[DESKTOP] Blank screen with mouse pointer after rebbot after new SSD install

[steve7233]

I have been googling and trying to fix this all day. I installed a new 4 TB SSD used chown command as I intended to use it with steam made sure it had a new mount folder and rebooted. I can open a TTY but no desktop. I was able to get dolphin to run with startx dolphin but no desktop. I tried editing Grub II boot but no go. I am using my 19.10 install USB to send this. It boots so I don't think there is a problem with my computer. Possible just a coincidence that it happened just after the SSD install but maybe there is something weird going on with the mobo. Any ideas anyone? I am getting a headache trying to figure this out so I will use my USB for now.

Maybe I will learn something new about Linux while I solve this.

[steve7233]

I just noticed I made a typo in the title.. Edit Only lets the poster edit the body it will not let me edit the title.

[Don B. Cilly]

If you edit the first post and Go Advanced, it should let you edit it.

[steve7233]

Deleted.

[steve7233]

If you edit the first post and Go Advanced, it should let you edit it.

Thanks for the information. Any idea what this problem is about?

[Don B. Cilly]

No idea I'm afraid. Apart from the old "create new user and see what happens", I wouldn't know what to try either.
To create a new user from TTY, adduser (or if it's not there) useradd - which should be.
To logout... probably loginctl terminate-user "your username"

[jlittle]

... I was able to get dolphin to run with startx dolphin but no desktop.

That means X is running but no plasma (that is, KDE). Do you get a login prompt?

I suggest looking in the X log file in /var/log, called something like Xorg.0.log.

If your purpose is to learn stuff, carry on, for a while at least. But if it's to use the computer, it will be quicker to backup any important stuff, and reinstall, or restore from the last full system backup. (Says someone who has wasted so much time and effort not doing that[emoji19].)

[steve7233]

That means X is running but no plasma (that is, KDE). Do you get a login prompt?

I suggest looking in the X log file in /var/log, called something like Xorg.0.log.

If your purpose is to learn stuff, carry on, for a while at least. But if it's to use the computer, it will be quicker to backup any important stuff, and reinstall, or restore from the last full system backup. (Says someone who has wasted so much time and effort not doing that[emoji19].)

No login prompt until I switch to a terminal. I don't think my usr desktop is working.

[steve7233]

No idea I'm afraid. Apart from the old "create new user and see what happens", I wouldn't know what to try either.
To create a new user from TTY, adduser (or if it's not there) useradd - which should be.
To logout... probably loginctl terminate-user "your username"

None of the user commands worked. Ether they changed the commands or maybe only the graphical part works in Kubuntu and I don't know what package to install for the CML to work or the system is even more borked than I thought. I had just done an update right before it broke so maybe a bad update?

[Don B. Cilly]

None of the user commands worked.

On my neon 5.18 (18.04) they both work. But useradd you must have.

not@all:~$ sudo useradd joey
[sudo] password for not:[
not@all:~$

[EDIT] Mind you, it probably won't be much use anyway.
As jlittle says: "it will be quicker to backup any important stuff, and reinstall, or restore from the last full system backup."
You might as well try Kubuntu 20.04, on the USB stick, see how you like it (I do), install it - maybe on a separate partition...

[claydoh]

if you have a mouse and can launch Dolphin, simply hit alt-space or ctrl-f2 to open krunner, and type in the command plasmashell. If the desktop loads, this itself very often fixes the issue somehow.

Plasma for whatever reason crashed or did not load, and the command starts it. Do make sure you are NOT using sudo with startx or plasmashell.

If it does not load Plasma, then in a tty enter this command and look for errors:

startplasma-x11

instead of startx.