Intel Graphics driver problems
 

Hi,

I am not good at this. Most of the time people don't understand my questions so I am trying a different approach.

Here is a simple chronological order of events.

After reading the events there are obvious questions and then "What's my next step?"

1) Computer w/NVIDIA graphics controller, that has ubuntu 10.04 LTS installed, dies.

2) I REMOVED the hard drive FROM the computer that died.

3) I PLACED the Hard Drive INTO a different computer (old HP Compac dt220 mt) with an Intel Extreme 82845G Graphics Controller.

4) From the recovery panel, I go into the Root with Networking option.

5) I issue the commands for two tasks:
apt-get --purge remove nvidia-*
THIS removes the NVIDIA drivers/packages. (approximately 75MB)
dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg
THIS I assume restores graphics to a generic state.

6) When I boot, I get a message that it can't find the NVIDIA drivers that are no longer there and that I need to operate in Low Graphics Mode.

7) The panel that comes up has several options. One option is: reconfigure the graphics. EVERY TIME I choose this, I get a blank screen, so this option is out.

8) If I choose the low graphics mode for this session it works about 5% of the time and the other 95% is a blank screen so this option is out as well. It's the terminal window or noting.

9) After login I looked at the Synaptic Package Manager.

10) I enter xserver-xorg-video into the synaptic search.

11) I see more than 50 packages (vesa, trident, nvidia, radeon, intel and others) with shaded green check boxes.

12) The description for the intel package:
This package provides the driver for the Intel i8xx and i9xx family
of chipsets, including i810, i815, i830, i845, i855, i865, i915, i945
and i965 series chips.

13) I do not see my chipset there.

14) From System Administration when I search for available drivers it comes up blank.

Using the Gnome Environment.

So, to summarize.

** I am running in Low Graphics mode.
** The OS still thinks that it wants to try to load the NVIDIA drivers that are no longer there (this is after a reconfigure or xserver)
** There does not appear to be the appropriate driver for the Intel Extreme 82845G Graphics Controller.

So,

How do I find the drivers for this controller?

How do I tell the OS to stop looking for NVIDIA drivers that are no longer there?

How do I get to the point where I can boot normally without having to have the panel with the Low Graphics Option?

Other than the command: dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg, is there another graphics configuration command?

Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Move /etc/X11/xorg.conf to xorg.conf.bak and restart (X or the computer) - ie remove its conf file and let it try to autoconfigure.

If no:
What boot options are you passing to the kernel? (`grep "command line" /var/log/messages`).
What exactly does `lspci --v| grep Graphics` return?

Woa... do you have an nvidia or intel gpu?

Show us the output of

Please remember, at the moment, in order to look at anything I have to restart | change the BIOS (cause grub doesn't know about this computer's configuration | select the Linux HD and boot into the terminal.

While I could probably redirect the output the command to a file I can't save it a placet hat I can get to. I don't remember enough about mounting and un mounting and I sure don't want to mess up anything on the only HD that's working at the moment.

So, I'm writing and then Typing.

#lspci
00:00.0 Host Bridge: Intel Corporation 82845-G/GL/[Brookdale-G]/GE/PE DRAM Controller / Host Hub Interface (rev 03)
VGA Compatible Controller with the same numbers as above.

If you need more I'll go back and copy more stuff.

Move /etc/X11/xorg.conf to xorg.conf.bak and restart (X or the computer) - ie remove its conf file and let it try to autoconfigure. Does it work?

If no:
What boot options are you passing to the kernel? (`grep "command line" /var/log/messages`).
Try `sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg`
Try specifying the "i810" driver instead of "intel" in xorg.conf

I can answer one question. When I boot I am choosing the recovery option so I can get to the terminal window. I am unaware of any options I am passing to the boot process.

Thanks, I'll try those suggestions and get right back to ya.

Okay, the configure with the -phigh didn't do anything.

moving the xorg.conf out of the way allowed me to log in with graphics.

There was a long list so here's two entries:
Aug 22 10:01:15 rjw-desktop kernel: [ 0.000000] Kernel command line: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-24-generic root=UUID=56294ecb-2d2f-4785-9240-b852c7f45707 ro single
Aug 22 10:28:42 rjw-desktop kernel: [ 0.000000] Kernel command line: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-2.6.32-24-generic root=UUID=56294ecb-2d2f-4785-9240-b852c7f45707 ro quiet splash

The current xorg.conf.bak file has this info in it.

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
DefaultDepth 24
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "glx"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Default Device"
Driver "nvidia"
Option "NoLogo" "True"
EndSection

Even if I change the nvidia to i810 as you suggested, it would still be a pretty skimpy file compared to the xorg.conf file that existed when I installed the nvidia package.

I'm not quite sure that I understand why the system is not prompting me to upgrade the drivers for the hardware that I have, unless it has something to do with the fact that there isn't a video package that's specific to my controller in the synaptic package managemt list.

Is there anything (besides trying to cobble the xorg.conf file line by line) I can tell the system so that it can see that I have this nifty old Intel controller go out and find the right stuff and install it.

Hey, I don't mind spending time learning stuff, but at 59 and a severe terminall ilness meaning I don't know how many months or years I can reasonably expect to live, I like to pick and choose my learning battles/hurdles if you catch my meaning.

I'll try the i810 option and see what happens.

Another side question. I'm really tired of having to "sudo" every single command. I tried sudo root that failed, I tried su root it asked for a password, I typed in my password and it also failed.

How the heck to you get into a superuser mode so you can do some work; issue commands without the tedious sudo / enter passord combination?

You're running 10.04. These days, you don't need to put much of anything in your xorg.conf. The defaults usually work.

You said it worked with no xorg.conf, so .. leave it like that?

"su" takes the root password, if you've set the root password (you don't by default on Ubuntu). Try "sudo bash" to get a root shell. Or "sudo su -" or "sudo -s". Several ways to do the same thing.

Here's a screen capture for the synaptic package files

Can you explain what the packages with the green check boxes represents?

There's many video cards represented here.

When I look at the properties it says that they're installed.

Ask I asked before, since my controller is not in this list, does that mean the system can't identify it?

Are there repositories with more drivers?

Does it mean that I'm stuck in mediocre graphics mode? :)

edit:
added the screen shot.

Green check mark means it's installed, I assume.

Your controller not being in the list does not mean that your system can't ID it. It can ID it, it's in the output of lspci.

I would assume that the intel driver or its predecessor, i810, would work for you.

You said it worked with no xorg.conf, by "worked" did you mean "mediocre graphics mode" ?

And have you tried specifying Driver "i810" in xorg.conf? Or (I'm not sure if this has been answered) have you tried Driver "intel" ?

May I suggest removing /etc/X11/xorg.conf and then attaching the /var/log/Xorg.0.log file that is generated when you try to run Xorg? That would help us see where it's failing, and why.

Adam

Clarifications:
1) By ID I mean that whatever system app is responsible for letting the user know that they have the option to use the full potential of the graphics card by installing a driver. In my case it asked me when I had the machine with the NIVIDA graphics, it did not with the Intel.

2) regarding xorg.conf. If the the xorg.conf file exists in /etc/X11 then I can not boot into the system graphically I can only access things through the terminal from the recovery panel. I get a blank screen. I can hear the sound of the drums (ubuntu) telling me that I can log in but all I see is a black screen.

3) regarding the i810 driver; I had a simple, bare bones, vanilla xorg.conf that I put the i810 in as the driver and I got the black screen.

regarding mediocre graphics: Not having a driver installed probably means that I'm not using the full potential of the graphics card. For example, in XP, before i load the driver the graphics is sluggish and slow. After the driver is installed frame rates of videos and scrolling web pages becomes noticeably faster.

More accurately, when I go into the System->Preferences->Appearance->Visual Effects and choose Normal it says: "The Desktop effects could not be enabled."

I don't have an xorg.conf file at the moment. As I stated the ABSENCE of an xorg.conf file is the only way I can boot into the system graphically.

If I understand the other part of your response then I assume that after running dpkg-reconfigure xserver.xorg I should then attach the Xorg.0.log file?

Is this correct?

I'll try it anyway.
====
Also, I opened a new thread.
http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...e-land-827959/
I hope that this is not a huge faux pas.

I did it mostly because I'm old and was tired and not thinking correctly. It was probably a big mistake and I apologize.

In my mind, since I was more concerned about being able to log in using graphic interface, I considered this thread was "Solved" in the sense that it fixed the problem of being able to log in normally without using the recovery option with the terminal.

After doing some related research, I tried some things and found some new information and felt that it was now a new problem with a new question.

Today, after some sleep, I realize that it probably should still be a continuation of this thread because it is about the driver.

So now I am in a quandary of what to do because some people have answered there.

No. Just 'startx' and attach the log file. Do not reconfigure anything.

Adan

Oooooops, I did the reconfigure before I saw this message.

The reconfigure didn't create an xorg.conf file.

Here's the output for startx


rjw@rjw-desktop:~$ sudo startx
Fatal server error:
Server is already active for display 0
If this server is no longer running, remove /tmp/.X0-lock
and start again.


Please consult the The X.Org Foundation support
at http://wiki.x.org
for help.

ddxSigGiveUp: Closing log

attached is the log file after the reconfigure.

Well, first, don't run X or startx as root. Ever.

Second, you should stop the X process you already have running before you do this.

Third, according to your log file, you are using the correct driver, and everything looks fine. What makes you think it's not working?

EDIT:

In other words, you still haven't defined "mediocre graphics mode" in any detail.

Adam

Easy answer.

(I'm having to run in XP for the moment - so I am doing this from memory)

In the display preference there are three graphic modes none, normal and Enhanced?

At this time, it is set to NONE. When I click on the NORMAL display option it says that it is searching for something (driver? I'm not sure I remember) and then comes back and says that it can't set the graphics to the Normal mode.

That is what I mean by mediocre. I know the controller is not as powerful as my two evga 8800 768MB gtx cards that are collecting dust because i can't afford to fix the machine they go in, but it should at least do the Normal mode.

Thanks

It's just a bad idea to run commands as root unless absolutely necessary. Helps to keep you from doing things like removing the entire / filesystem :-)

As for none vs. normal... What happens if you bring up a terminal and run 'compiz &' ?

Adam

Thanks for the waring about root.

Hmmm. I did that once, removed the entire system. Just to see. at / I entered rm -r *

I was getting ready to reconfigure a machine and I wanted to see how long it would take for it to crater. Surprisingly it took a minute for it to get hung up.

I also got bit by the rm -r * command when I was developing software.

Thought I was in a lower level directory, was in my upper level directory; was in a hurry, didn't look and when I realize what happened, that it was starting to delete ALL of my source code, I hit CTRL-ALT-DEL the panic from DOS that I was becoming familiar with and realized that HEY that didn't work so I dove under the desk, feeling great pain as I yanked the plug. I only lost 70% of what I had worked on. In a way it was a good thing. I was able to rebuild all of it in a month, better than the original.

I may be rusty with Linux info, but I was the Manager of the System Administration group for the Wiltel's Advanced Technology Group ATG (the "Bell Labs" ow what later became the now defunct MCIWorldcom) so I am at least "aware" of what can happen running stuff from root.

That was one of the coolest places to work. I was there between 1991 - 1194.

I had 260 NeXT workstations (this gave us World Wide Web two weeks after Tim Berners-Lee unleashed it to the world and a network copy of DOOM soon after that).
We had Auspex File Servers, Silicon graphics machines, Sun, HP, IBM UNIX compute servers, a 64BIT DEC Alpha, a few 0S/2 machines and 1 Windows 3.1 machine.

I also had this crazy homogeneous network with this brand new thing called 10Base T Ethernet, FDDI, Token Ring,
Frame Relay, X.25., some fiber optics and a few machines still on Thin-Net.

We had scalable mainframes, OOP Object Repositories, I was also a Senior Software Engineer we were doing things with ; 20 ATM switches that we were co-designing with NEC (spent 5 months in Japan doing Acceptance Test Plans)

I call them the "glory days"

(Sorry for all of the reminiscing text; it's a bonus?)

I'll have to leave XP and boot into Linux and run the compiz &

I'll get back to you on the other side.

after compiz & ...
rjw@rjw-desktop:~$ Blacklisted PCI ID 8086:2562 detected

Launching fallback window manager

If you type sudo -i you get a root prompt from a shell.
You will need to supply a password one time. CTRL-D to end root session.

~~~ 0;-Dan

OK, so Ubuntu has blacklisted your GPU from running compiz. They've probably received complaints regarding the stability of your GPU in conjunction with compiz. I have no idea how stable that combination is, or if the complaints are recent or just historic. In past versions of Ubuntu you could bypass the checks that it performs (including the blacklist) by running 'SKIP_CHECKS=yes compiz &' but I do not know if that is still possible in 10.04. You'll have to give it a try.

Adam

Now, there's another wrinkle. I can only use the system now for about a short time, about 35 minutes or so.

The attached image illustrates what I see with the exception that the lines are equally distant from each other, they span the entire screen and they have square edges. I could not find a sold square brush in that Gimp Program (I'm a Paint Shop Pro guy)

The screen starts to go from completely black to the pattern on the picture.

I don't know what's happening, but I can describe what i saw when it happened a few moments ago. I happened to catch a glimpse of some text and the last line was Checking battery and then the screen started to blink.

I don't think the system is freezing. I have it set that when I hit the power button the system is to shut down immediately. When I do hit the power button in this state, the Ubuntu splash screen comes up and the system shuts down.

The only things I have done is messed with the xorg.conf and now I am not using it.

What has me just a wee bit concerned, is that I spent a very long time the first day I got into the graphics mode 4 days ago. It's today and yesterday that this has occurred.

SKIP_CHECKS=yes compiz & didn't work.
It did have the effect of rendering my keyboard inoperable.

So is there anyone that can answer these questions?

1) Are there open source intel drivers?
2_IF I try to install the intel drivers that are compatible with the kernel that's version 2.4 will I do irreparable damage to the Linux System?
3) How do you change a thread from SOLVED to not solved.
4) Is there a universal command that I can issue (in case I introduced something with my fiddling around) that can restore the system to a pristine state with all of the default settings in place?

I want to believe, Linux with all of its sophistication is capable of being configured so that I can use this machine. That lame XP OS can do it. There has to be a way.

I'm not sure where compwiz is getting the 8086:2562

lspci output (video only)
00:00.0 Host bridge: Intel Corporation 82845G/GL[Brookdale-G]/GE/PE DRAM Controller/Host-Hub Interface (rev 03)
00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation 82845G/GL[Brookdale-G]/GE Chipset Integrated Graphics Device (rev 03)

unless I missed an entry in the lspci that indicated that further down on the listing.

The info on the compwiz site http://wiki.compiz.org/Hardware/Blacklist it says the Intel card is a 965 which makes no sense at all.

The more I dig into the is the more layers of weirdness it has.

1) The intel drivers you are using are open source. There are no closed source drivers for your GPU.

2,3) No idea.

4) Not really, no. Your best bet would be to restore your system from backups that I'm sure you've created :-)

Unfortunately I have no more guidance to give. All I can really suggest at this point is opening up a bug report with Ubuntu.

Adam

8086:2562 are the manufacture and model PCI IDs. The numbers listed in lspci is the BusID. Big difference. The "-n" option to lspci will show PCI IDs.

Adam

Thanks everyone for your help.

Well, I guess that's it.

Until I can get some cash, and upgrade to a better computer, I will be stuck with not having a driver that works.

Oh well.