Garbled/Unusable X on new laptop after installation.

English Install/Boot/Login
1

So I’m writing this from Windows Vista now, becuase I’m having some major issues with openSUSE 11.0.

On my new laptop (specs at bottom of post), I’ve freshly installed openSUSE 11.0 w/ default GNOME software selection. During the installation everything goes normal, with the exception that it doesn’t detect my resolution (using 1024x768 instead of my laptop’s resolution of 1600x900).

After first boot, the graphical GRUB menu comes up fine, but once openSUSE boots, there’s no bootsplash and the text looks like it’s in an extremely low resolution (640x480, perhaps?). The real kicker is when firstboot/the graphical system is loaded, it completely begins going crazy. It goes into a gray-streaked screen, which slowly begins fading into a dark gray streaks in spots around the screen. Nothing comes up, no cursor, no text, nothing. Just that fading screen.

Here’s the relevent info:
Sony Vaio VGN-FW190
Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P8400
Mobile Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 4500MHD
16.4" (1600x900) TFT

All the help I can get will be greatly appreciated :wink:

2

At the green boot screen where you have boot choices, the default opnesuse boot is on a timer. You can stop the time by using the down arrow. Now move back up to default.

Tell us what text is displayed lower down. It will have something like vga=???

Sometimes, just to get a basic graphics so you can at least boot to a desktop, the way round is:
Backspace all the text ‘vga=???’ and just put in there the number: 3

You now will need to login as root - you will need your root password (text of password does not display)

now type this:
sax2 -r -m 0=vesa

NB* the 0 above is a zero

reboot

3

vga=0x317

Booting with option vga=3 brings me the same result… but booting in text mode the entering your command starts X then still ends up garbled.

4

You didn’t interpret things correctly

just put in there the number: 3
Nothing else!! No vga!! just the number : 3

then follow the rest of the inst.

5

You get a graphical screen initially because it is using framebuffer. The problem thereafter is due to the graphics device driver. You may get some graphical display working with the vesa or fbdev (framebuffer) drivers, but probably not the resolution you want.

Your 4500MHD is very new. Intel released the linux driver 2 months ago, too late to get into the current 11.0 SuSE release. However, the new version is in the Xorg (these folks provide the X graphics server and most of the drivers) repository.

There are a couple of methods of getting the newer driver versions installed. Since you just did a clean install, frankly it would be easier to do this by installing again. We would just add the Xorg repository to the installation, making sure that the new driver version gets selected.

Here’s the catch: You need to have the DVD; do you? Is this method OK to use?

(By the way, we’ll be visiting Lafayette in a couple weeks; the family goes waaaaaay back in LA.)

6

Yeah, I have a retail box. It’s late here, so I’ll try again tomorrow morning ;-).

Thanks for letting me know. I was hoping that the solution was something like that :-).

7

You may get some graphical display working with the vesa or fbdev (framebuffer) drivers, but probably not the resolution you want.
True

installing again. We would just add the Xorg repository to the installation
Probably a good idea

the DVD
Always use the dvd, not the live cd.

I was just checking the vesa options for your screen and you won’t get the resolution you want.

Here is a useful page
HOWTOs - openSUSE

During installation you can manage software with Yast and add the required repo, though I’m not sure which
Mingus may be able to advise

8

So here’s what you need to do then . . .

At the 3rd screen in the installation titled “Installation Mode”, check the box below for “Include Add-on Products from Separate Media” and un-check “Use Automatic Configuration”.

The next screen will be “Network Setup”, in order for you to provide the software media as you just requested. You need to complete this step as you will be downloading software from the net.

On the next “Media Type” screen already selected will be “Specify url . . .”, leave that and click Next. The following screen will have two boxes, one for a repo name (leave it blank) and the second to supply a URL. Type this exactly (note upper/lower case):

http://download.opensuse.org/repositories/X11:/XOrg/openSUSE_11.0/

The next screen should show the repository you just added. Continue to the “Create New User” screen and un-check “Automatic Logon”.

At the “Installation Settings” screen click on Software, and on the next screen click on Details. The screen will change, there will be a “Filter” pull-down menu upper left. On that select “Search”. In the Search bar type “intel” and check only the “RPM Provides” box below, then Search. To the right you should see the package xorg-x11-driver-video listed, version 7.4. Click on the box left end of that line. Now un-check RPM Provides and check “Name”, type “mesa” in the search bar, and click Search. You will see several packages listed, click only on the one simply named “Mesa”, should be version 7.2. Again click the box left end of that line. Now click on Accept lower-right; you’ll get a pop-up explaining additional packages chosen to satisfy dependencies, click “Continue” to return to the main Settings screen.

Proceed thru the rest of the installation until the hardware setup (if you chose Automatic Configuration last time, you will not have seen this). There will be a section for the graphics card and monitor. Click on it to enter that dialog to do the configuration. Proceed thru the rest of the installation.

With a bit of luck, you’ll be set up as you needed.

9

Mingus: I followed your instructions this morning when I tried to reinstall openSUSE, but I ended up with the same result as before.

10

We’ll need to do this from the command line then. I’ll work up the commands and post that back here in a couple of hours.

11

First we need to verify that the repository was correctly added and the packages installed. (You will want to print these instructions.)

Boot the system. On the boot menu there is a data entry bar below, type the number “3” (without quotes). The system will boot and you will be dropped to a command line login prompt. Login as root. Now do this:

zypper info Mesa

You should see this:

Repository: Xorg-11.0
Name: Mesa
Version: 7.2-1.3
Arch: x86_64
Vendor: openSUSE Build Service
Installed: Yes
Status: up-to-date

If instead you see the following, it means the newer version was not installed.

Repository: Xorg-11.0
Name: Mesa
Version: 7.2-1.3
Arch: x86_64
Vendor: openSUSE Build Service
Installed: Yes
Status: out-of-date (version 7.0.3-35.1 installed)

Also note the Repository name; it should be “Xorg-11.0”. If it is not, it means that the repository was not added.

Do the same checks with the driver package, thus:

zypper info xorg-x11-driver-video

You should see the same Xorg repository with the version 7.4-8.1 and with Status up-to-date. If it says out-of-date, it was not installed.

If you need to add the repository, do that this way:

zypper addrepo http://download.opensuse.org/repositories/X11:/XOrg/openSUSE_11.0/ xorg

Be sure not to leave off that “xorg” at the end, with a space between it and the preceding slash. You can verify the repository was added thus:

zypper repos

It should show in the list. If the packages need to be added, do this:

zypper install -f -n xorg-x11-driver-video
zypper install -f -n Mesa

Now reverify the packages are installed with the zypper info commands above. The newer versions from Xorg must be installed. Now do:

sax2 -r -m 0=intel

That is a zero, not an “o”. You may be taken into the graphics card configuration utility, but probably not yet. If so, configure, close, and reboot. Or if not, just reboot thus:


shutdown -r now

Hopefully you are now in the graphical display. If you are not, reboot into the command line again (number “3” above) and at the prompt, do:

more /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Scroll down to the device section. On the “driver” line it should show “intel”. It it does not, repeat the “sax2 -r -m 0=intel” command from above. If it does show, then just do:


sax2

And see if the configuration gui comes up.

Report back results.

12

Alright, so here’s what I’m getting.


Repository: xorg
Name: Mesa
Version: 7.2-4.1
Arch: x86-64
Vendor: openSUSE Build Service
Installed: Yes
Status: up-to-date



Repository: xorg
Name: xorg-x11-driver-video
Version: 7.4-8.2
Arch: x86-64
Vendor: openSUSE Build Service
Installed: Yes
Status: up-to-date

Everything works as expected until I get to when I type in

sax2 -r -m 0=intel

After I run that command, the machine starts X which begins the garbled/unusable screen. Unable to kill it, I just reboot.

Checking in the xorg.conf file, instead of saying Intel for Driver in the Device section, it says “ChangeMe”. Repeating the command from above only starts X again, again making the screen garbled. So right now, nothing is happening.

13

When you did “sax2 -r -m 0=intel” you weren’t starting the X server, but the openSUSE graphics card configuration gui which runs its own separate graphical server. We can’t be certain yet why it didn’t run.

Did you try rebooting into runlevel 3, logging is as root, and doing just this?

sax2

Does that start the configuration gui? For “Card:”, does it show your Intel graphics device? Is your resolution available from the list? If so, it has probably detected the card and wll set up the driver. After exiting, use the “more /etc/X11/xorg.conf” command again to see if “intel” has been inserted into the Device Section. If so, reboot.

If the above did not work, at the command line as root do:

zypper install nano

cd /etc/X11

nano xorg.conf

You will now have opened the xorg.conf file in a command line editor. Nano is very good, but be careful if you’ve never used an editor like this. Use the down-arrow key to scroll down to the Device section you saw before, the right-arrow key to move the cursor inside the quotes for the driver name, and type “intel”, then use the delete key to remove whatever is there. Then press Ctrl-o (the letter o as is oscar); you’ll see the filename displayed for confirmation, just hit Enter. Then do Ctrl-x to exit the program. Do “more xorg.conf” to check that your editing was correct. Now reboot. Report back.

14

Before doing the above, would you please boot the system into runlevel 3, login as root, and post back the output of this:

lspci

Thanks.

15 
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation Cantiga Memory Controller Hub (rev 07)
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Cantiga Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 07)
00:02.1 Display controller: Intel Corporation Cantiga Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 07)
00:1a.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB UHCI Controller #4 (rev 03)
00:1a.1 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB UHCI Controller #5 (rev 03)
00:1a.7 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB2 EHCI Controller #2 (rev 03)
00:1b.0 Audio device: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) HD Audio Controller (rev 03)
00:1c.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) PCI Express Port 1 (rev 03)
00:1c.1 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) PCI Express Port 2 (rev 03)
00:1c.3 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) PCI Express Port 4 (rev 03)
00:1c.4 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) PCI Express Port 5 (rev 03)
00:1d.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB UHCI Controller #1 (rev 03)
00:1d.1 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB UHCI Controller #2 (rev 03)
00:1d.2 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB UHCI Controller #3 (rev 03)
00:1d.3 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB UHCI Controller #6 (rev 03)
00:1d.7 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) USB2 EHCI Controller #1 (rev 03)
00:1e.0 PCI bridge: Intel Corporation 82801 Mobile PCI Bridge (rev 93)
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation ICH9M LPC Interface Controller (rev 03)
00:1f.2 SATA controller: Intel Corporation ICH9M/M-E SATA AHCI Controller (rev 03)
00:1f.3 SMBus: Intel Corporation 82801I (ICH9 Family) SMBus Controller (rev 03)
05:00.0 Network controller: Intel Corporation Device 4232
07:00.0 Ethernet controller: Marvell Technology Group Ltd. 88E8055 PCI-E Gigabit Ethernet Controller (rev 13)
09:03.0 FireWire (IEEE 1394): Ricoh Co Ltd R5C832 IEEE 1394 Controller (rev 05)
09:03.1 SD Host controller: Ricoh Co Ltd R5C822 SD/SDIO/MMC/MS/MSPro Host Adapter (rev 22)
09:03.2 System peripheral: Ricoh Co Ltd R5C592 Memory Stick Bus Host Adapter (rev 12)
16

Nope. It goes to the garbled X screen.

I did this, and it still doesn’t solve the issue.

17

Dude. You clearly are not following Mingus advice carefully.!!

TRY again!

18

OK, we’re going to need to try a couple of other things, and to gather more detailed information about the hardware and the X server setup. You did a good job posting back lspci, so it appears you know how to do that kind of thing - we’re going to do more of it.

First, let’s see if we can get the vesa framebuffer working. At the grub boot menu, in the data entry bar below, type (without the quotes):

edd=off vga=0x317 3

And boot. The resolution will be wrong. But does the green bootsplash display? If it does, hit the Escape key to drop the splash and see the text; does it look reasonably normal? If the answers are yes, then at the command prompt login as root and do:

sax2 -r -m 0=vesa

Note that if the gui comes up, it will show the wrong resolution in the pull down. Change that to 1024x768, and save it. Then do:

startx

If the above did not work, then at the command line, try:

sax2 -r -m 0=fbdev

And again, change it to 1024x768, save, and do the startx command.

You need to report back what happened with the above. If both failed, still no gui of any kind, carefully do the following:

sax2 -r -m 0=intel

We know that will probably fail. But we need to do that to generate new sax and X error logs specifically trying to load that driver. Then do this (remember, case sensitive!):

more /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Post back here at least the 5 sections titled modes, device, screen, monitor, and extensions. Then do this:

more /var/log/SaX.log

We need you to post back at least the lines near the end of the file where you will see the error. If unsure, post the entire log. Now we need the X server log, thus:

more /var/log/Xorg.0.log

This log will be long. What we need to see are any lines with WW or EE and everything in between. Now we need some hardware information. I’m not positive if this program, named “hwinfo”, is installed by default. If it isn’t, install it thus:

zypper install hwinfo

Then do the following and post back:

hwinfo --framebuffer

hwinfo --gfxcard
19

i was kinda having the same problem as him earlier. i dont know how i got it to work though, but now i dont know if i can make the screen the true resolution size (1900x600).

if you want ill just make a new thread so we wont have two semi-related problems in one. :wink:

20

@micole, yes pls do start a new thread. You’ll get better/faster help that way.