[SOLVED]Problems with getting X to work

[Garbanzo]

Hi,

I've been following the Handbook to install Gentoo on a new machine and am having trouble with Xorg. I don't have a graphics card, just the on-chip intel i7 graphics. I have VIDEO_CARDS="intel i965" in make.conf. I would appreciate any help or hints to get X working.

Thanks.


startx says this:

[NeddySeagoon]

Garbanzo,

Welcome to Gentoo.

[oreo]

This belongs under the Desktop Environments forum.

Edit: added smiley face to seem less like a douche.
_________________
"One does not simply, install gentoo."

[NeddySeagoon]

Moved from Installing Gentoo to Desktop Environments.

oreo,

There is a report button, so you need not post in topic about about being out of place.
Reports are public and seen by all the forum mods/admins.
_________________
Regards,

NeddySeagoon

Computer users fall into two groups:-
those that do backups
those that have never had a hard drive fail.

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

Neddy, could this also be an issue with the variants of intel cards 915 and 965, I recall with at least one laptop that even after having the kernel capabilities built that the system would still not boot until the proper boot paramaters were provided for the graphics drivers via grub boot line.

EDIT: I was just adding in this possibility in case what is discovered somehow contradicts this idea, but from the look of the message I would guess that you are right about kernel driver missing

[NeddySeagoon]

LIsLinuxIsSogood,

This may not be the only Gentoo learning opportunity but until the kernel driver is loaded /dev/dri/card0 will not exist, so its not possible to tell.

As always, only the first error matters. Later errors are often induced by the first error.
_________________
Regards,

NeddySeagoon

Computer users fall into two groups:-
those that do backups
those that have never had a hard drive fail.

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Intel ...Some more helpful info...

I understand Neddy...with the most likely candidate for problem which is in the kernel, and going from there.

Also just to clarify has the system yet to have a working graphical session with X or did this happen to be working and then stop working? Begin with go back to the source directory for linux kernel /usr/src/linux and checking out whether the configuration file has correctly set the driver for intel915, which in the latest kernel tree is found just below the option for Nouveau

[NeddySeagoon]

LIsLinuxIsSogood,

Its a new install, see the opening post. With a piece of the kernel missing, its never worked. At least not with that kernel.
_________________
Regards,

NeddySeagoon

Computer users fall into two groups:-
those that do backups
those that have never had a hard drive fail.

[Garbanzo]

Hi,

I'm still stuck on this one. Any hints for setting the Kernel right? I've been using genkernel and looked at the Intel page. My latest kernel attempt config is here bpaste .config.

One thing that puzzles me is that live cd does not have /dev/dri/card0 either and has the same error, yet it works. However when I boot the same machine into KDE Neon (mostly Ubuntu 16.04) it does have /dev/dri/card0. So it can work either way?

Thanks.


Gentoo LiveCD Xorg.0.log:

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

Let's see you make.conf file, which can be displayed using emerge --info
EDIT: Or on the contrary instad of the longer ouptut just a uname -r can take the place of that.
Quick question did you make sure to reinstall xorg-server following the most recent activity in terms of updates, the modules can often not get installed too, so taking a look at a couple of the ways to emerge the module-rebuild set as well as xorg-server if it doesn't get pulled in automatically, which is should. If your fresh install though already had the most recent kernel and xorg was installed at the same time, then I guess this may not be the cause of much help, but still it seems worth doing since there is really no drawback to just reinstalling Xorg here.

This is a likely candidate for the explanation o what's going on:

[Garbanzo]

Hi

The emerge --info is here. (I did chroot from the liveCD so uname will give the wrong answer?)
emerge --info

Here is my make.conf. Ive tried it with and without i915 in the VIDEO_CARDS and it doesn't seem to change anything.

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

Good idea, to be rebuilding.

So one more thing that I'm not completely sure about, but from the wiki says

Important
Beginning with x11-base/xorg-drivers-1.19, the x11-base/xorg-drivers package (in addition to the mesa package) includes support for the i965 USE flag. This will omit selection of the deprecating x11-drivers/xf86-video-intel driver in favor of the more maintained, generic modesetting DDX driver built into x11-base/xorg-server.


So I believe that depending on what generation processor you have, and stuff by adding i965 to the global USE or VIDEO_CARD variable that it will prefer maybe the wrong driver for this situation, but I'm not sure. Try to see if the packages mentioned above are installed in terms of x11-drivers and if not maybe emerge -1 xf86-video-intel will also be a temporary solution or fix.

[Garbanzo]

Yea, I saw that on the wiki too, but wasn't sure what to do.

One thing, while building xorg some warnings went by. They were all similar to this. Should I try that?

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

I don't know...for newer processors there's probably someone else with more experience as I am way back in upgrading mine.

For this purpose of testing I hope you at least have tried starting X with either xinit or X as the command without the front end scripts of startx etc. for the session.

[Jaglover]

Start here.
_________________
My Gentoo installation notes.
Please learn how to denote units correctly!

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

[Jaglover]

If this link was posted before then why our OP is still asking what to put into VIDEO_CARDS variable?
There is kernel driver which loads without Xorg, normally when kernel boots. There is Xorg driver, Intel defaults to modesetting as far as I know, not intel driver. And there is MESA. This makes three drivers. MESA is not required to load X and have a GUI. So the step one is getting the kernel configured correctly and intel DRI loading. Then, and only then will be loading Xorg possible.
_________________
My Gentoo installation notes.
Please learn how to denote units correctly!

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

Jaglover, I suppose you have a point with the OP about what to include in make.conf. The reason I assumed we were at that starting point (which is where the fix should be made with kernel settings as you explained) is because the missing information about processor's gen and with that was an opportunity to make sure VIDEO_CARDS is correctly set.

Looking at the X output when it fails to start, I get that the kernel is first point that needs to be properly setup so that it works, but why does X even look specifically for i915? How would you suggest that the OP (who seems like he is getting started for the first time maybe with this distribution) get a faster solution that would allow him to get up and running with X. Following the wiki is not really the advice that is needed when the wiki deals with so many different possibilities.

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

Alright, I think the situation is very confused like jaglover points out. When posting to the forum it is important that our OP understands that the more detail that is explained initially and the extent possible describing in detail the steps taken leading up to the point in which problems occurred.

something like this:
" I was towards the end of a installation from stage3 on architecture y with profile z and had already completed the process of adding users, groups, and installed kernel version x.x and grub. Upon booting into the system, and trying to start the graphical session with xorg installed (see below for X server information...then showing emerge -pv xorg-server and show emerge --info probably too but not from your livecd this should be from new installation environment). HERE's A REAL IMPORTANT PART: In order to install and configure Xorg I followed the steps in the Intel article on the wiki, and made the following edits to the make.conf file VIDEO_CARDS=i965 as instructed and then rebuilt the entire system with emerge --newuse --deep @world. (Of course I am just making this up I don't know what it says in there exactly). That is when I thought that just running X would work out of the box as promised, however instead (and show the output you did in the first place)."

If you can organize the questions in this more narrative approach that exposes the work done so far then I think you will get a more directly helpful response from the forums from those that can spot where it is your problem is that you having.

Also since this is hardly a DE question and is really more of a Installation question I think (chroot and livecd concerns) then I would move to have this relocated to Installation topic.

[Garbanzo]

Yes, this is my first time installing Gentoo. I made it through the Handbook. It boots and I can ping the outside world. Ive been doing chroot from the liveCD so I can research things as I try them. I think I followed the linked Intel Wiki, but I am a little confused about Intel vs modesetting drivers and 915 vs 965. I think I am set up for modesetting but obviously I've done something wrong along the way.

[LIsLinuxIsSogood]

Ok that makes sense, but did you start with rebuilding the kernel as NeddySeagoon suggested?

I think the steps you need to take are the following:
1. Build the kernel according to what is in the link for intel graphics
2. Check the other packages such as xorg-server and mesa, vesa etc. if you are using them (this step could require setting the correct VIDEO_CARD in make.conf)
3. Troubleshoot any remaining issues with the X configuration

Am I missing anything here...I really don't like to just point you towards finding a solution but I think that graphics and GUI related things are tricky so it may make sense to have you do more of the testing and then turning here to the forum with some of those more specific questions.

From my experience installing gentoo about a dozen or more times, but usually on the same set of hardware so I can't actually help further, sorry

[NeddySeagoon]

Garbanzo,

The liveCD works and your install does not as when the intel driver fails, the liveCD tries another driver.
There are four that will work for your chipset.

[Garbanzo]

I will give that a try and let you know how it goes.

My latest .config
https://bpaste.net/show/02a21a5ea2e5

Thanks,

And i have been runnig uname -a based on another of your posts.[/url] It has saved me a couple of times.

[NeddySeagoon]

Garbanzo,

You have

[Garbanzo]

Here is my dmesg. It does have quite a few errors but i'm not sure what they mean.

http://bpaste.net/show/aae6409536b4

Thanks.