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**sky** · Mar 18, 2006, 06:58 AM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

Hi,

First of all Welcome to kubuntu

Can you tell us what is the error you get ? Is it hanging after grub ?
What's happenning exactly ?

Cheers

**Adler** · Mar 20, 2006, 01:08 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

Sky,

Firstly, this is the machine that I am working with --

- Compaq Presario V5000Z CTO NB
- Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP Home Edition with SP2
- AMD Turion(TM) 64 ML-40 (2.2GHz/1MB L2 Cache)
- 15.4" WXGA BrightView Widescreen (1280x800)
- 128MB ATI RADEON(R) XPRESS 200M w/Hypermemory(TM)
- 1.0GB DDR SDRAM (1x1024MB)
- 80 GB 5400 RPM Hard Drive
- DVD/CD-RW Combo Drive
- 54g(TM) 802.11a/b/g WLAN & Bluetooth
- 12 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
- Microsoft(R) Works/Money

Over the past weekend I pulled down the openSuSE 10.0 5 CD set, UBUNU and Kanotix. In addition I also have the SuSE 10 64-Bit DVD (retail version) and KUBUNTU.

In all cases -- except for Kanotix, which I have not tried to install -- if I just click installation the kernel loads and the screen goes black. In other words nothing on the screen -- no prompt, no activity, nothing.

If I change boot parameters e.g. vga=771, install acpi=off, or others I do load the kernel and then go into verbose mode, but hang at certain levels of the verbose process. I never get to a graphical interface and must shut my machine down manually.

From what I've gathered all these issues revolve around the ATI graphics card. I seem to need to get the correct boot parameters.

Since I do have the UNBUNTU ISO there is the option to do a server install, but I'm a KDE kind of guy and I could get KDE installed, but would rather go straight with KUBUNTU.

The problems that I am facing -- again -- seem to revolve around the AI card and its 128Mb of dedicated RAM.

If you can pass anything along let me know. It seems this is a major issue in installing linux on 64-bit machines!

Adler

**askrieger** · Mar 20, 2006, 04:55 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

First of all, if you can get ubuntu going, It is trivial to get kde. Just use Synaptic to download "kubuntu-desktop". Personally, I like Synaptic better than Adept, anyway. GDM will then give you the choice of starting KDE or Gnome (or so I've been told).

So the question is how to get going. I would try the server install. If that works, the first thing I'd do would be to use apt-get to install the ATI drivers. Then, I'd try to get kde via "apt-get install kubuntu-desktop" or by installing the Gnome equivalent, which I believe is "gnome-desktop-environment".

By the way, I'm typing this on a box with an Athlon64, so it's possible, at least with an nvidia display card.

Note added in proof: You did download the STABLE Breezy 5.10 version rather than ALPHA TEST Dapper 6.04 version didn't you. As of now, if Dapper breaks, you get to keep all the pieces.

**Adler** · Mar 20, 2006, 07:11 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

Sky,

I did pull down the latest stable version of UBUNTU and I've worked with SuSE since 9.0 and know apt-get, apt-get install, etc.

I have tried the Server install, but no luck. I've tried a few boot parameters like "linux pci=noacpi", but go into verbose mode and then the machine hangs. All of the boot paramters that I've used with either SuSE 10.0, KUBUNTU or UBUNTU have resulted in the same thing e.g. verbose mode and then the system hangs.

Hmmm...

Adler

**askrieger** · Mar 20, 2006, 07:36 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

I've never used Suse, so I didn't know it used apt, I thought it was an RPM distro. Also, I thought that you had managed to get Ubuntu to do a server install and only had difficulty when starting the GUI.

The reason for a verbose boot, of course, is so that you can see how far it has progressed before it crashes. You might learn something useful by noticing how far the boot has gone when it crashes. If that is how you gleaned the information that it was a graphics card problem you can try using a framebuffer boot code and see if that gets you going. Then you can edit xorg.conf to "vesa" and try again. Alternatively, you can try the quiet boot code. I suspect that it would still crash, but you wouldn't know where. However, I have been known to be wrong on occasion.

**Adler** · Mar 20, 2006, 07:58 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

Askrieger,

It seems to be a known fact that the ATI Radeon Express 200M card is not Linux friendly. I've had all kinds of suggestions, but it seems that a simple set of boot parameters would suffice to at least get the install done.

If I could at least install I than could either "compile" or "apt-get install" the ATI Linux Drivers that are available. I'd also be able to then get whatever programs Evolution, OOo, Firefox, etc via apt.

Right now I'm stuck on stupid! My machine diesn't crash in verbose mode. It just stops running and the only was to get out of it is to turn the machine off.

Thanks for your comments.

Adler

**askrieger** · Mar 20, 2006, 08:27 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

What are the last few lines printed before it stops? Did you try a framebuffer? Quiet boot? Basically I'm just guessing in the hope that something will work.

As a last resort, I'd suggest Knoppix. I say this for two reasons. First, because Knoppix has the very best hardware detection system that there is, Second, because, I have had bad luck with Kanotix.

Before staarting either Knoppix or Kanotix. Try to find the latest list of Knoppix "cheat codes". They are probably on the Knoppix wiki. You can definitely start Knoppix with a framebuffer. I don't know about Kanotix because it didn't work very well on my P5 system.

**Adler** · Mar 21, 2006, 09:37 AM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

askrieger,

Here are some examples:

Using SERVER Mode after the Boot line: itrd.gz ramdisk_size 16384 root=/dev/ram rw -- I add vega=vesa the result verbose screen results in these final lines:

net: registered protocol family 16
acpi: bus type pci registered
pci: using configuration type 1
pci: using MMCONFIG at e0000000
acpi: subsystem revision 20051216
acpi: interpreter enabled
acpi: using IOAPIC for interupt routing
acpi: pci root bridge [PCI0] (0000:00)

And then the system stops.

Another also in SERVER Mode after the existing boot line above -- "Linux vga=vesa"

Here the kernel loads and then the screen goes blank.

Other that I've tried that result in verbose mode activity include -- again after the exiting boot parameters for a Server install include -- "level 3", acpi=off, install acpi=off, etc.

This making any sense? Again, if I can get an install going I can back track to get what might be missing.

Adler

**askrieger** · Mar 21, 2006, 12:20 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

The way to stop acpi is "noacpi" (one word), but it looks as if it gets through the acpi section when you have "vga=vesa". If the acpi section is longer, so that the boot is stopping in the middle, then noacpi may help.

**Adler** · Mar 21, 2006, 06:33 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

askrieger,

I gave your suggestion a try, but it did not work. I know you might be reaching here, but any other ideas?

Adler

**askrieger** · Mar 21, 2006, 09:47 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

I'm stumped. At this point I'd try Knoppix, just to see what it reports. You said earlier that you have a kanotix disk. Have you tried it?

**Adler** · Mar 22, 2006, 05:26 AM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

askrieger,

I tried to pull down KNOPPIX last weekend, but I wasn't able to get either the 64-Bit Bittorrent or Download Servers. They seems too have ither been too busy or disappeared. I'll try again this weekend.

I did pull down the KAOTIX CD, but it seems that it is the Live CD Version. Hmmm...

I'd rather hang back and wait a bit to see what I can do with (K)UBUNTU. At the same time I keep going at it with SuSE 10.0. If you remember I have been using it sucessfully for about 2 years now and getting 64-Bit going has proven difficult to say the least. With Linux there always has been some type of workaround because of the control that this OS offers. Again, Hmmm.

Thanks for the help. If you seen anything in the future about this let me know.

Adler

**sky** · Mar 22, 2006, 01:57 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

Hi,

Sorry that it didn't work... I got another idea, maybe you can try with both noacpi and noapic, so by googling I found some people were trying like this :
noapic nolapic acpi=off

Can you check please ?

**askrieger** · Mar 22, 2006, 04:42 PM

Re: Loading Kernel Hangs My Machine

I am sorry to report that I have just found something that might be relevant! Take a look at http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=142753 The fact that you've had problems with other distributions indicates that it may be Linux problem with AMD64, or it may be tht you have a different problem.

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