Is LXDE inactive or do additional dependencies need to be installed?

[ActionParsnip]

Why would it not be compatible? I use it myself on my Pis to load LXDE... But its just a DM... Why is LightDM "more compatible" than gdm with LXDE?

[ajgreeny]

You will, I think, need to enable and start whatever display manager you have installed as well with

systemctl enable lightdm

, or similar command or the dm will not be used, hence the black screen.

[roler2]

Thank you for all of the advice! After LXDE install utilizing the mini.iso and prior to rebooting, which should I attempt first: 'systemctl enable lightdm' or 'systemctl enable gdm'? If I get a Black Screen after rebooting I will have to start the entire process all over again.

[ajgreeny]

Thank you for all of the advice! After LXDE install utilizing the mini.iso and prior to rebooting, which should I attempt first: 'systemctl enable lightdm' or 'systemctl enable gdm'? If I get a Black Screen after rebooting I will have to start the entire process all over again.

Whichever display manager (login screen) you wish to use.

As you will posibly now have more than one dm you will also need to choose that using command sudo dpkg-reconfigure gdm3 which should give uyou the choice of which one to use.

I have not done any of this for many years so I hope my memory is not playing tricks on me.
Good luck!

[roler2]

LXDE boots to Desktop utilizing the 18.04 mini.iso. I cannot get LXDE to boot to the Desktop utilizing the 20.04 mini.iso. It fully downloads, just doesn't boot to Desktop. Still booted to a black screen with a flashing cursor. Maybe it is not compatible with the configuration of the 20.04 mini.iso?

[guiverc]

Maybe it is not compatible with the configuration of the 20.04 mini.iso?

The mini.iso is not an official ISO that is fully supported; it was a side effect of procedures of other supported tools and was made available as many users found it useful. Ubuntu 20.04 LTS was the last release where that procedure was used, thus the last release providing that specific netboot/mini ISO.

The ISO itself just boots and installs packages from the web, there is nothing unique about it.

I'd bet there is something (a package) you didn't install that creates the difference and your issue. It may not be the package itself, but something done by the post-install script run on installation of a package.

In a prior comment i tested it with a Lubuntu base install.. I'd likely setup a VM (or test box like I used) and install it there like I did, then if it works there, compare the differences in packages installed between what worked, and what you have, and look for clues in that.

Yes LXDE will be different in focal to bionic, as the Lubuntu team adjusted packages from upstream in bionic but not in later releases; I'd already stated that.

I doubt my prior test which started with Lubuntu would have been different had I used a different base (eg. Xubuntu, Kubuntu, Ubuntu etc) but I would have performed the test on whatever was there which happened to be Lubuntu. Maybe I'm wrong though; and the Lubuntu base caused a change that the Lubuntu team made in bionic that is no longer there. To prove that I'd likely perform the test again on a different install (last test was with Ubuntu on that box; but it was impish and not focal), but either way I'd find somewhere it worked; and compare packages with your existing non-working system.. then cross of the packages that won't be involved and you'll be left with possibly only 1 or 2 possibles and I bet your answer.

[roler2]

Thank you so much for all of the advice. I am closing this thread because I am not sure what I am doing wrong. . .if anything. I will just wait until Lubuntu 22.04 and try LXQT again. I was having a lot of difficulty configuring LXQT yet I will try again. I am just used to GTK and it is easy for me to utilize. I feel the 20.04 mini.iso may be configured differently than the 18.04, and that equally may be conflicting with a straight LXDE install from the command line. Might be best to try the Debian 10 or 11 minimal install, then add LXDE and then the Ubuntu Repositories, or install Ubuntu-core with the 20.04 mini so at least you get a Desktop and then install LXDE. However, for me, overall, it really isn't worth it. I will just wait until 22.04 and try LXQT once again. Thank you again for all of the advice.

Also I don't really understand ESM. Does that just involve specifically updating the kernel for 5 more years? I should have asked that in my other thread about ESM.