Hi,

I am new to Linux and Debian.

I installed Debian using three floppies I prepared, and once the installation had configured my Network card the rest of the installation proceeded by downloading Debian direct from a mirror site.

The installation went well, and I decided to go with the Base debian system (not the standard desktop), but chose to additionally install X-windows and KDE during the install.

Finally the install was complete and the machine booted into KDE lovely!

My problem is that the screen resolution is set to 800 x 600, and I want to up it to 1024 x 768.

Logging on as root, I ran:

dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xfree86

I went through all the subsequent screens setting everything up as accurately as possible. I'm fairly sure I got most of the values right, but on re-booting the machine I now get the following messages:

"Starting K Display Manager: kdm."
"Not starting X display manager (xdm); it is not the default display manager."

Alas the screen goes black for a while and then prompts for a command-line login. No KDE at all!

Cheers, Jim

That all looks about right and was the correct way to reconfigure your x server. What graphics card + monitor are you using? And have you looked through /etc/X11/XF86Config-4 to see if there are any problems, as this is where the settings for the x server are stored.

Hi,

I tried:

cat /etc/X11/XF86Config-4

but it disappears up the screen before I can read it all. I'm ashamed not to know, but I'm assuming there's an easy way to view it page by page?

My graphics card is: integrated ATI Rage Pro (AGP 2X)
Monitor: Dell D1025HE

The PC is an old Dell Optiplex GX1

Cheers, Jim

Try this:cat | more /etc/X11/XF86Config-4. Nothing to be ashamed of. Just as fouldsy said you may have to edit the file. Find the line that gives your max color depth and in that section add: "1024x768". If you happen to have a Knoppix LiveCD you can copy the file it generates to your installation.

You can use
To scroll up and down to view the file.

Alternatively you can use vim or nano to view and edit (as root) the file.

Did you also try running the xf86config program? It usually produces a decent configuration if you enter safe values.

Hi,

the "vim" was useful, but on checking the XF86Config-4 file, I have checked the highest colour depth and found that the "1024 x 768" is already in the config!

SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1024 x 768" "800 x 600" "640 x 480"
EndSubSection

Also I'm still worried about the message I get on boot up:

"Not starting X display manager (xdm); it is not the default display manager."

Cheers, Jim

In "dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xfree86" you should choose the "ati" driver and selecting "advanced" monitor configuration allows you to set horizontal and vertical refresh range. This monitor information is needed if you want to set optimal screen resolution.

A bit of Google'ing gave me these pages:
http://forum.rue-montgallet.com/ruem...et-45204-2.htm
http://cgi.ebay.es/Monitor-DELL-CRT-...QQcmdZViewItem
and they both suggest that for the Dell D1025HE monitor the horizontal sync should be set to 31.5-92 kHz while the vertical refresh is 50-150 Hz. If you still have your monitor's manual around, you should double-check this info before using it.

Try "dpkg-reconfigure xdm".

Hi,

I have set the horizontal sync to "31.5-92" and vertical refresh to "50-150" (I checked these values at: h t t p://support.dell.com/support/edocs/monitors/50292/specs.htm )

Still no joy.

When I run XDM or KDM the screen goes blank for a while and then pops back to the command prompt.

Using "dpkg-reconfigure xdm" I changed the default display manager from "KDM" to "XDM" but that did not improve things. At boot up, instead of getting:

"Starting K Display Manager: kdm."
"Not starting X display manager (xdm); it is not the default display manager."

I got instead:

"Not starting K Display Manager (kdm); it is not the default display manager."
"Starting X display manager: xdm."

Apart from that no improvement. I'm still left at the command prompt.

Cheers, Jim

Browse /var/log/XFree86.0.log for any lines that begin with (EE). The reason why X fails to start should be told in the last lines of that log file.

Ha ha!

Thanks very much for the hint about the /var/log/XFree86.0.log! It turns out my problems were all due to my mouse config! Nothing at all to do with my graphics card or monitor!

Well, you learn something new every day!

Many thanks to all who helped! I learnt a lot from every post!

Cheers, Jim