Cant install Ubuntu with new Graphics Card

**overtone** · November 27th, 2011

Hi all,

Problem
This may not actually be a graphics card problem but I'll explain it anyway.

I've used Ubuntu in the past and really had to tear myself away from it in the first place. I was having major problems and stutters with my ATI 4850 and it was driving me crazy. We were also moving onto .net in college so I wanted to match up my software with that in the campus (Visual studio)

I made a back up and went back to windows for a bit *shudders*.

But now as were finished .net, my girlfriend came into the room with a brand new Nvidia GTX 550 ti.. I didn't think she actually listened when i ranted about computers

So eager to get back to Ubuntu I went through the usual steps, grab the latest ISO, burn it and install. Only it dies before I even get to the first options screen.

It spits a lot of errors out in black and white which I can't seem to understand.

The top level erroris BUG: Unable to handle kernel NULL pointer at dereference......

Then goes on to something like:

ffffff0x23847239
ffffff0x45343578
ffffff0x78736786

(memory addresses?)

Others mention USBS and PCI errors all of which seem to be IO related.

I honestly don't know why this is happening but the only thing that has changed. I may go back and try it with my ATI 4850 just to make sure there isn't anything else I'm missing.

So why would I post in the Ubuntu forums if its a hardware error? Because its only with Ubuntu >=10.10

These are the things I've figured out definitively.

Diagnostics

It's only with Ubuntu 10.10 and above. 10.04 runs fine as does a heap of other Linux distributions including Linux mint (Ubuntu based). I haven't tried Debian yet.
Its with all Ubuntu variants, Kubuntu, Xubuntu, Lubuntu, Edubuntu, Ubuntu Server but not Linux mint.
32-bit or 64-bit makes no difference.
It occurs on all mediums. I've tried CD, DVD, USB-live and VM (that last one is a bit of a wild card. Has its own set of problems)
Its not a corrupt ISO because I've tried 3 separate downloads of it.
I don't think its memory as I've ran some pretty extensive memory tests to no avail.
I don't particularly want to install 10.04 and then upgrade as this will eat a lot more bandwidth and I don't want to risk going through my hard drive and deleting windows files (A bit paranoid but its happened before).

Final Thoughts

So those are my diagnostics. I suppose the first thing to clarify is the errors so my first question is, How do i scroll up from that console window that spits out errors?

The error screen that shows all the PCI errors and memory addresses shows a lot of information I imagine the first error in the list will point to the problem.

Any other thoughts are appreciated.

**darkod** · November 27th, 2011

Usually the first thing to do is use the Try Ubuntu option first. Yes, we know you want to install, but running in live mode has its benefits, namely it will show if it works or not.

If booting into live mode doesn't work, for Nvidia cards usually the first thing to try is booting with using the nomodeset option.

At the main menu asking you whether you want to Try or Install, hit F6 for advanced options and look around (sorry I have no idea how exactly it looks). There is an option to turn on nomodeset. After that you can continue with Try Ubuntu.

If that worked you can install but note that on first boot it won't work without the nomodeset again. You will have to use 'e' and edit the boot line starting with linux adding nomodeset before the quiet splash.

Lets see if that worked before continuing.

**darkod** · November 27th, 2011

My bad, they changed the access procedure a little in 11.10.
When you see the first purple screen before the language menu shows, you need to hit Esc fast. That will show a low-res language menu. Select the language and hit Enter.

Then you will see the old type standard menu and the F6 options access at the bottom. In there is nomodeset (you select with the up/down arrows and Space).

**oldtimer7777** · November 27th, 2011

You need to go purchase a graphic card that is supported Linux:

http://www.nvidia.co.uk/object/linux...driver-uk.html

And here is a nice guide after you get that installed:

https://debianhelp.wordpress.com/201...neiric-ocelot/

Don't let your girlfriend purchase your computer parts for you anyone either. You need to put the big boy pants on and be a man.

**overtone** · November 27th, 2011

Originally Posted by oldtimer7777

You need to go purchase a graphic card that is supported Linux:

http://www.nvidia.co.uk/object/linux...driver-uk.html

And here is a nice guide after you get that installed:

https://debianhelp.wordpress.com/201...neiric-ocelot/

Don't let your girlfriend purchase your computer parts for you anyone either. You need to put the big boy pants on and be a man.

Gtx 550 ti is supported by Linux. She bought it because I had it circled in an store catalog.

There is nothing helpful about what you've posted above. Kindly stop trolling and get lost.

Originally Posted by darkod

Usually the first thing to do is use the Try Ubuntu option first. Yes, we know you want to install, but running in live mode has its benefits, namely it will show if it works or not.

If booting into live mode doesn't work, for Nvidia cards usually the first thing to try is booting with using the nomodeset option.

At the main menu asking you whether you want to Try or Install, hit F6 for advanced options and look around (sorry I have no idea how exactly it looks). There is an option to turn on nomodeset. After that you can continue with Try Ubuntu.

If that worked you can install but note that on first boot it won't work without the nomodeset again. You will have to use 'e' and edit the boot line starting with linux adding nomodeset before the quiet splash.

Lets see if that worked before continuing.

Sorry about that but it never even gets to the initial screen to give you the option of try or install. The only ubuntu that allows me to get that far is 10.04. Anything after that gives errors before any graphics can be displayed.

**Hakunka-Matata** · November 27th, 2011

Remove the new Graphics Card, and try installing with your old graphics GPU active? maybe a good idea????
My BIOS allows me to select which GPU to use on boot-up,

PCI-installed Graphics Card
PCIe-installed Graphics Card
ON-BOARD (MOBO) GPU
The above examples are just that, I'm not sure they are presented with that exact text.......... did it from memory......... sort of

Another user successfully installed in this manner, then simply re-inserted the PCI(e) graphics card and it booted, after which he searched for and installed, "Additional Drivers".

blah-blah-blah............

Good Luck

**overtone** · November 27th, 2011

So shift page up is how you move through the console. Learn something new everyday.

The first error that occurs is BUG: Unable to handle kernel NULL pointer at dereference......

And goes on for a while. Theres also a word that keeps popping up. Nouveau.