editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

[justinXcore]

alright i have tried multiple times to get both of my monitors working after everytime i tried it i lost my GUI right after i click yes to test the configuration or whatever. how can i edit and save my xorg.conf file so if it happens again i can repair it from the CLI before even loading kubuntu? i dont want to keep having to installed kubuntu 7.10 over and over everytime i mess up my configuration. im ready to get dirty with that xorg.conf!

also, i have tried using this in konsole: dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg
it says i must run it from root. how do i get to the root directory in konsole? thanks guys.

[mchuskie]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

alright i have tried multiple times to get both of my monitors working after everytime i tried it i lost my GUI right after i click yes to test the configuration or whatever.

If you're using System Settings -> Monitor & Display: don't. In over three years of using Linux I have never, ever been able to get that tool to do anything but break things.

how can i edit and save my xorg.conf file so if it happens again i can repair it from the CLI before even loading kubuntu? i dont want to keep having to installed kubuntu 7.10 over and over everytime i mess up my configuration. im ready to get dirty with that xorg.conf!

Your xorg.conf file is stored in /etc/X11/. So, to back it up, simply copy it somewhere else...

cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf ~/xorg.conf.backup

where '~' is the Unix shortcut for "my home directory", /home/username/. That will back it up; and the procedure in reverse will store it, namely

sudo cp ~/xorg.conf.backup /etc/X11/xorg.conf

(see note below on sudo)

also, i have tried using this in konsole: dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg
it says i must run it from root. how do i get to the root directory in konsole? thanks guys.

It says you must run it as root - a subtle but important difference! The "root" user is the equivalent to the administrator account on Windoze. Only the root user can change system settings and alter system-wide config files. To do something as root in *ubuntu, prefix the command with "sudo" as in the example above. When you run the command you'll be asked for your password.

And, by the way, you don't need to reinstall from scratch; running that command as root should at least get you a working GUI, if not exactly as you want it.

For setting up dual monitors, I've found this thread over at the Ubuntu forums to be very useful. Follow the links in that first post to whatever suits your situation best.

Hope that helps!

[justinXcore]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

Thank you very much sir!

[muzicman0]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

what type of video card do you have? if it is nvidia, I would use nvidia-settings.

mm0

[justinXcore]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

both of my cards are nvidia. how do i run nvidia-settings from konsole?

[muzicman0]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

well, first, do you have the nvidia driver installed, or are you using the driver that is installed by default (nv)...if it is the nvidia driver, just type in kdesu nvidia-settings into the console (you can leave of the kdesu if you don't want to update the xorg file.)

with that being said, I have only ever worked with dual head cards, but I know I have seen posts on here with example configs for peoople with 2 cards...

mm0

[TheFuzz4]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

For my laptop which has an Nvidia card in it. I first installed the restricted drivers for the card then after that I went to the konsole and did a sudo nvidia-settings. I did sudo so that way it would update my xorg.conf file with my new configuration. Also I noticed the other day that I found it easier to just save your changes to the xorg and then restart X (ctrl + alt + backspace) my windows were not snapping to the monitor they were on instead when you would maximize a window it would go all the way across both monitors.

[muzicman0]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

you should always use kdesu when running an application with root access...just FYI...

[TheFuzz4]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

What are the differences/benefits from kdesu and sudo?

[muzicman0]

Re: editing xorg.conf, dual monitors

see http://kubuntuforums.net/forums/index.php?topic=1036.0 for a quick explanation...