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senserbase
August 25th, 2011, 05:47 PM
Hello all ! I am new here ...

I have been using Ubuntu 11.04 for about 6 months so i am kind of new in the Linux scene...

The reason that i moved to the Linux OS is for my programming , and i thought that maybe my nVIDIA 7300GT will work here at GNOME environment... the reason is that one day (1.5 years ago ) i booted my computer-windows 7- and suddenly i had a blue screen that said i have problem with my gpu and something about nvidia driver file ___.sys ... so i had to start using my intel built-in gc ... so then 6 months ago i thought that maybe if i will move to linux i wouldn't have this problem any more ... so i installed Ubuntu
and when i connected my nvidia 7300gt to my computer and booted it with Ubuntu all i got was black screen ,i was able to see commands lines (in the menu of the OS dialog) though ...

yesterday i got little bored so i decided to try to connect my nvidia gc again but this time i went to recovery mode and chose "failsafe graphics mode " and it booted perfectly (-only one problem that now i am stuck in Ubuntu classic "theme " even though i am booting in regular mode)...

so my question is what is the configuration of ubuntu when i booting in that safe mode ? - and can i do something to be able to boot in normal mode with my nvidia card ?

*and why I am stuck in ubutnu classic mode even though I set it on “ubuntu” (in the login options)


THANKS FOR ALL THE HELPERS !!!!

valvegrid
August 25th, 2011, 06:37 PM
Silly question from me, have you purged all the legacy Nvidia drivers and downloaded and installed the drivers from the Nvidia site? This tells you how to install the drivers manually.

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/NvidiaManual (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BinaryDriverHowto/Nvidia)

senserbase
August 25th, 2011, 07:51 PM
Silly question from me, have you purged all the legacy Nvidia drivers and downloaded and installed the drivers from the Nvidia site? This tells you how to install the drivers manually.

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/NvidiaManual (https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BinaryDriverHowto/Nvidia)

i installed the drivers this way (as the links guide) and by ubuntu "driver manager " - with or without driver i get the same problem

tom4everitt
August 26th, 2011, 08:16 PM
Two questions:

What's in /etc/X11/xorg.conf (if you have one)?

If you click System->Administration->Hardware Drivers, does it say anything about your graphics driver?

I guess my suspicion is that it's not really using that Nvidia card of yours - I think that would explain the behavior you're describing.

senserbase
August 27th, 2011, 10:26 AM
Two questions:

What's in /etc/X11/xorg.conf (if you have one)?

If you click System->Administration->Hardware Drivers, does it say anything about your graphics driver?

I guess my suspicion is that it's not really using that Nvidia card of yours - I think that would explain the behavior you're describing.

thats what it says:



# nvidia-xconfig: X configuration file generated by nvidia-xconfig
# nvidia-xconfig: version 270.41.06 (buildmeister@swio-display-x86-rhel47-07.nvidia.com) Mon Apr 18 15:15:12 PDT 2011


Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Layout0"
Screen 0 "Screen0" 0 0
InputDevice "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
InputDevice "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
EndSection

Section "Files"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

# generated from default
Identifier "Mouse0"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "auto"
Option "Device" "/dev/psaux"
Option "Emulate3Buttons" "no"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"

# generated from default
Identifier "Keyboard0"
Driver "kbd"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "Monitor0"
VendorName "Unknown"
ModelName "Unknown"
HorizSync 28.0 - 33.0
VertRefresh 43.0 - 72.0
Option "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "Device0"
Driver "nvidia"
VendorName "NVIDIA Corporation"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Screen0"
Device "Device0"
Monitor "Monitor0"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
EndSubSection
EndSection


...............

in 'Additional Drivers' i have 3 options that i can active :

nvidia accelerated graphics driver v173

-"- the same thing only with recommended

somthing with nvidia 3D

i already tryied to active the first two ,but with no any boot successe... FYI - in the end of the installation of the drivers i get a error windows with somthing like " installition error/failure "


.....

*** i realy dont care about having nor not having drivers of nvidia ... i just dont want to go all the time ,when i am booting, to "recovery mode" - maybe there is somthing that making a problem when i go to regular boot - FYI -i dont have any problem when i am using my built in Intel gc (- the same thing in Windows 7/xp )

senserbase
August 28th, 2011, 12:20 PM
Help please !!!

howefield
August 28th, 2011, 12:26 PM
Threads merged.

Duncan Williams
August 28th, 2011, 02:58 PM
Ok,
I had the same issues you are having about 6 months ago with an nvidia fx5200 graphics card.
I was at the time using Ubuntu 10.04 (maverick) and windows Xp as dual boot.

To cut a long story short you may have a damaged card as in the video ram or the video bios.
If that is the case it may work using video rasterising (software instead of the cards video ram)
You can probably get upto 1080by768 resolution using ubuntu classic or unity-2d under failsafe graphics (recovery mode).
The same should hold for windows XP (it will work in video software mode).

If you can install and use nvidia drivers in windows then it may not be damaged. Then you have to work out how to use the correct nvidia drivers in ubuntu.

The standard opensource video drivers should otherwise work ok in unity 2D and classic.

I ended up throwing away the fx5200 and bought a new cheap nvidia geforce 6200 card for $40 with 512mb of video ram. That now uses the nvidia current drivers and is very stable and fast at 1920by1200.

You can however just keep booting into failsafe graphics mode if you are happy with upto 1080by768 resolution. This was no use to me with a widescreen 24" monitor.

So to test it out:
If you have dual boot or a windows installation, try to install and use the nvidia drivers in windows first(or try it in a friends pc) Then take it from there.
Post back if you want any more help.

tom4everitt
August 28th, 2011, 03:24 PM
Try to remove the section with nvidia from your xorg.conf (make a backup first).

senserbase
August 28th, 2011, 11:33 PM
Try to remove the section with nvidia from your xorg.conf (make a backup first).

i dont understand what you are saying :S


Ok,
I had the same issues you are having about 6 months ago with an nvidia fx5200 graphics card.
I was at the time using Ubuntu 10.04 (maverick) and windows Xp as dual boot.

To cut a long story short you may have a damaged card as in the video ram or the video bios.
If that is the case it may work using video rasterising (software instead of the cards video ram)
You can probably get upto 1080by768 resolution using ubuntu classic or unity-2d under failsafe graphics (recovery mode).
The same should hold for windows XP (it will work in video software mode).

If you can install and use nvidia drivers in windows then it may not be damaged. Then you have to work out how to use the correct nvidia drivers in ubuntu.

The standard opensource video drivers should otherwise work ok in unity 2D and classic.

I ended up throwing away the fx5200 and bought a new cheap nvidia geforce 6200 card for $40 with 512mb of video ram. That now uses the nvidia current drivers and is very stable and fast at 1920by1200.

You can however just keep booting into failsafe graphics mode if you are happy with upto 1080by768 resolution. This was no use to me with a widescreen 24" monitor.

So to test it out:
If you have dual boot or a windows installation, try to install and use the nvidia drivers in windows first(or try it in a friends pc) Then take it from there.
Post back if you want any more help.

as i was saying in windows , the only option that works is safe mode too - but only awful graphics...
in ubuntu (safe mode ) i can get much more quilty and i can get 1280*1024 resolution too !

but i only have the classic ubuntu "skin" - and for that i need help too :

when i boot in regular mode (with my built in intel gc) i only have classic ubuntu "theme " too even though i choose only "ubuntu " in the logging screen - how can i fox that ?

how come i can boot with my nvidia only in safe mode : what are the configuration of that mode ? and how can i apply them to the regular boot ?


thanks for the help guys !!!!

tom4everitt
August 29th, 2011, 07:07 PM
I think your nvidia card is broken, it's probably better not have it plugged in at all.

Also, I think Ubuntu automatically chooses the old interface when it is detecting insufficient graphics capabilities. That will change with unity 2d, coming in 11.10.

Anyway, in your xorg.conference file (that I asked you about) you have a section telling Ubuntu to use your Nvidia card. When Ubuntu tries that, it will either not find the (broken) nvidia card, or at least realize it's not quite usable. So it will think no great graphics power is available, and give you the old/safe mode interface. This is my theory.

So how to fix that?

Simply remove that part of your /etc/xorg.conf file telling Ubuntu what graphics to use. Then Ubuntu will automatically detect what graphics capabilities are available, use them instead, and be able to give you the full experience.

In detail, remove the following lines from your /etc/xorg.conf



Section "Device"
Identifier "Device0"
Driver "nvidia"
VendorName "NVIDIA Corporation"
EndSection


(Run "gksu gedit /etc/xorg.conf" in a terminal, etc. etc...)

tom4everitt
August 29th, 2011, 08:12 PM
If that doesn't work, auto generate xorg.conf with the Nvidia card removed:

http://www.osguides.net/operation-systems/217-how-to-create-xorgconf-in-ubuntu-910.html

(It's for an older Ubuntu version, but it should work fine, I think.)

senserbase
August 30th, 2011, 02:19 PM
I think your nvidia card is broken, it's probably better not have it plugged in at all.

Also, I think Ubuntu automatically chooses the old interface when it is detecting insufficient graphics capabilities. That will change with unity 2d, coming in 11.10.

Anyway, in your xorg.conference file (that I asked you about) you have a section telling Ubuntu to use your Nvidia card. When Ubuntu tries that, it will either not find the (broken) nvidia card, or at least realize it's not quite usable. So it will think no great graphics power is available, and give you the old/safe mode interface. This is my theory.

So how to fix that?

Simply remove that part of your /etc/xorg.conf file telling Ubuntu what graphics to use. Then Ubuntu will automatically detect what graphics capabilities are available, use them instead, and be able to give you the full experience.

In detail, remove the following lines from your /etc/xorg.conf



Section "Device"
Identifier "Device0"
Driver "nvidia"
VendorName "NVIDIA Corporation"
EndSection


(Run "gksu gedit /etc/xorg.conf" in a terminal, etc. etc...)


i cant open the xorg file , i used this code :

sudo gedit /etc/xorg.conf

but all i get is a blank file

tom4everitt
August 30th, 2011, 08:29 PM
Oh, I see. It's actually normal to have an empty xorg.conf, but I thought you said above your xorg.conf contained a lot of code.

Anyway, in that case you could try the auto-generate xorg.conf option I described above. I'm not sure it will work though, the fact that you have an empty xorg.conf changes things a little. But try it anyway, and see what it gives you.

How was it again, did it work before you plugged in the Nvidia card? I mean, did Ubuntu ever work with your Intel card only? Just to make sure the problem isn't that the Intel card simply is too weak to support Unity 3d, or that you're lacking drivers for it.

Duncan Williams
August 31st, 2011, 07:51 AM
I would hazard a guess that the intel graphics will work if no nvidia card and switched on in the bios, using opensource drivers.
And this will run classic and 2D with reasonable response and minimal effects. Unity may lag or not work.

The nvidia card needs checking to actually see if it's working ok.

senserbase
August 31st, 2011, 03:46 PM
Oh, I see. It's actually normal to have an empty xorg.conf, but I thought you said above your xorg.conf contained a lot of code.

Anyway, in that case you could try the auto-generate xorg.conf option I described above. I'm not sure it will work though, the fact that you have an empty xorg.conf changes things a little. But try it anyway, and see what it gives you.

How was it again, did it work before you plugged in the Nvidia card? I mean, did Ubuntu ever work with your Intel card only? Just to make sure the problem isn't that the Intel card simply is too weak to support Unity 3d, or that you're lacking drivers for it.


I would hazard a guess that the intel graphics will work if no nvidia card and switched on in the bios, using opensource drivers.
And this will run classic and 2D with reasonable response and minimal effects. Unity may lag or not work.

The nvidia card needs checking to actually see if it's working ok.



With my built in intel gc everything works , the only problem is that sometimes it gets really laggy when I need more graphical processing with my work ….

I will try the auto-xorg configure option and let you know what happened

thanks for the help really appreciate it.

tom4everitt
August 31st, 2011, 08:09 PM
Good, let's see what that gives us.

I would also recommend you to do:



ls /var/log/Xorg*


it will give you a list of Xorg logs - at least one of them should contain the reason you get failsafe mode.

senserbase
September 1st, 2011, 08:27 PM
Good, let's see what that gives us.

I would also recommend you to do:



ls /var/log/Xorg*


it will give you a list of Xorg logs - at least one of them should contain the reason you get failsafe mode.

i got blank screen again in the configure .....

and this is what i get in the list

/var/log/Xorg.0.log /var/log/Xorg.4.log
/var/log/Xorg.0.log.old /var/log/Xorg.4.log.old
/var/log/Xorg.1.log /var/log/Xorg.5.log
/var/log/Xorg.1.log.old /var/log/Xorg.5.log.old
/var/log/Xorg.2.log /var/log/Xorg.99.log
/var/log/Xorg.2.log.old /var/log/Xorg.failsafe.log
/var/log/Xorg.3.log /var/log/Xorg.failsafe.log.old
/var/log/Xorg.3.log.old


i got tired from all the tries - its just that i dont get why my gc works only in failsafe mode ?! because i get the same graphics only that now everything is like in "classic theme " ...

if maybe you can help me get to the original theme ... because i dont have that anymore and also the keybored combos "ctrl+alt+[numpad]" - in options it seems to be on but i cant use it ...

thanks again

Duncan Williams
September 2nd, 2011, 01:50 AM
I would suggest that you install `unity 2D' from software manager or synaptic.
It should then be available at start-up (where you login)
along with, ubuntu, classic, etc.

This should work well with built-in graphics processor.

senserbase
September 3rd, 2011, 11:17 AM
I would suggest that you install `unity 2D' from software manager or synaptic.
It should then be available at start-up (where you login)
along with, ubuntu, classic, etc.

This should work well with built-in graphics processor.

one problem : i still dont have the keyboard combos - like when you press shift+alt+[keypad-num] and you can move the window to vertical places in the screen , even though i enabled them and several more options in the CompizConfig setting manger