[SOLVED] Graphics driver SiS 630

[abn91c]

I obtained a PS/2 keyboard and managed to install from the alternate cd. However I am stuck with 800 x 600 resolution, which is frustrating. It is great to have the computer running, but this does limit what I can do with it.

How might I get the resolution higher? There is no option for a higher resolution in the screen resolution control panel (it only offers 800x600 and 640x480). I note that abn91c has 1024x768 with the same hardware, how did you achieve that?

not sure if it matters but I have a $10.00 emachines 17" monitor from goodwill, when the startup ask's me to "run ubuntu in low graphics mode, i do that, my monitor supports a higher resolution plus 1024 x768 at 0mhz. It works well, colors are fine. Also its a pc100 motherboard

[littlebat]

I celebrated too soon, it's gone back to 800x600 again for no apparant reason and whatever I do to xorg.conf (sis or vesa, whatever resolutions I type in) it is determined not to go above that. Not enough time to try and fix it today, but it is extremely frustrating. I have no idea why one day it would work perfectly and the next day it would stop.

Have you changed anything for your system from the last time it can work at 1024x768?
Keep your Driver parameter in "/etc/X11/xorg.conf" to "sis", and try delete "800x600" and "640x480" entries in Modes parameter. Change "Depth" parameter to "8" and use this Depth as your default Depth.
If this can't work, post your "/etc/X11/xorg.conf" here.

[samden]

I can't think of anything I would have changed that would have affected the display. Current xorg.conf is:

Section "Device"
	Identifier	"Configured Video Device"
	Driver		"sis" #vesa
EndSection

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

I have tried using the vesa driver. I have tried with a depth of 8 - and I get nasty old colours (256 colours brings back memories!) but still an 800x600 resolution.

[littlebat]

Try change

SubSection "Display"
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection

into

SubSection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection

[samden]

No luck unfortunately, still 800x600.

[littlebat]

If you haven't changed anything related to displaying, no idea for why this happen and how to resolve this broblem.

At last,
1, Try edit Section "Monitor" to limit its fresh rate

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Configured Monitor"
HorizSync 30 - 50
VertRefresh 50 - 75
EndSection

2, If it can't work, revert /etc/X11/xorg.conf to the initial status when the system installed initially;

Good luck!

[littlebat]

Have you tried to use Xfce4 again and select screen resolution in the "Display setting" menu? Are there "1024x768" entry in the options? Keep your "/etc/X11/xorg.conf" as the status it can work at "1024x768". And, use Xfce4 again, if Xfce4 still can't work at "1024x768", try to rename your Xfce4 display setting config file "~/.config/xfce4/mcs_settings/display.xml" and restart Xfce4, it will use default display setting.

If you have any new discovery, please share with us.

[samden]

Littlebat, thanks heaps for all your help, it is working now! The refresh rate must have fixed it.

My working xorg.conf now contains:

Section "Device"
	Identifier	"Configured Video Device"
	Driver		"vesa"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
	Identifier	"Configured Monitor"
        HorizSync       30 - 50
        VertRefresh     50 - 75
EndSection

Section "Screen"
	Identifier	"Default Screen"
	Device		"Configured Video Device"
	Monitor		"Configured Monitor"
	SubSection "Display"
		Modes   "1024x768"
	EndSubSection
EndSection

For some reason it keeps choking on the sis driver, so I've had to stick with vesa. Hopefully it doesn't die again, but I've got this backed up just in case it does.

[samden]

I have upgraded this same machine to Karmic (fresh install), and am having the same problem configuring the screen again. Unfortunately nothing I do to the xorg.conf file appears to make any difference to the Display preferences. I have copied the exact xord.conf code posted here that worked last time, with no luck, and have tried various variations on this with both the vesa and sis drivers with no apparant result - I'm still sitting on 800x600 resolution, with 640x480 my only other option.

Has anything changed between 8.04 and 9.10 that would require me to modify this code?