Installed wrong video drivers - now black screen on logon :(
Linux - NewbieThis Linux forum is for members that are new to Linux.
Just starting out and have a question?
If it is not in the man pages or the how-to's this is the place!
Notices
Welcome to LinuxQuestions.org, a friendly and active Linux Community.
You are currently viewing LQ as a guest. By joining our community you will have the ability to post topics, receive our newsletter, use the advanced search, subscribe to threads and access many other special features. Registration is quick, simple and absolutely free. Join our community today!
Note that registered members see fewer ads, and ContentLink is completely disabled once you log in.
If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you need to reset your password, click here.
Having a problem logging in? Please visit this page to clear all LQ-related cookies.
Get a virtual cloud desktop with the Linux distro that you want in less than five minutes with Shells! With over 10 pre-installed distros to choose from, the worry-free installation life is here! Whether you are a digital nomad or just looking for flexibility, Shells can put your Linux machine on the device that you want to use.
Exclusive for LQ members, get up to 45% off per month. Click here for more info.
Installed wrong video drivers - now black screen on logon :(
Hi, I have just installed Red Hat 9. It got through the install fine. When it got to the end it asked what video driver I had, it had for some reason highlighted the S3 Trio driver so I clicked next and it rebooted.
No I only get a strange black screen when the login screen is supposed to appear. The thing is I am a windows man and have no idea how to resolve this.
Originally posted by gonzouk ....but all I want to do is reinstall the graphic drivers over the incorrect ones I installed, not buy a new version of Redhat.
I am not saying buy a new version of Redhat. I am saying Redhat 9 is an obsolete distro with no support and upgrades becuse it reached its end of life early last year. You are better off using something thats still in active development and recieving security updates.
I guess easiest would be to just reinstall Red Hat (or any other linux distro really, most of them are freely available for download, so you don't need to 'buy' a new version).
Otherwise you could boot from your Red Hat installation CD and choose the repair option instead of the install option. Only problem is that I'm not sure if Red Hat 9 has such an option.
Yet another option would be pressing Ctrl + Alt + F2 (or F1 or Fwhatever) when you have the 'black login screen'. This way you should get a command line login, so just enter your username (maybe root, you system is fcked up anyway... ) and pass, and you will get a command line interface. From here it should be possible to fix your problem.
Quote:
The thing is I am a windows man
Ok, sorry, I guess it's rude to leave someone in need of help before a blank command line.... Sadly I'm no guru (at all) but I'll try to give you a few pointers...
Maybe you can try to find a configfile that handles your graphics. xorg.conf or rc.conf would be candidates on my PC (I'm not running Red Hat though...) Finding files can be done with the command "find" or "locate". Then you could edit that file (with nano, vi, emacs, whatever, just type the name of the program, then the name of the file you want to edit) and make it so that you don't load the wrong driver anymore, just replace it with the default (VGA or something). You won't have any fancy graphics yet, but you'll at least be able to login to a graphical shell (KDE?) and from there you'll have a better chance of finding the right driver.
I can't remember the exact command because I have not used Redhat 9 for years, but if you log in as root and run "xf86config", you should be able to reconfigure your X server in text mode.
If it's best to get the new version of linux which version would you recommend? I need to use the server for Nessus penertration scans and also Snort for intrusion Prevention?
Originally posted by gonzouk If it's best to get the new version of linux which version would you recommend? I need to use the server for Nessus penertration scans and also Snort for intrusion Prevention?
Thanks
G
If you are already familiar with REdhat, then use Fedora Core or Redhat Enterprise Linux. If you don't want to pay a licence for RHEL, then use CentOS which is an RHEL rebuild.
If you decide to use Redhat Enterprise Linux, you have to pay a subscription to Redhat. I am not sure which version you will require, this depends on your needs. CentOS is a rebuild of Redhat Enterprise Linux ES from source rpms (as it says on its website). Its free for download and use, though a donation is welcome. Instead of paying Redhat for a RHEL subscription you can just use CentOS, which is available as 4 CD's or 1 DVD. If you want a distribution thats contains more up to date packages, then use Fedora Core because it is used as a test bed for technology that will be used in Redhat Enterprise Linux.
LinuxQuestions.org is looking for people interested in writing
Editorials, Articles, Reviews, and more. If you'd like to contribute
content, let us know.