Trouble installing opensuse 13.1 on msi z97 gaming 3 motherboard

English Install/Boot/Login
1

Hi
I’m struggling with an install of opensuse 13.1 on a MSI z97 gaming 3 motherboard at the moment (i7 4790K). I can get the OS installed and booting but only in recovery mode. It only boots to console though. From there I need to log in and startx. Then everything seems stable enough. However, my problems now are:

  • like to automate boot, so that it boots to the recovery mode by default
  • like to diagnose the problem so that the kernel parameters are only what’s necessary.
  • startx starts window manager and logs in as root. want different default user/like to automate starting the GUI and initial user desktop.

Backstory:
Booting from live USB stick the card just restarted, either before reaching the grub screen or just after boot to desktop was completed. Worse in legacy mode. Better in UEFI mode. If I boot in recovery mode from the USB stick the system seems stable (left it alone all day, still up at the end). Failure mode for non-recovery boot was pretty consistent (not random). Seems to be in response to something happening after boot to desktop.

Thoughts?

2

If EFI mode is supported better install in EFI mode.

Are you multi-booting. Is Windoze present on system.

Show the output of following commands after logging into emergency mode.

parted -l

fdisk -l

df -h
3

Not multibooting. Just opensuse

It’s on a different machine.
In summary:
parted = fat16 boot volume, then linux swap and ext4 partitions
fdisk = EFI System or Microsoft Basic type, all primary.
df = usage all less than 10%, except for / which is 31%.

4

What graphics??

Pleas don’t tell us, show us. copy the output of the commands and past using code tags (# here in the editor)

It appears without actually seeing the output that you installed in legacy mode and used ext4 format. But we really need to see the output for the details

5

linux-x63k:/ # parted -l
Model: ATA ST3500418AS (scsi)
Disk /dev/sda: 500GB
Sector size (logical/physical): 512B/512B
Partition Table: gpt

Number Start End Size File system Name Flags
1 1049kB 165MB 164MB fat16 primary boot
2 165MB 2319MB 2155MB linux-swap(v1) primary
3 2319MB 23.8GB 21.5GB ext4 primary boot, legacy_boot
4 23.8GB 34.5GB 10.7GB ext4 primary
5 34.5GB 77.5GB 43.0GB ext4 primary
6 77.5GB 206GB 129GB ext4 primary
7 206GB 479GB 272GB ext4 primary
8 479GB 500GB 21.5GB ext4 primary

linux-x63k:/ # fdisk -l
WARNING: fdisk GPT support is currently new, and therefore in an experimental phase. Use at your own discretion.

Disk /dev/sda: 500.1 GB, 500107862016 bytes, 976773168 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk label type: gpt

Start End Size Type Name

1 2048 321535 156M EFI System primary
2 321536 4530175 2G Microsoft basic primary
3 4530176 46475263 20G EFI System primary
4 46475264 67440639 10G Microsoft basic primary
5 67440640 151332863 40G Microsoft basic primary
6 151332864 402991103 120G Microsoft basic primary
7 402991104 934821887 253.6G Microsoft basic primary
8 934821888 976773119 20G Microsoft basic primary
linux-x63k:/ # df -h
Filesystem Size Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda3 20G 5.8G 13G 31% /
devtmpfs 7.8G 32K 7.8G 1% /dev
tmpfs 7.8G 76K 7.8G 1% /dev/shm
tmpfs 7.8G 5.9M 7.8G 1% /run
tmpfs 7.8G 0 7.8G 0% /sys/fs/cgroup
/dev/sda1 156M 0 156M 0% /boot/efi
/dev/sda4 9.8G 882M 8.9G 9% /var
tmpfs 7.8G 5.9M 7.8G 1% /var/run
tmpfs 7.8G 5.9M 7.8G 1% /var/lock
/dev/sda7 250G 1.4G 236G 1% /data-archive
/dev/sda5 40G 3.6G 34G 10% /home
/dev/sda6 118G 60M 112G 1% /data-current
/dev/sda8 20G 44M 19G 1% /run/media/root/22b51ccd-2dc2-48c2-b51e-d75fd449b17e

The live usb behaved the same (only booted from advanced->recovery mode), so I assumed it’s not related to the install.

Graphics is on the chip which I think is Intel HD Graphics 4600. No separate graphics card.

6

Have you fully updated? There was some problem with some Intel GPUs in the install should be fixed in an update

What happens if you select advanced and then rescue mode at boot? Same thing happen??

Please use code tags for computer output. It stops the editor from reformatting the text. Select the # in the selections at the top of the editor and place the the computer text between the tags. Or select the text and apply the tags. Not all use the web interface and the code tags make a big difference in readability

7

Yes. I have updated. Running 3.11.10-29-desktop

Advanced options for openSUSE 13.1 -> recovery mode is the only way I can boot. This doesn’t give me a desktop, but I can log in from a terminal and startx there and everything seems stable. However, that’s a desktop as root, which I don’t want. How do I boot a desktop with a default user?

Testing experience:
Just going with the default openSUSE 13.1 entry doesn’t even get me to the desktop. If I just let it boot by itself into opensuse13.1 - it resets before it gets anywhere near loading the desktop.

On one occasion I chose Advanced options for openSUSE 13.1, then hit escape to go back to the main grub menu, then I chose opensuse 13.1 it booted to the desktop but when I tried to do anything (eg run a program from the suse menu) in the desktop it reset. Not able to reproduce.

On two occasions when I moved the mouse prior to selecting openSUSE 13.1, it booted to the desktop and stayed stable for a while (45 s) then reset. Reproduced once, but have also tried to reproduce and failed. So maybe not related to the mouse.

8

Startx should no longer be used. As root use init 5 to start the gui then log as the user never ever log into a GUI as root.

9 times out of 10 boot problems at install are due to graphic problems. I do find it a bit odd to use the Intel GPU on a “gaming mother board” but oh well. In any case I’m positive that the problem is in the graphics and not in the file system.

You might want to look here seems to be the same problem

https://forums.opensuse.org/showthread.php/507324-Intel-integrated-Graphic-Card-Problem-exists-13-2KDE-but-not-on-13-1KDE

9

PS: init 5 doesn’t seem to do anything.
PPS: I’d love to not log into GUI as root, but at the moment I have no other option (probably a consequence of booting to recovery mode?). How do I boot to a login screen/specify another user?
PPPS: will get a graphics card later.

10

On 2015-05-12 03:46, os brendan wrote:
> Advanced options for openSUSE 13.1 -> recovery mode is the only way I
> can boot. This doesn’t give me a desktop, but I can log in from a
> terminal and startx there and everything seems stable. However, that’s a
> desktop as root, which I don’t want. How do I boot a desktop with a
> default user?

If init 5 doesn’t work, then edit the file “/etc/permissions.local”.
There is a line at the end that, if used, allows using startx as plain
user. Remove the comment, then run “chkstat --system --set”. Then login
in level 3 as your user and run startx. There are somethings that will
not work, but at least you get a desktop while you diagnose the problem.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.

(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” (Minas Tirith))

11

To experiment with recovery options I edit the linux-recovery line in /etc/default/grub then run grub2-mkconfig is that right?

12

On 2015-05-12 04:36, os brendan wrote:
>
> PS: init 5 doesn’t seem to do anything.
> PPS: I’d love to not log into GUI as root, but at the moment I have no
> other option (probably a consequence of booting to recovery mode?). How
> do I boot to a login screen/specify another user?

Read my previous post.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.

(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” (Minas Tirith))

13

Great, this works. Thanks. I was uncomfortable logging in here from my root desktop.

How do I:

  • edit grub to to make recovery mode the default boot?
  • edit grub so it boots to my user and starts x automatically?

Also, where do I look to find why init 5 is failing?
Also, also in /etc/default/grub the recovery options are:

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_RECOVERY="showopts apm=off noresume edd=off powersaved=off nohz=off highres=off processor.max_cstate=1 nomodeset x11failsafe"

and one (or more) is doing the magic. Where do I find out what these do?

14

I, possibly foolishly, removed x11failsafe and it booted into a user desktop.
For the time being I have copied these options to the default login entry and backed out the change to /etc/permissions.local.
I seem to have a functioning machine, although I’m not sure what I’m missing out on.
showopts - printout on boot??. don’t mind this actually
apm=off # no advanced power management = ??
noresume can’t suspend?
edd=off ??
powersaved=off ???
nohz=off # no dynamic ticks =??
highres=off # limit on high resolution timers = ??
processor.max_cstate=1 # ???
nomodeset ???

15

Proof by trial and error: the magic sauce seems to be nohz=off
If I add that to my default kernel boot it seems to work (well, it’s only been up and stable for 45s so far).
Any idea what the cause of this would be?

16

On 2015-05-12 05:16, os brendan wrote:

> Great, this works. Thanks. I was uncomfortable logging in here from my
> root desktop.

Good :slight_smile:

> How do I:
> * edit grub to to make recovery mode the default boot?

No, you should not do that. Recovery mode is, well, safe, but very
limited. It activates several options that considerably reduces system
“power”, like disabling all cpu cores save one.

> * edit grub so it boots to my user and starts x automatically?

No, that would also be incorrect. startx is not maintained, and
somethings do not work. You may have problems with sound or mounting
external media. You should only use it as a medium to solve a temporary
problem; in this case, get init 5 working.

And in any case, grub doesn’t start startx. Can’t.

> and one (or more) is doing the magic. Where do I find out what these
> do?

Well, kernel options are documented in one of the documentation files of
the kernel sources.

On 2015-05-12 07:46, os brendan wrote:

> showopts - printout on boot??. don’t mind this actually

That option is only useful with grub 1, I don’t know why it is still there.

> apm=off # no advanced power management = ??
> noresume can’t suspend?

Yes, yes.

> edd=off ??
> powersaved=off ???
> nohz=off # no dynamic ticks =??
> highres=off # limit on high resolution timers = ??
> processor.max_cstate=1 # ???
> nomodeset ???

I don’t remember the exact definition of each.

On 2015-05-12 08:16, os brendan wrote:
> Proof by trial and error: the magic sauce seems to be nohz=off
> If I add that to my default kernel boot it seems to work (well, it’s
> only been up and stable for 45s so far).

Well, yes, that’s the idea, try options till one works…

> Any idea what the cause of this would be?

I’d have to search what that option did.
You might have to report this in a bugzilla.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.

(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” (Minas Tirith))

17

On 2015-05-12 04:56, os brendan wrote:
>
> To experiment with recovery options I edit the linux-recovery line in
> /etc/default/grub then run grub2-mkconfig is that right?

Or edit them during boot, for the current session. Press “e”, if I
remember right.

–
Cheers / Saludos,

Carlos E. R.

(from 13.1 x86_64 “Bottle” (Minas Tirith))