# Blank screen after first reboot (bootloader works fine).

## DARKuser

Hi. I'd like to start by saying that this is my first Gentoo install (although i've used several other linux distros). 

    The problem goes like this: i've installed gentoo with the 'kernel-genkernel-x86-2.6.12-gentoo-r6' kernel following the installation guide. After the first reboot, grub shows up, splashscreen and all, i select the 'gentoo' option, and it starts to boot ... for a couple of seconds, some text shows up (so i think ... 'ok, everything's fine') ... but then the screen goes completely blank. The strange thing is that it *does* boot ... i can see the hard drive working, and i can log on as 'root' and restart using the 'reboot' command.

    At first i thought there was smth wrong with the bootloader config (in terms of the video options). I tried a number of solutions posted here, but nothing seemed to work. I then installed lilo, using the default, no-framebuffer 'lilo.conf' described in the install guide. The result was exactly the same. At first, some text showed up, then the screen went blank again ... it  booted all right, since i could log on and do the 'reboot' thing again.

    At this point i'm stuck ... maybe it's because i've never had this sort of problem before. I don't really know what file to post (since it's not the bootloader config), so any advice would be most appreciated. Thanks.

P.S. I also have windows installed ... it boots flawlessly (with lilo as well as grub).

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## loki99

Did you check your kernel config, whether  you picked the right driver for your GPU?

Just a wild guess though.

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## DARKuser

First of all - wow, that was fast   :Smile:   Regarding the kernel config, i used the genkernel script and did a 'genkernel all' (i thought it would save time, but now i'm not so sure) ... so it was automatically configured. That could be it, but i'm no good at fixing kernel problems, so some further help might be required.

    My hardware is as follows (i have a Fujitsu-Siemens Amilo L6820):

Chipset  [Intel(®) 82845GV + Intel(®) 82801DB (ICH4)]

Graphic  [Intel 82845GV (integrated graphics)]

    Thanks.

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## morodoch

Do you think your system is dead, or just not displaying what it's doing?

If it's just not displaying anything, this can be caused by setting a vga mode on the kernel command line which isn't compiled into the kernel.

Try removing anything like "vga=0x123" from the kernel command line in grub/lilo.

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## DARKuser

Hi morodoch. The system is deffinetly *not* dead ... as i said previously, i can log on as 'root' and 'reboot' it (without seeing anything, of course). So, apparently, everything else works  :Smile: 

The 'grub.conf' and 'lilo.conf' files are completely free of any video statements. They have always been so (except when i tried the various options posted on the forum). They are *very* similar to those described in the install guide (for users that used the genkernel script) ... except for the partitioning and stuff. Thanks anyway.

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## morodoch

Sorry for not reading too carefully.

 *Quote:*   

> At first, some text showed up, then the screen went blank again ... it booted all right, since i could log on and do the 'reboot' thing again. 

 

What's the last text that you see before the screen goes blank? Can you post your lilo.conf entry?

(I'm wondering if it's something to do with the initrd, the runlevel 1 stuff or the runlevel 3 stuff)

Do you have X installed? If you have, you may still be able to launch it by something like this:

1. log in as root

2. run to try and generate a new X11 config file:

```
X -configure
```

3. wait a little while (30 seconds?) then run this to try and launch X with the new config file:

```
startx -- -config /root/xorg.conf.new
```

If you *do* manage to get X running, maybe running dmesg in an xterm could shed more light on the matter.

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## DARKuser

I can't post the 'exact' text that is shown before the screen does blank, but it's the sort of text you see when linux starts to boot (it happens during the first part of the boot process) ... i don't really know about gentoo, but, if it were, let's say redhat, it would be just before saying 'entering runlevel 3' (i think) ... or perhaps earlier.

Since it's my first reboot, i don't have X installed  :Sad: 

Here's my lilo.conf file:

```

boot=/dev/hda             

prompt                    

timeout=100                

default=gentoo

image=/boot/kernel-genkernel-x86-2.6.12-gentoo-r6

  label=gentoo

  read-only

  root=/dev/ram0

  append="init=/linuxrc ramdisk=8192 real_root=/dev/hda4 udev"

  initrd=/boot/initramfs-genkernel-x86-2.6.12-gentoo-r6

other=/dev/hda2

  label=windows 

```

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## morodoch

The only thing I don't recognise on there is the ramdisk=8192 bit - is it necessary? Is your boot any better without it?

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## DARKuser

I removed the 'ramdisk=8192' bit, but it did exactly the same thing. I think that the problem could be, as loki99 said earlier, my kernel config ... but i have no idea on how to fix this ... do i have to recompile it, or is there a workaround?

The easiest thing to do (in terms of time) would be to reinstall gentoo *without* using the 'genkernel' script, but i'm saving that as a 'last resort' option. In the mean time, I'd really appreciate some info on how to check that the kernel is / isn't correctly configured (regarding the display adapter, of course). Thanks.

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## nixnut

Moved from Installing Gentoo to Kernel & Hardware.

Gentoo installed, kernel needs some attention.

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## morodoch

Well I guess you've got a few options if you *really* don't want to re-install. Here're some:

reboot with the install CD (or something like the system rescue cd: http://www.sysresccd.org/) mount your partitions and check your kernel config

try and get X to work - if it is your console display driver, it's quite possible that you can get X to work still, as I described before

emerge ssh, start the daemon, and ssh in from some other machine with a working display

There may be others, but I think they'd be more difficult. You could try enabling a serial login session from another PC if you have a null modem cable.

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## loki99

There is no need to reinstall! To recompile your kernel just boot with the cd, do a change root as described in the handbook and deploy...

```

cd /usr/src/linux && make menuconfig
```

And have a look how genkernel configured your kernel. If you would like to change anything, make the apropiate changes, save the new kernel config and do ...

```
make && make modules_install && make install
```

... asuming you are using a 2.6 kernel, that is!Last edited by loki99 on Sun Dec 04, 2005 5:05 pm; edited 1 time in total

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## loki99

Here are some links that could help you to compile your kernel manually.   :Wink: 

HOWTO_Compile_a_Kernel_Manually

NeddySeagoons' Rough Guide to DIY Kernels 

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## DARKuser

I recompiled the kernel, but still nothing ... the same 'blank screen' story. To be honest, i might have chosen the wrong modules to add (or not have chosen the right ones) ... i did my best, but there were a *lot* of options to choose from ... plus, i didn't start with a clean kernel tree, because i had already used the 'genkernel' script in the original install. 

I think that a clean install would be the best option for me right now. (and quite a bit of free time for all the kernel configuring stuff   :Smile:  ). The kernel howtos will come in handy.

I'll return to this post if the new install somehow fails. Thanks everyone.

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