HowTo: Reconfigure X with “dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg”

[Rocket2DMn]

This HowTo Guide is primarily for users who cannot get into the GUI after a fresh install, a dist-upgrade, a new video card install, or a video driver upgrade, and for users who cannot set their screen resolutions correctly from within the GUI. It is designed to be easy to use without being overly simplistic.

UPDATE: This method does not work with Hardy Heron and probably all versions to follow (including Intrepid Ibex). This method seems to ONLY work with Gutsy Gibbon and older.
I think this is because the newer versions of xserver-xorg rely more on auto-detecting the configuration during runtime rather than looking at xorg.conf.
/UPDATE

Step 1: Get to the terminal

1a) If you are already in the GUI.
For Gnome and Xfce: Applications->Accessories->Terminal
For KDE: KMenu->System->Konsole

1b) If you are NOT in the GUI (maybe you have a blank screen after boot-up)
Do CTRL+ALT+F1 to get to a tty, and login with your username and password. Then depending on your desktop environment, run
For Gnome (Ubuntu):
sudo /etc/init.d/gdm stop
For KDE (Kubuntu):
sudo /etc/init.d/kdm stop
For Xfce (Xubuntu):
sudo /etc/init.d/xdm stop

Step 2: Run the reconfiguration

First start by making a manual backup (even though one will be auto-generated in the form xorg.conf.YearMonthDayTime):
sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf /etc/X11/xorg.conf.backup
Now run the configuration:
sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg
Details:
--You will be asked a bunch of questions about your hardware, do your best to answer. If you don’t know the answer, take an educated guess or use the default selection.
--When asked about video drivers, select “ati” if you have an ATI card, “nv” if you have an Nvidia card, or “intel” if you have an onboard Intel graphics card. Otherwise select “vesa” – this is more of a fallback driver if the other options don’t work, it is useful to select this to get into the GUI initially, then install the propriety drivers if needed (step 4).
--When asked about screen resolutions, use TAB to move and SPACEBAR to select your monitor’s max resolution and everything less.

Once the questions are finished, you may proceed.

Step 3: Restart the GUI

3a) You are currently in the GUI, so restart X with CTRL+ALT+BACKSPACE

3b) You are in a tty, so run
For Gnome (Ubuntu):
sudo /etc/init.d/gdm start
For KDE (Kubuntu):
sudo /etc/init.d/kdm start
For Xfce (Xubuntu):
sudo /etc/init.d/xdm start

Step 4: (OPTIONAL) Setup Proprietary Drivers
This is for users whose cards do not have full support with the open source drivers. Nvidia users tend to use this more, but newer ATI cards also need them.
See links for details on card compatibility.

Installing Nvidia propriety drivers (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BinaryDriverHowto/Nvidia)
Installing ATI propriety drivers (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BinaryDriverHowto/ATI)

Details on ati/radeon open source drivers (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RadeonDriver)

If something doesn’t work out correctly and you want to recover your previous configuration for X, then restore your backup:
sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf.backup /etc/X11/xorg.conf
Then restart X.

Please do not post help questions on this thread, start a new thread on the Absolute Beginner’s Forum (http://ubuntuforums.org/forumdisplay.php?f=73) instead. Suggestions, reviews, and critique are certainly welcome.

Keywords: can’t login, broken X, no login screen, blank screen, low or wrong resolution, new video card

[jaya28inside]

sorry

but i hope this could help me out....
sigh... i have an onboard card
and it's poor quality
but then Ubuntu cant' detect it?? so it's appeared blank?

OMG.... help me...!!

[jaya28inside]

and the blank screen was appeared after i choose it
from the Boot Logon...

then BANG!
blank...no other loading or someting else

but after few days.. it happened working OK
suddenly a few hours i restart it again.. .same problems happened...
it's appeared BLANK again :( hiks

[komputes]

I have usually used the following to reconfigure xorg when the screen did not work properly (such as booting into a black screen).

Press ESC at Grub prompt and select RECOVERY MODE

dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorgThis would usually ask me a series of questions concerning my video card, resolution, driver etc.

Removing "-phigh" from the command added a lot more questions concerning the keyboard.

Until recently when I ran that command on a new computer using hardy. -phigh did not work at all and taking it out allowed me to configure they keyboard but does not ask me to configure video (which is what I want to configure). I got the following error:

xserver-xorg postinst warning: overwritting possibly customized configuration file: backup in /etc/X11/xorg.conf.20080203121105

Any Tips? Currently using Intel Mobile VGA GM965/GL960 (Rev3) on Ubuntu Hardy 8.04 alpha5, but I have also seen this when trying to reconfigure an ATI Radeon 9200.

[Rocket2DMn]

"xserver-xorg postinst warning: overwritting possibly customized configuration file: backup in /etc/X11/xorg.conf.20080203121105" - is not an error. This is normal, it is making a backup of your old xorg.conf and putting the new one in its place. Backups are made automatically in the format xorg.conf.YearMonthDayTime
If you need specific help with cards, please start a new thread and somebody will be glad to help you out there. Remember that Hardy is still in alpha, and you will need "intel" driver for the onbard graphics and "ati" open source driver for the 9200.

[komputes]

I completely understand that this is not an error. I expected to be able to select my video driver with this command. What I experienced is that this command skipped right over the part where it asks questions about the video driver and monitor refresh rates etc. How do I get to that screen?

[Rocket2DMn]

That command without phigh should ask about video drivers and screen resolutions. By default it should be asking low priority questions as well, but you can double check by using the "-plow" flag with the command. Otherwise, I need to see your xorg.conf file:
cat /etc/X11/xorg.conf
lspci | grep VGA

[komputes]

I have tried this at all prority levels and none of them asked be video driver or monitor related questions. I ended up rewriting my xorg.conf file and it seems to work in low resolution now.

The good side: I got to familiarize myself with xorg.conf (once again) yaaay!

The bad side: There is no way for my grandmother to do this. Bring back the config! ;p

[Rocket2DMn]

OK, why don't you make a manual backup of the working xorg.conf file just in case:
sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf /etc/X11/xorg.conf.bak

[komputes]

OK, why don't you make a manual backup of the working xorg.conf file just in case:
sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf /etc/X11/xorg.conf.bak


Doesn't solve lack of auto-configuration or user-interactive configuration.

[Rocket2DMn]

Doesn't solve lack of auto-configuration or user-interactive configuration.

No, it doesn't, but there isn't anything we can do about that except wait for better interfaces (Gutsy was a major improvement, hopefully Hardy will be, too).

[JohnMac]

I have(had) UBUNTU running in a virtual drive with WindowsXP as a host. I tried this procedure to get my UBUNTU screen size correct, although When I closed nothing seemed to have changed - all so I thought.

When next I started up windows, it would not boot, not even in safe mode. I will use by rescue disk to save all my data, including my Ubuntu files, but it seems my little experiment to share Linux and Windows on one PC is over.

My new plan is to run XBUNTU on an old PC I have , That way I will keep my Wife and kids off my back.

[Rocket2DMn]

Reconfiguring X won't screw up your windows, that had to have been something else.
You can try setting up a dual boot rather than using a VM.

[ynnhoj]

What I experienced is that this command skipped right over the part where it asks questions about the video driver and monitor refresh rates etc. How do I get to that screen?
i've been having the exact same problem! this is god awful -- i can't deal with 800x600. and since xorgconfig isn't packaged into ubuntu, i can't fall back on that either.

[Rocket2DMn]

i've been having the exact same problem! this is god awful -- i can't deal with 800x600. and since xorgconfig isn't packaged into ubuntu, i can't fall back on that either.

First check - you're NOT using Hardy Heron, right? I found recently that this method does not work with Hardy, so I need to update my original post to note that (thanks for the reminder). The version of X in Hardy relies on more auto-detection than xorg.conf, which can be convenient if it works, but annoying if you have problems.
Second, you're NOT using the -phigh flag, right? Using that forces it to autodetect.
You should be starting a new thread to troubleshoot this, but since you're already here, what is your video card? Also post your xorg.conf
lspci | grep VGA
cat /etc/X11/xorg.conf

[ynnhoj]

First check - you're NOT using Hardy Heron, right? I found recently that this method does not work with Hardy, so I need to update my original post to note that (thanks for the reminder). The version of X in Hardy relies on more auto-detection than xorg.conf, which can be convenient if it works, but annoying if you have problems.
Second, you're NOT using the -phigh flag, right? Using that forces it to autodetect.
You should be starting a new thread to troubleshoot this, but since you're already here, what is your video card? Also post your xorg.conf
lspci | grep VGA
cat /etc/X11/xorg.conf
i have an onboard geforce2 card; in my experience, it doesn't play nice with the nvidia driver, so i normally use the more generic nv driver ('xf86-video-nv').

i didn't realize that hardy relied so heavily on auto-detection as to deny a user access to configuring things themselves (aside from writing yer own xorg.conf). if my only option is to type up an xorg.conf file myself, i'll probably just install arch again. i thought i'd see how ubuntu's come along since i last used it (edgy, i think) and this was a bit of an unpleasant surprise. note: i've always had problems with ubuntu figuring out my screen resolution on this machine, but that was fine since up until now it's been easy to fix.

[Rocket2DMn]

Yeah, Hardy is still Testing for a few more weeks though, hopefully X will be a little better when they release Hardy as stable in April (I should hope so, it's an LTS release). I found the manually editing xorg.conf didn't work very well in Hardy either.
I will be sure to find out more details about working with X in Hardy since I help a lot of users troubleshoot X.

[ynnhoj]

i appreciate the help -- i just can't believe the doing a reconfig on xorg, which used to be so simple, has become so problematic! ah well, hopefully this is just a bug which will be fixed in time for the release..?

[Rocket2DMn]

Doubtful, I think that is the direction they are trying to go with X, though I wish they would have an override option for those of us with cards that have less support :(
If I get around to writing a HowTo for doing this in Hardy, I will post a link from this thread, but until then, we're stuck.

[komputes]

ynnhoj, I would ask you to please voice your opinion on the bug which I have created concerning this issue. Your opinion is appreciated. I really hope we can make them change this before the final Hardy comes out 28 days from now.

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xorg/+bug/207409

As well, since in your case you do get 800x600 access to GDM, please try running displayconfig-gtk as a user-interactive method for configuring xorg.conf

[goohman]

when i boot i hear the drums and do the ctrl+alt+f1 thing and login in but none of the commands can be found.

I typed in "sudo /ect/init.d/gdm stop"

"command /ect/init.d/gdm" cannot be found"

or something like that

[Rocket2DMn]

The path is "/etc/init.d/gdm stop" not "ect". Also, gdm won't work if you're not using Gnome (standard Ubuntu install). You use kdm if you have Kubuntu and xdm if you have Xubuntu.

[goohman]

The path is "/etc/init.d/gdm stop" not "ect". Also, gdm won't work if you're not using Gnome (standard Ubuntu install). You use kdm if you have Kubuntu and xdm if you have Xubuntu.

Oops :oops:

I i got it to work, i didnt know alot of the questions especially the port one since it was connected to mobo. so i used escape.

but i downloaded the restricted driver that poped up onscreen and i now get full resolution ^_^ thanks!:lolflag:

[ynnhoj]

As well, since in your case you do get 800x600 access to GDM, please try running displayconfig-gtk as a user-interactive method for configuring xorg.conf
hey, that's a handy little tool that i didn't even know existed! thanks for the tip -- i'm back to good ol' 1280x1024, and lovin' it! it seems that my display wasn't detected properly (it's just a samsung syncmaster, but maybe it's a weird model...?).

[Rocket2DMn]

hey, that's a handy little tool that i didn't even know existed! thanks for the tip -- i'm back to good ol' 1280x1024, and lovin' it! it seems that my display wasn't detected properly (it's just a samsung syncmaster, but maybe it's a weird model...?).

That is the same as going to System->Administration->Screens and Graphics

[ynnhoj]

heh, i figured that out a few hours after my last post :o

i haven't used ubuntu since edgy -- this must be a new tool?

[Rocket2DMn]

I think it is new with Gutsy, they use it in Hardy, too.

[blindhog]

If anyone is still having issues with this in Hardy Heron, try this command

gksu displayconfig-gtk

Then you can try to restart X with ctrl+alt+bksp , restart or powerfail completely.

I power failed my machine and it came back with correct resolution. Rebooting or restarting X might work. I am so wiped right now, I am confused as to what fixed it. What a freaking mess...:mad:

[WitchCraft]

"xserver-xorg postinst warning: overwritting possibly customized configuration file: backup in /etc/X11/xorg.conf.20080203121105" - is not an error. This is normal, it is making a backup of your old xorg.conf and putting the new one in its place. Backups are made automatically in the format xorg.conf.YearMonthDayTime
If you need specific help with cards, please start a new thread and somebody will be glad to help you out there. Remember that Hardy is still in alpha, and you will need "intel" driver for the onbard graphics and "ati" open source driver for the 9200.

I had this when I couldn't set the screen resolution. It remaind at 600x800...

Neither dpkg-reconfigure nor -phigh worked.

To do it manually:

apt-get install xresprobe

xresprobe -n



make a backup of xorg.conf:

cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf /etc/X11/xorg.backup.conf


Then edit the xorg config file:
sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf

Look out for these sections:

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
DisplaySize 376 301
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
EndSection



And change them to this:

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
DisplaySize 328 248
HorizSync 30-85
VertRefresh 50-120
EndSection




Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Device "Configured Video Device"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
DefaultDepth 16
SubSection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1280x1024" "1024x768"
EndSubSection
EndSection


Get the values for hsync and vsync via:

xresprobe -n

and get the available modes via

fbset -x




http://wiki.ubuntuusers.de/XServer

[Rocket2DMn]

This HowTo is outdated now, it doesn't really apply to Hardy, Intrepid, or Jaunty (testing) - the newer X servers rely more on autodetection than they used to. These days, this method is mostly only useful to resetting a manually configured xorg.conf or one that was modified by restricted drivers, which can be useful after a kernel upgrade in which the restricted drivers were not recompiled after the update.

[arjanhs]

Is there already an updates version available, cause my 8.10 version with a Intel Corporation Mobile GM965/GL960 chipset isn't working with compiz.

Arjan

[Rocket2DMn]

Arjan, this guide is outdated and doesn't apply to Hardy or Intrepid (though in some cases, it may work). The primary purpose of this guide was to get users into a graphical session, not enable compiz. You should create a new thread in one of the primary support forums, like Absolute Beginner Talk, General Help, or Desktop Effects & Customization. Good luck.

[chepe263]

In the most easy way just type new values on xorg.conf

Make a backup copy first. Then run in terminal (konsole or gnome-terminal) sudo nautilus (or your prefered file browser) and go to /etc/X11/ make copy of xorg.conf find this part

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Monitor "Configured Monitor"
Device "Configured Video Device"
Defaultdepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Virtual 640 480
Modes "640x480@60"
EndSubSection
EndSection

and change
Virtual 640 480
Modes "640x480@60"

to

Virtual 1024 768
Modes "1024x768@60"

save changes and resar X (ctrl+alt+shift+backspace) and your screen resolution change

This make the screen resolution from 640x480 to 1024x768, make sure you are writing real values and make a copy of the xorg.conf file again to have another backup

if it doesn't work copy backup to /etc/X11/ again (using windows with ext2 driver if it is possible)


chepe263

Spanish users, write me and i will explain you in spanish
(Usuarios que hablan español, escribanme y les explico en español)

chepe263@gmail.com ):P

by the way, i'm using ubuntu 8.04 with kde