
    [user@host ~]$ getfacl /dev/input/by-path/platform-pcspkr-event-spkr
    getfacl: Removing leading '/' from absolute path names
    # file: dev/input/by-path/platform-pcspkr-event-spkr
    # owner: root
    # group: input
    user::rw-
    group:beep:-w-
    group::rw-
    mask::rw-
    other::---

    [user@host ~]$ 


3. Avoid using `beep`
---------------------

An alternative way to get sound output for non-root users without
becoming root works if the system has a sound card set up with a
speaker connected to it. The standard 440Hz square wave which `beep`
emits can be played through the standard sound infrastructure with the
command `play` from the `sox` package (more pleasant examples are in
the `sox(1)` man page):

    [jane@host ~]$ play -q -n synth 0.3 square 440


4. Example Usage
----------------

An acoustic notification when a long running compile job finishes
(whether the build was successful or not) could be done with

    [jane@host ~/src/foobar]$ ./configure --prefix=$HOME/.local && make && make check && make install; beep

or

    [bill@host ~/rpms/foobar]$ fedpkg mockbuild; beep