Blank Screen after Installation

[Quentin]

Hello Everyone,

Well after giving up entirely on getting my excellent Matrox Card to work properly, I decided to swap cards with a new XFX Nvidia GT9500 hoping that the compatibility issues would be solved. Well, it appears I was too optimistic. I can install the system (fresh install) but once the Kubuntu launch screen (Logo) the screen simply goes blank. No image, no login, no nothin. I wait, I make coffee - still nothing. Perhaps the drivers are not included within the distro, or?
Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Reasonably new to Linux.
Note: The system has not changed other than the Video card and Kubuntu 8.10.
Cheers

[dibl]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

Try "vga=788" as a boot option -- don't be disturbed if the Kubuntu splash logo is screwed up, but wait for the login GUI.

Also you should probably review the FAQs in the link in my signature.

And ... Welcome!

[Kubuntu Computer Geek]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

Hello Everyone,

Well after giving up entirely on getting my excellent Matrox Card to work properly, I decided to swap cards with a new XFX Nvidia GT9500 hoping that the compatibility issues would be solved. Well, it appears I was too optimistic. I can install the system (fresh install) but once the Kubuntu launch screen (Logo) the screen simply goes blank. No image, no login, no nothin. I wait, I make coffee - still nothing. Perhaps the drivers are not included within the distro, or?
Any help or suggestions would be appreciated. Reasonably new to Linux.
Note: The system has not changed other than the Video card and Kubuntu 8.10.
Cheers

Yes it is the video card driver. I had the same issue with my video card as well except. I couldn't even install it with the standard cd I had to use the alt CD. You need to change the driver to vesa before it loads and then install the proprietary driver for your card. If you need any help let me know

[Quentin]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

Well, thanks everyone for the suggestions. I've managed to muddle through with the following:

1) Loaded the install from the Safe Graphics Mode which enabled me to get up and running.
2) I then found the Nvidia drivers under Hardware Drivers and went ahead and "Activated" the installed version. This has gone well and I am now able to configure my dual 20" flat panels with the Nvidia X Server Settings Applet.

Now for the problem:

The problem that I'm experiencing now is that the Nvidia app does not seem to actually save the xorg.conf when I attempt to. The error message that comes up says that it could not create the /etc/X11/xorg.conf.backup, so I quit the application.
My session is fine with no problems, but when I wish to shut down the machine it would appear that the conf is not being saved with the appropriate X Server info. When I reboot or Start the machine I'm back to a single screen. When I look at the xorg.conf file it contains none of the Nvidia Dual Monitor info.

So, I've tried to cut and paste the appropriate new xorg.conf data but now I'm dealing with permissions!!!.
I've attempted to use Kate with no effect as it says that the file can not be written too.

I would appreciate any assistance to an easy method to simply make these modifications to the file and save it? Must I learn/use command lines?

Any help/instructions is greatly appreciated.

Cheers

[skunk]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

kdesudo kate /etc/X11/xorg.conf

[kbunt]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

I have a question for you Xorg/X and Nvidia experts!

When the CD doesn't boot up properly and you get the black screen, is it a similar situation to when you try to install the proprietary Nvidia driver, say for e.g., the most recent stable or beta version? I mean, if you install the latest driver and you get a black screen upon bootup? Is that when you can only use one run level? Which one is that, I forget. I think it's init 1 or 3? I don't remember which one it is for K/Ubuntu.

Also, how do you repair it? I am just curious. I am not sure so my usual reaction is to just re-install but I think that is pretty drastic when it probably just needs the xorg.conf file edited? But, I don't know what it should look like. It might help to look at my xorg.conf file on a machine/partition with the nvidia driver already installed and working? Does it matter which driver it is? Is there any difference (possibly major?) of what the xorg config file will look like or what configuration contents it will have regarding the proprietary driver from Nvidia v.s. what you get by default or with envy or whatever the distro decided to include?

I understand so many steps are required and one step that is not quite exact can screw up the configuration file and result in our infamous black screen in which the KDE or Gnome (graphical) desktop won't run.

I would like to understand it better and maybe I can avoid the mistakes that produces this predicament and it will make the install easier each time I decide I want to use the 'Nvidia method' for installing the driver.

I have no idea what is required for an ATI driver so my question is Nvidia-specific. ;-)

[barbolani]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

Ultimately, all black screens situations come from the same source: incorrectly installed or incorrect driver. In my case, I've tried to avoid runlevels, just boot in "safe mode" and drop to a root console.

As for the fix, I think it's different depending on the specific problem, but in all cases the first step should be to edit xorg.conf and change the "Driver" section to use other driver (such as the open source "nv" one in the case of NVidia) that allows X to run, albeit with lower resolution or performance.

From that point you can start X and work towards the fix in a more friendly graphical environment. I agree with you, a reinstall is overkill in most cases, but is the solution that people coming from Windows (like me) were used to apply in almost all cases.

[dibl]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

The problem that I'm experiencing now is that the Nvidia app does not seem to actually save the xorg.conf when I attempt to. The error message that comes up says that it could not create the /etc/X11/xorg.conf.backup, so I quit the application.

This is due to "permissions".

One time, after you have the driver installed, you need to run the nvidia-settings utility in "kdesudo" mode, because the user does not have write privileges in the /etc/X11 directory. So, Alt-F2

kdesudo nvidia-settings

then set your display characteristics up, then click the "Save to X Configuration File" button and it will save.

Afterwords you can use nvidia-settings as a user to make temporary changes that will be lost after a logout/login or reboot.

[dibl]

Re: Blank Screen after Installation

I have a question for you Xorg/X and Nvidia experts!

Well, that probably leaves me out, but since you have no answer for 24 hours, I'll take a shot.

When the CD doesn't boot up properly and you get the black screen, is it a similar situation to when you try to install the proprietary Nvidia driver, say for e.g., the most recent stable or beta version?

Yes. When Linux starts, there is no video driver. So it needs to start with a "boot option" that is (a) an industry standard video mode, and (b) recognized by both your BIOS and your graphics card, "standard" being kind of loosely defined in such places as this. Whether it starts from a CD or from your installed system, the problem is the same.

Is that when you can only use one run level? Which one is that, I forget. I think it's init 1 or 3? I don't remember which one it is for K/Ubuntu.

*buntu does not use the same init process as Debian or Debian Sid, so don't confuse yourself:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Runlevel

Also, how do you repair it? I am just curious. I am not sure so my usual reaction is to just re-install but I think that is pretty drastic when it probably just needs the xorg.conf file edited? But, I don't know what it should look like. It might help to look at my xorg.conf file on a machine/partition with the nvidia driver already installed and working? Does it matter which driver it is? Is there any difference (possibly major?) of what the xorg config file will look like or what configuration contents it will have regarding the proprietary driver from Nvidia v.s. what you get by default or with envy or whatever the distro decided to include?

First, selecting the right video boot option (vga=788, 791, 837, etc.) will go a long way toward eliminating black screens.

With regard to the running video display quality and settings, the "repair" process for *buntu has changed drastically in the past 4 months, with release of 8.10, due to the new X.org video system, and also with improvements in the Nvidia drivers over the past year. Also, it's very different for different graphics chips, so generalization is not possible. For Nvidia cards, I would say this:

OLD PROCESS -- dork around editing /etc/X11/xorg.conf for hours and hours, trying different options and modelines.

NEW PROCESS -- after the driver is installed, and before X is started, run the nvidia-xconfig utility and let it write the xorg.conf file for you. Then be very judicious about making further edits to it. Make settings changes with the nvidia-settings utility, run in "kdesudo" mode if you want to make them permanent by saving them (i.e. overwriting xorg.conf with them).

I have no idea what is required for an ATI driver so my question is Nvidia-specific. ;-)

Me neither -- well, I will go so far as to speculate that you would definitely want to use EnvyNG to install one the the ATI family of drivers.

HTH