From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint


I won't pretend that this is the most reliable machine.
It was built in 2013 and curently r=uns Linux Mint 21.3 cinnamon.

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Occasionally it would complete a startup and it is up now.
The problem is that the bottom panel (I only have one)is not showing.

I would like to fix this otherwise I cannot get to the start button.

Any suggestions?
--
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-79-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.

What is your philosophy about Timeshift, particularly as related to such
as updates?
--
Mike Easter
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 20:35:05 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Maybe too obvious, but ... did you check free space with rCLdfrCY?
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Wed, 9/10/2025 3:35 PM, pinnerite wrote:

I won't pretend that this is the most reliable machine.
It was built in 2013 and curently r=uns Linux Mint 21.3 cinnamon.

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Occasionally it would complete a startup and it is up now.
The problem is that the bottom panel (I only have one)is not showing.

I would like to fix this otherwise I cannot get to the start button.

Any suggestions?

In the boot menu, isn't there an option to use a slightly older kernel ?

I don't generally delete my older kernels, as I want "lots" of options
for Houdini Escape mode.

You should always set up your machine, so the boot menu is exposed at
boot time, so you will see these options.

sudo xed /etc/default/grub

# The first part here, is the install default, where no menu shows up

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden
GRUB_TIMEOUT=0
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`( . /etc/os-release; echo ${NAME:-Ubuntu} ) 2>/dev/null || echo Ubuntu`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

# I just did these to mine, to make the menu show. This will
# boot using the default choice after 10 seconds.
# Removing quiet splash, it to see everything as it boots.
# Use a video camera, record that screen, if you want/need to see ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING.
# dmesg or sudo dmesg, is no longer as reliable as a recorder, as it used to be.

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=menu
GRUB_TIMEOUT=10
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`( . /etc/os-release; echo ${NAME:-Ubuntu} ) 2>/dev/null || echo Ubuntu`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=""
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

# Save and exit, then

sudo update-grub

*******

Depending on what instructions you followed, there may not be an
older kernel in the menu to choose from. For example, I did a clean
install, and I don't seem to have options except for "recover" or so.
And that may not be sufficient for a kernel-version-induced problem.

*******

You can chroot in, and do the above recipe to prepare the
install for the less-quiet boot. It's possible the Boot Rescue CD
leaves the menu in the exposed state as well, if you're as lazy
as I am :-)

*******

Linux 21.3 is what I recommend for people with old computers.
The 5.15.xx kernel is more likely to leave a smile on your
face, with an old computer. Using bleeding edge distros, using
HWE kernel, that's for techbros with really new kit. The 222 I'm testing,
is on an 11 year old machine, so that is an example of how far back
you could go, but I don't know if my video driver (if I switched out
of Nouveau) would work for me. Linux 21.3 won't last forever...
and that's a problem for a number of people.

driver-manager shows "nvidia-driver-550" as Recommended if I want
to run NVidia. So my GTX1080 is still supported well enough. If
your hardware is old enough, maybe the 470 driver does not support
your NVidia card (and it is Nouveau for the old thing).

Paul
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 16:18:16 -0700
Mike Easter <MikeE@ster.invalid> wrote:

pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.

What is your philosophy about Timeshift, particularly as related to such
as updates?

--
Mike Easter

Generally speaking I find them more trouble than they are worth.
They either clog up the works are the backups are incomplete.
The fact is I haven't bothered to get a grip on what they are designed
to do.

Alan
--
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-79-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 23:37:09 -0000 (UTC)
Lawrence DrCOOliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 20:35:05 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Maybe too obvious, but ... did you check free space with rCLdfrCY?

Only about 1,4TB
--
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-79-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 22:53:02 -0400
Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:

On Wed, 9/10/2025 3:35 PM, pinnerite wrote:

I won't pretend that this is the most reliable machine.
It was built in 2013 and curently r=uns Linux Mint 21.3 cinnamon.

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Occasionally it would complete a startup and it is up now.
The problem is that the bottom panel (I only have one)is not showing.

I would like to fix this otherwise I cannot get to the start button.

Any suggestions?

In the boot menu, isn't there an option to use a slightly older kernel ?

I don't generally delete my older kernels, as I want "lots" of options
for Houdini Escape mode.

You should always set up your machine, so the boot menu is exposed at
boot time, so you will see these options.

sudo xed /etc/default/grub

# The first part here, is the install default, where no menu shows up

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden
GRUB_TIMEOUT=0
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`( . /etc/os-release; echo ${NAME:-Ubuntu} ) 2>/dev/null || echo Ubuntu`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

# I just did these to mine, to make the menu show. This will
# boot using the default choice after 10 seconds.
# Removing quiet splash, it to see everything as it boots.
# Use a video camera, record that screen, if you want/need to see ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING.
# dmesg or sudo dmesg, is no longer as reliable as a recorder, as it used to be.

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=menu
GRUB_TIMEOUT=10
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`( . /etc/os-release; echo ${NAME:-Ubuntu} ) 2>/dev/null || echo Ubuntu`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=""
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

# Save and exit, then

sudo update-grub

*******

Depending on what instructions you followed, there may not be an
older kernel in the menu to choose from. For example, I did a clean
install, and I don't seem to have options except for "recover" or so.
And that may not be sufficient for a kernel-version-induced problem.

*******

You can chroot in, and do the above recipe to prepare the
install for the less-quiet boot. It's possible the Boot Rescue CD
leaves the menu in the exposed state as well, if you're as lazy
as I am :-)

*******

Linux 21.3 is what I recommend for people with old computers.
The 5.15.xx kernel is more likely to leave a smile on your
face, with an old computer. Using bleeding edge distros, using
HWE kernel, that's for techbros with really new kit. The 222 I'm testing,
is on an 11 year old machine, so that is an example of how far back
you could go, but I don't know if my video driver (if I switched out
of Nouveau) would work for me. Linux 21.3 won't last forever...
and that's a problem for a number of people.

driver-manager shows "nvidia-driver-550" as Recommended if I want
to run NVidia. So my GTX1080 is still supported well enough. If
your hardware is old enough, maybe the 470 driver does not support
your NVidia card (and it is Nouveau for the old thing).

Paul

Thanks for that.
Well it is using LM 21.3.
I was astonished to find it was built in 2013.
I get to the boot menu on this machine using F12 on boot-up.

To the grub menu, by holding down Left-shift as it boots up.

I have four kernels in grub. Now none of them complete a boot-up.
I do have a flash-drive with Mint 21.3 but I will have to use a
different screen from the wide-screen TV to avoid a divorce.

I have an 11 inch one that should do the trick although getting it to
work through HDMI I recall, is a headache.

Alan
--
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-79-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Thu, 9/11/2025 11:55 AM, pinnerite wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 22:53:02 -0400
Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:

On Wed, 9/10/2025 3:35 PM, pinnerite wrote:

I won't pretend that this is the most reliable machine.
It was built in 2013 and curently r=uns Linux Mint 21.3 cinnamon.

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Occasionally it would complete a startup and it is up now.
The problem is that the bottom panel (I only have one)is not showing.

I would like to fix this otherwise I cannot get to the start button.

Any suggestions?

In the boot menu, isn't there an option to use a slightly older kernel ?

I don't generally delete my older kernels, as I want "lots" of options
for Houdini Escape mode.

You should always set up your machine, so the boot menu is exposed at
boot time, so you will see these options.

sudo xed /etc/default/grub

# The first part here, is the install default, where no menu shows up

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=hidden
GRUB_TIMEOUT=0
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`( . /etc/os-release; echo ${NAME:-Ubuntu} ) 2>/dev/null || echo Ubuntu`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash"
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

# I just did these to mine, to make the menu show. This will
# boot using the default choice after 10 seconds.
# Removing quiet splash, it to see everything as it boots.
# Use a video camera, record that screen, if you want/need to see ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING.
# dmesg or sudo dmesg, is no longer as reliable as a recorder, as it used to be.

GRUB_DEFAULT=0
GRUB_TIMEOUT_STYLE=menu
GRUB_TIMEOUT=10
GRUB_DISTRIBUTOR=`( . /etc/os-release; echo ${NAME:-Ubuntu} ) 2>/dev/null || echo Ubuntu`
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT=""
GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX=""

# Save and exit, then

sudo update-grub

*******

Depending on what instructions you followed, there may not be an
older kernel in the menu to choose from. For example, I did a clean
install, and I don't seem to have options except for "recover" or so.
And that may not be sufficient for a kernel-version-induced problem.

*******

You can chroot in, and do the above recipe to prepare the
install for the less-quiet boot. It's possible the Boot Rescue CD
leaves the menu in the exposed state as well, if you're as lazy
as I am :-)

*******

Linux 21.3 is what I recommend for people with old computers.
The 5.15.xx kernel is more likely to leave a smile on your
face, with an old computer. Using bleeding edge distros, using
HWE kernel, that's for techbros with really new kit. The 222 I'm testing,
is on an 11 year old machine, so that is an example of how far back
you could go, but I don't know if my video driver (if I switched out
of Nouveau) would work for me. Linux 21.3 won't last forever...
and that's a problem for a number of people.

driver-manager shows "nvidia-driver-550" as Recommended if I want
to run NVidia. So my GTX1080 is still supported well enough. If
your hardware is old enough, maybe the 470 driver does not support
your NVidia card (and it is Nouveau for the old thing).

Paul

Thanks for that.
Well it is using LM 21.3.
I was astonished to find it was built in 2013.
I get to the boot menu on this machine using F12 on boot-up.

To the grub menu, by holding down Left-shift as it boots up.

I have four kernels in grub. Now none of them complete a boot-up.
I do have a flash-drive with Mint 21.3 but I will have to use a
different screen from the wide-screen TV to avoid a divorce.

I have an 11 inch one that should do the trick although getting it to
work through HDMI I recall, is a headache.

Alan

While there are passive (just wires) DP++ to HDMI adapters,
there are also some active DP to HDMI adapters that use a chip
to make a brand new HDMI signal. That's what I used with one HDMI
monitor that did not like the NVidia card output on HDMI. Originally
that adapter was only going to be used with the Optiplex 780 (which
doesn't have DP++ output and is only DP), but I've since used the
adapter for all sorts of other scenarios.

There are a couple kinds of monitors. There are VESA monitors that
accept 640x480, 800x600, ... 1920x1080 and can adapt those resolutions
so you can at least see something. There are also display devices
that accept HD (1920x1080) and SD (1280x720) and nothing else, and
those could be a lot more annoying, depending on the computer. Those
would work with set top boxes or BluRay/DVD movie players. A good
display device has an EDID table, and something like ReadEDID in Linux
can read the table. That's how the video card is supposed to figure
out the mode line to make the output work on the card. On Windows,
you would use Moninfo from entechtaiwan, to display the EDID table.

You can dial in the strange monitor, on your now-working PC, then
when you understand it better, take it over to the HTPC.

Paul


--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Thu, 11 Sep 2025 16:46:58 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 23:37:09 -0000 (UTC) Lawrence DrCOOliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 20:35:05 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Maybe too obvious, but ... did you check free space with rCLdfrCY?

Only about 1,4TB

Did you have a separate OS partition, or was it all together?
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Thu, 11 Sep 2025 22:40:10 -0000 (UTC)
Lawrence DrCOOliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2025 16:46:58 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 23:37:09 -0000 (UTC) Lawrence DrCOOliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 20:35:05 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup.
I tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard drive
but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Maybe too obvious, but ... did you check free space with rCLdfrCY?

Only about 1,4TB

Did you have a separate OS partition, or was it all together?

I had around 30Gb for / and the balance of 2B on home.

Anyway, more up to date, I removed the battery, returned it and can now get into the boot menu (F12).
Running fsck from a flash drive showed no filesystem errors.
I made a complete copy of the recordings and associated directories.
I now want to back off a copy of the database.
In the absence of alternative suggestions I will copy the whole of /var/lib/mysq to the backup SSD before reinstaling Linux Mint 21.3

Alan
--
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-79-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Tue, 16 Sep 2025 16:54:35 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2025 22:40:10 -0000 (UTC)
Lawrence DrCOOliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2025 16:46:58 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 23:37:09 -0000 (UTC) Lawrence DrCOOliveiro
<ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 20:35:05 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup. I
tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard
drive but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Maybe too obvious, but ... did you check free space with rCLdfrCY?

Only about 1,4TB

Did you have a separate OS partition, or was it all together?

I had around 30Gb for / and the balance of 2B on home.

How much of that 30GB was free?
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: alt.os.linux.mint

On Tue, 16 Sep 2025 20:21:08 -0000 (UTC)
Lawrence DrCOOliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Tue, 16 Sep 2025 16:54:35 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2025 22:40:10 -0000 (UTC)
Lawrence DrCOOliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Thu, 11 Sep 2025 16:46:58 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 23:37:09 -0000 (UTC) Lawrence DrCOOliveiro
<ldo@nz.invalid> wrote:

On Wed, 10 Sep 2025 20:35:05 +0100, pinnerite wrote:

After an update yesterday, it would not complete a startup. I
tried booting from a flashdrive and trying to repair the hard
drive but that didn't seem to find any filesyatem errors.

Maybe too obvious, but ... did you check free space with rCLdfrCY?

Only about 1,4TB

Did you have a separate OS partition, or was it all together?

I had around 30Gb for / and the balance of 2B on home.

How much of that 30GB was free?

Over 10Gb. After spending ages, I decided to back up which itemsI
wanted to preserve a 64Gb flash drive and do a clean install.

The installation went well but I chose the wrong version od Mint.

New thread.
--
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-79-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2