HDMI config problems after Raspberry Pi TW 4.15.13 -> 4.16.6 update

hdtodd · May 8, 2018, 2:22pm

I just updated Tumbleweed from 4.15.3 -> 4.16.6 on my Raspberry Pi 3B (not +), and I found that the HDMI settings are incorrect: 3-4 characters are lost off the left side of the screen, and several lines are lost at the beginning. (Was working fine on 4.15.3.) Looking at the /boot/efi/config.txt files (which was changed between releases), I see that there are driver changes but no obvious changes in HDMI parameters that I could tinker with.

This seems to be an issue only when booting in multi-user mode. Starting XFCE, the windows seem to come up just fine with no missing parts on the menu bars or icons.

I copied the following config.txt settings from Raspbian’s config.txt boot file and inserted them right after the “dtoverlay=rpi3-hdmi” setting in TW 4.16.6:

hdmi_force_hotplug=1
config_hdmi_boost=4
overscan_left=24
overscan_right=24
overscan_top=16
overscan_bottom=16
disable_overscan=0

but the HDMI behavior in multi-user mode didn’t change (not surprising, but I had hoped that fixing it would be just that simple).

I referred to the site referenced in the config.txt header, “https://www.raspberrypi.org/documentation/configuration/config-txt/README.md” and the video settings it cites, and so I also tried “hdmi_safe=1”. While that resulted in REALLY BIG letters during initial boot, the login screen was similarly cut off on the left.

Any suggestions where else I might look or settings I should change? It appears to be an issue with rpi3-hdmi, but I can’t find documentation on how to change its settings.

This is only a minor nuisance, but as I frequently run in multi-user mode, I’d like to fix it for myself. In general, the graphical support in XFCE seems faster and the system more responsive. Whoever’s doing this work: Nice job!

malcolmlewis · May 8, 2018, 3:27pm

hdtodd:

I just updated Tumbleweed from 4.15.3 -> 4.16.6 on my Raspberry Pi 3B (not +), and I found that the HDMI settings are incorrect: 3-4 characters are lost off the left side of the screen, and several lines are lost at the beginning. (Was working fine on 4.15.3.) Looking at the /boot/efi/config.txt files (which was changed between releases), I see that there are driver changes but no obvious changes in HDMI parameters that I could tinker with.

This seems to be an issue only when booting in multi-user mode. Starting XFCE, the windows seem to come up just fine with no missing parts on the menu bars or icons.

I copied the following config.txt settings from Raspbian’s config.txt boot file and inserted them right after the “dtoverlay=rpi3-hdmi” setting in TW 4.16.6:
hdmi_force_hotplug=1
config_hdmi_boost=4
overscan_left=24
overscan_right=24
overscan_top=16
overscan_bottom=16
disable_overscan=0
but the HDMI behavior in multi-user mode didn’t change (not surprising, but I had hoped that fixing it would be just that simple).

I referred to the site referenced in the config.txt header, “https://www.raspberrypi.org/documentation/configuration/config-txt/README.md” and the video settings it cites, and so I also tried “hdmi_safe=1”. While that resulted in REALLY BIG letters during initial boot, the login screen was similarly cut off on the left.

Any suggestions where else I might look or settings I should change? It appears to be an issue with rpi3-hdmi, but I can’t find documentation on how to change its settings.

This is only a minor nuisance, but as I frequently run in multi-user mode, I’d like to fix it for myself. In general, the graphical support in XFCE seems faster and the system more responsive. Whoever’s doing this work: Nice job!

Hi
So is this HDMI->HDMI, HDMI->VGA, HDMI->DVI? What resolutions?

hdtodd · May 8, 2018, 7:53pm

Hi, Malcolm!

It’s 1920x1280, HDMI-HDMI. The display works fine in multiuser/CLI mode, and the XFCE GUI has no problems (as far as I can tell so far). But if I boot in multiuser mode rather than graphical mode (systemctl set-default), the left and bottom of the screen are off the display by 3-4 characters. This just appeared when I did the 4.15.13 -> 4.16.6 upgrade (been busy so didn’t do any intermediates, if there were any). It was working fine in 4.15.13. The improvements in graphics seem worth the minor nuisance, but I wouldn’t mind getting it set for multiuser (CLI) mode if I can find out what to fiddle with.

David