Hi all,

Ok, I'll Get Right down to Business. I've got a Gateway GT5056 machine running the MCP51 chipset from NVidia on a Foxconn C51GU01 mobo. I'm using a Radeon X1300Pro PCI-E 256Mb Video Card and a DVI flat panel Monitor set to 1280*1024 default. Here's the problem, I use the ATIConfig tool or try manually editing the Xorg.conf file to use the fglrx drviers and when I restart all I get is a black screen. I've tried Suse Linux 10.2, Ubuntu 6.10 Edgy, Kubuntu 6.10, Ubuntu/Kubuntu 7.04 and even Vector linux. No matter which version of driver I use I get the "Black Screen of Death". Anybody have any ideas? I'm really disappointed in the video performance of the VESA drivers and would like to get this working!!! I've been trying this for about a year now and have had no luck!!! HELP!!!!!!

Below is a copy of the edited Xorg.conf file and beneath that a copy of the Installed Xorg.conf. If anybody can see what i'm missing , Please Email me?? Thanks!!

Edited Xorg.conf File:


# /etc/X11/xorg.conf (xorg X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the xorg.conf(5) manual page.
# (Type "man xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
# sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
Screen 0 "aticonfig-Screen[0]" 0 0
InputDevice "Generic Keyboard"
InputDevice "Configured Mouse"
InputDevice "stylus" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "cursor" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "eraser" "SendCoreEvents"
EndSection

Section "Files"

# path to defoma fonts
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/misc"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/cyrillic"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/Type1"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi"
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TrueType"
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "bitmap"
Load "ddc"
Load "dri"
Load "extmod"
Load "freetype"
Load "glx"
Load "int10"
Load "vbe"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Generic Keyboard"
Driver "kbd"
Option "CoreKeyboard"
Option "XkbRules" "xorg"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbLayout" "us"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Configured Mouse"
Driver "mouse"
Option "CorePointer"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
Option "Protocol" "ImPS/2"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
Option "Emulate3Buttons" "true"
Option "Buttons" "7"
Option "ButtonMapping" "1 2 3 6 7"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "stylus"
Driver "wacom"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
Option "Type" "stylus"
Option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4" # Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "eraser"
Driver "wacom"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
Option "Type" "eraser"
Option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4" # Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "cursor"
Driver "wacom"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
Option "Type" "cursor"
Option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4" # Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "aticonfig-Monitor[0]"
Option "VendorName" "ATI Proprietary Driver"
Option "ModelName" "Generic Autodetecting Monitor"
Option "DPMS" "true"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "aticonfig-Device[0]"
Driver "fglrx"
BusID "PCI:3:0:0"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "aticonfig-Screen[0]"
Device "aticonfig-Device[0]"
Monitor "aticonfig-Monitor[0]"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Viewport 0 0
Depth 24
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "DRI"
Group "video"
Mode 0666
EndSection

Section "Extensions"
Option "Composite" "0"
EndSection



Original Xorg.conf file:

# /etc/X11/xorg.conf (xorg X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the xorg.conf(5) manual page.
# (Type "man xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
# sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Section "Files"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/misc"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/cyrillic"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/Type1"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/100dpi"
FontPath "/usr/share/fonts/X11/75dpi"
# path to defoma fonts
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TrueType"
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "i2c"
Load "bitmap"
Load "ddc"
Load "dri"
Load "extmod"
Load "freetype"
Load "glx"
Load "int10"
Load "vbe"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Generic Keyboard"
Driver "kbd"
Option "CoreKeyboard"
Option "XkbRules" "xorg"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbLayout" "us"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Configured Mouse"
Driver "mouse"
Option "CorePointer"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
Option "Protocol" "ImPS/2"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
Option "Emulate3Buttons" "true"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "stylus"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
Option "Type" "stylus"
Option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4" # Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "eraser"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
Option "Type" "eraser"
Option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4" # Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Driver "wacom"
Identifier "cursor"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/wacom"
Option "Type" "cursor"
Option "ForceDevice" "ISDV4" # Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Generic Video Card"
Driver "vesa"
BusID "PCI:3:0:0"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "DTECH9151"
Option "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Device "Generic Video Card"
Monitor "DTECH9151"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Depth 1
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "720x400" "640x640" "640x480"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 4
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "720x400" "640x640" "640x480"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "720x400" "640x640" "640x480"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 15
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "720x400" "640x640" "640x480"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "720x400" "640x640" "640x480"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768" "832x624" "800x600" "720x400" "640x640" "640x480"
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
Screen "Default Screen"
InputDevice "Generic Keyboard"
InputDevice "Configured Mouse"
InputDevice "stylus" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "cursor" "SendCoreEvents"
InputDevice "eraser" "SendCoreEvents"
EndSection

Section "DRI"
Mode 0666
EndSection

Hello there!

I once had such a problem when trying to boot Linux. Loading was fine, but there was but a black screen :S Anyway when I edited my xorg file my eyes got attracted by one line:

BusID "PCI:0:16:0"


I taught: Maybe the adress of the bus isn't edited correctly? So I rebooted my machine under windows in order to launch the hardware manager. Apparently my video card had 1.0.0 as a bus adress... so under Linux, in the xorg file I changed the busID line for 1.0.0 ... and it Worked!! no more black screen of death!

Anyway, I'm not sure it will work out for you, but you've got nothing to lose to try that out. (if the adress 1.0.0 isn't right for you, there's still the hardware manager under windows to tell you) Maybe Fglrx didn't detected you agp/pci adress properly.. Come back and tell me if it worked :P


yanick

The xorg log can have a lot of useful information.

become root

and then navigate to /var/log/Xorg.0.log
Use vim to open the files or your favorite command line text editor
any lines with (EE) beginning them are errors.

Your monitor does not specify VertRefresh and HorizSync rates; this could be one explanation.

If you hit Ctrl + Alt + backspace when the blank screen comes up, you may get to see some indication of what is wrong with your xorg.conf.

Thanks for all the tips guys. I've tried just about every single one of them. Nothing works. I don't actually think it's the drivers at this point. I think it's the monitor. It's actually a pretty cheap flat screen that came with the PC. Anyway, Anything further would definitely help. I would check the logs, but, I'm a total newbie when it comes to linux, and I can't make heads or tails outa what the damn this say!!!! Why couldn't they just put it in English??

BTW, How would I know what to set for sync rates??? Don't forget, you're talking to a Windows user of many years. I know the max reported Refresh Rate on DVI @ 1280*1024 is 75Hz but that's under Windows. As far as user guide for the monitor, don't have it anymore. we moved and it magically disappeared!!

I've got something else that could help you out. If you've got a black screen of death when you load the driver that may be because of an oudated C++ lib. Anyway I'm using Feisty which just came out and had that problem :P Open a terminal and enter:

sudo apt-get install libstdc++5

afterward, you pick your driver once more and reboot your system. That should do the trick :P

cool!!! Thx for the tip!! I'll give that a try when I reinstall Ubuntu. Now about thos sync rates.... Is it possible to run without them?

I don't know if this is the same problem you're having, but I've been experiencing similar problems with the same symptoms.

I just finished building a new Athlon 64 system with a Radeon X800 card. I wanted to test it out before installing anything, but I couldn't get anything with either the Kubuntu or Knoppix live disks. Reading around and trying stuff out, I found one workaround. When I commented out the glx module in xorg.conf, the screen came right up.

Unfortunately though, that means that anything requiring openGL will fail to work. From the bugs I've found through Google, there seem to be lots of problems with ati cards and dri/glx compatibility these days. I bought the X800 specifically because it's one of the few cards with working 3D support in the free drivers. I figured I could save myself some headaches by not having to bother with the binary blobs, but I've had nothing but trouble with it so far.

Incidentally, I'm now having even worse problems since I decided to install Debian on the system. Nothing I can do seems to be able to get me a working X. But I think that might be due to some other config problem I haven't figured out yet.

PS: for sync rates, just Google for it. If the manufacturer's website doesn't have the info, it's often also mentioned in reviews and sales sites. It should also be in your documentation if you still have that somewhere.

About the VertRefresh and HorizSync rates: those are determined by your monitor. Try inserting these lines under the monitor section, just beneath the "Modelname" item:
HorizSync 40-81
VertRefresh 50-75
These are good enough to produce 1280x1024 @75 on my own system.

Hi guys, thanks for all the input. I've tried everything everyone's suggested and nada, I can't get past the damn black screen. I was reading on ATi's website last night that the driver requires POSIX shared memory to be enabled though. How do I tell? Is it on by default with Ubuntu? Is it called something else in my BIOS? I've looked and can't find reference to it anywhere. I also check the log file for Xorg and it mentions a lailure in opening the DPM, whatever that is?? Other than that there's nothing that actually reports as an error.

Something else I noticed, The driver states it only support Xorg up to 7.1. By default Ubuntu or openSUSE loads with 7.2. Is Xorg Backwards Compatible the way Windows is? Or could that be the source of my issues? ARRRGH!!!! I'm about ready to toss in the towel and go back to vista!!! At least the damn drivers work!!!!

I do understand you. Like, people brag about Linux beeing the best and being superior to Microsoft Windows. Seems like they forget to talk about Linux cons. One of them is Linux not being a Standard with material. So much sh** and bugs with hardware. Oh by the way, I've learned that ATI gives buggy drivers so that may be why you can't manage to do anything. I know that posix memory should be there if you've got a recent OS, but dunno how to create it manually if not. Seriously I dunno whats wrong with your machine. About Xorg had a problem when installing the driver. It was made for xorg 7.1 and have 7.2. By faking out my xorg I succeded installing the driver. But if you've got the driver installed already I don't have a clue what to do.. anyway if I were you I'd checked the requirement of the driver on ATI's site. you may be missing something. Adept or Synaptic can do the job..

Well Gang, Much as I appreciate all the help... I wimped. I traded the ATI For A GeForce 7300GS. Couple of problem on the install but we're now live in 3D!!!! Again thanks all for the help. I might go back to the ATI when I can see some more support for it. thnks again.