Hey everyone, this is my first post here. Just started using Linux for the first time a few days ago and so far I've spent many hours searching forums and discussions for troubleshooting advice with a great deal of success, but it seems that I've finally dug myself into a hole too deep to pull myself out of. There are a generous hand-full of issues which prevent me from ever accessing my desktop, but let's start with the most immediate one and work our way up.

Upon starting my computer and booting Linux, I'm greeted by a black screen with the Linux Mint logo in the center and it is absolutely stuck. I've attempted every "solution" I could find about this problem, yet I'm faced with cryptic error messages at every turn and still nothing has gotten me past the boot screen. ANY help is appreciated with this, as most of my other issues could be easily solved once I'm able to access my desktop.

(keep in mind: I'll probably be unfamiliar with most Linux-based terminology or how to execute certain terminal functions so please be patient with me when explaining stuff, I'm still learning!)

It would help if you told us what these error messages are. Is this linux mint an installed system or from a usb/dvd/cd? What version of linux mint are you using and what are your hardware specs. The more information you provide the better we can help you.

Welcome to the world of control of your computer.

Please post these cryptic error messages. Without knowing what the computer is telling you, very few people will be able to help.

Also post your computer's details. CPU, ram, hdd, board, at the absolute minimium.

Was the md5sum of the iso your downloaded correct therefore not corrupt?

You're probably going to have to do a reinstall. Doing a reinstall is probably easiest.

Welcome to LQ.

Did you ever get it to boot to a desktop?

Here are some of my specs:

Distro: Linux Mint 19.3 Tricia
CPU: Intel Core i7-490k
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760
Board: ASRock z97 Extreme6
RAM: 16 GB (DDR 3 @ 1333 Mhz)
Storage 1: 120 GB SSD
Storage 2: 2 TB HDD

As I said before, I've been at this for hours (I feel like my brain is melting by this point) and cannot remember specific error messages or the terminal commands that prompted them, but they've all along the lines of "invalid command", "permission denied", etc. But this is why I figured it would be easiest to get some advice from someone who knows what to ask for so that I can provide whatever system feedback I get directly into this forum. The only way I've been able to access the terminal is by booting into recovery mode and pulling up the "root access" menu, pressing "enter" and inputting commands there. Please give me some recommendations for inputs and I will let you know what the system tells me.

It's also worth noting that I'm using a different computer (with windows) to access this forum, so I'm unable to copy/paste terminal lines here but I will do my best to type it all up word for word. Also, I did NOT install Linux originally or have any part in building this computer (I bought it refurbished) so I don't have access to a usb/dvd/cd for reinstallation purposes or have any idea where to begin if I were to attempt a reinstallation. My plan is to use the "Resetter" tool if I can eventually get through the boot process and access my desktop in order to reset my system to it's default state.

Yikes, I'm a mess.

When you first boot at the grub menu, press e for edit, at the line that starts with linux, delete splash quiet and add nomodeset to the end of the line boot and see if it that helps, if nothing else it should give more information as to what is happening. If you don't get a grub menu at boot try the shift or esc key to get the menu.

I would suggest you follow the recommendation above in post 6 to start and secondly, read through the Linux Mint documentation at the site below.

https://linuxmint-installation-guide....io/en/latest/

When you get output such as 'invalid command' or 'permission denied' it is often because whatever you are trying to do requires root (administrator) privileges. Linux systems are designed by default to be multi-user and doing much of anything outside your /home/user directory requires root privileges. In Ubuntu (and also Mint) that means using sudo. Reading the link above should be a good start. If you do get logged in using the suggestion in post 6, the Mint installation guide has some info on installing proprietary software which you likely need with your Nvidia graphics card. That would be the section 'Hardware Drivers'.

If you have problems with a command you need to make note of the exact command and the output to post here otherwise members are just guessing.