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[solved - hardware issue] Monitor blanks; won't wake up

Posted: 04 Nov 2010, 20:08
by dedanna1029
With a recent bug in X, posted in the Arch Linux thread in Distro Talk, my monitor still blanks on its own, and it's next to impossible to resume from it in the mornings (my computer stays up 24/7) because of the X bug (I have to hit Ctrl+F2, type something, then Ctrl+F7 to get it to come back in the end), even when I've turned it off overnight. I've been through the menu on my monitor (it actually blanks in 5 minutes when in tty too), and I can't find where to shut that off. It's a Samsung SyncMaster 731B - any clue how to stop it from blanking?

Thanks

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 15 Nov 2010, 08:42
by dedanna1029
I remembered. In /etc/X11/xorg.conf:

Code: Select all

Section "Monitor"
   Identifier   "Monitor0"
   VendorName   "Samsung"
   ModelName    "SyncMaster 731B"
   HorizSync    28.0 - 33.0
   VertRefresh  43.0 - 72.0
----->Option       "DPMS" "false"


https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/DPMS

Now, let's just hope that these wonderful (#sarcasm) new Xorg auto-options don't take hold... siiiiggh...

One can also do:

Code: Select all

# xset dpms force off


Hoping that will help, with the new version of xset installed with updates today.

And, in the process of all this, I found out how to turn on numlock on at login! w00t!

Code: Select all

# xset q
Keyboard Control:
  auto repeat:  on    key click percent:  0    LED mask:  00000002
  XKB indicators:
    00: Caps Lock:   off    01: Num Lock:    on     02: Scroll Lock: off
    03: Compose:     off    04: Kana:        off    05: Sleep:       off
    06: Suspend:     off    07: Mute:        off    08: Misc:        off
    09: Mail:        off    10: Charging:    off    11: Shift Lock:  off
    12: Group 2:     off    13: Mouse Keys:  off
  auto repeat delay:  500    repeat rate:  30
  auto repeating keys:  00ffffffdffffbbf
                        fadfffefffedffff
                        9fffffffffffffff
                        fff7ffffffffffff
  bell percent:  50    bell pitch:  400    bell duration:  100
Pointer Control:
  acceleration:  2/1    threshold:  4
Screen Saver:
  prefer blanking:  yes    allow exposures:  yes
  timeout:  600    cycle:  600
Colors:
  default colormap:  0x20    BlackPixel:  0    WhitePixel:  16777215
Font Path:
  /usr/share/fonts/misc/,/usr/share/fonts/TTF/,/usr/share/fonts/Type1/,/usr/share/fonts/100dpi/,/usr/share/fonts/75dpi/,built-ins
DPMS (Energy Star):
  Standby: 0    Suspend: 0    Off: 0
  DPMS is Enabled
  Monitor is On


I've just turned DPMS off for now, in case they fix this and I can go back with it. :)

I can alternatively:

Code: Select all

[root@dedanna dedanna]# xset -dpms;xset s off
[root@dedanna dedanna]# xset q
Keyboard Control:
  auto repeat:  on    key click percent:  0    LED mask:  00000002
  XKB indicators:
    00: Caps Lock:   off    01: Num Lock:    on     02: Scroll Lock: off
    03: Compose:     off    04: Kana:        off    05: Sleep:       off
    06: Suspend:     off    07: Mute:        off    08: Misc:        off
    09: Mail:        off    10: Charging:    off    11: Shift Lock:  off
    12: Group 2:     off    13: Mouse Keys:  off
  auto repeat delay:  500    repeat rate:  30
  auto repeating keys:  00ffffffdffffbbf
                        fadfffefffedffff
                        9fffffffffffffff
                        fff7ffffffffffff
  bell percent:  50    bell pitch:  400    bell duration:  100
Pointer Control:
  acceleration:  2/1    threshold:  4
Screen Saver:
  prefer blanking:  yes    allow exposures:  yes
  timeout:  0    cycle:  600
Colors:
  default colormap:  0x20    BlackPixel:  0    WhitePixel:  16777215
Font Path:
  /usr/share/fonts/misc/,/usr/share/fonts/TTF/,/usr/share/fonts/Type1/,/usr/share/fonts/100dpi/,/usr/share/fonts/75dpi/,built-ins
DPMS (Energy Star):
  Standby: 0    Suspend: 0    Off: 0
->DPMS is Disabled


And have it disabled. :)

Now, let's just hope I wake up in the morning, and find this thing not blanked, and that I'm able to "get in" so to speak. This morning it took SIX tries at Ctrl+Alt+F2 and back to Ctrl+Alt+F7 (yes, six passes of each, alternating with turning the monitor on and off a dozen times) to get this thing to resume. :(

They haz borked it, I tell ya.

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 15 Nov 2010, 12:13
by viking60

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 15 Nov 2010, 17:07
by dedanna1029
Yup, got that too - but it's disabled anyway.

Much to my chagrin, none of this has worked. Had a heckuva time resuming from blanking again just a bit ago. :(

Something has got to be way broke...

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 16 Nov 2010, 08:09
by dedanna1029
PLEASE help with Bug #21395 for Arch - vote for it, comment as you will, as you've seen what I've been through with this.

I don't know how to bump up the priority of the bug - if you know, please do tell.

Thanks.

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 23 Nov 2010, 17:35
by dedanna1029
I need to close the bug.

The story goes like this:

Last night, I checked out F14 - again on my other (front) hdd, only this time rather than a clean install, I installed F13 again, and tried preupgrade. What I should've done was left it on F13 and checked it for this issue, but like a dummy I didn't.

Well, as it happens, it got really late during the installation part (after the downloading of the upgrade packages), so I went to bed to let it finish, and while I was sleeping, this thing had gone for a reboot. It was at my BIOS password when I got up, and I had a heckuva time resuming - I'd shut the monitor off, and it would just flash on, then go right back to off like it does in Arch.

So, what I have is either a kernel issue, or a monitor issue, or, an issue with the hard drives resuming.

:oops: :oops:

Question: How do I narrow down which it is?

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 23 Nov 2010, 17:51
by viking60
Do you have another monitor you can test with? That would be the obvious choice I think :tux5:

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 23 Nov 2010, 17:56
by dedanna1029
Wish I did - I guess I can go get my old KDS from my daughter's and test it. I'm really hoping it's not the monitor - can't afford a new one right now.

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 23 Nov 2010, 18:10
by dedanna1029
Just had a thought - what are the odds my video card is going out? It's going on some 4 or 5 yrs old?

Edit: I don't think so, because when I get into the GUI with this, my hard drives constantly sound like they're going to crash - something like what Bug # 20699 would produce (similar, anyway). It does this in both distros now. Both hard drives are constantly running - like crap, from the sound of them.

Thanks.

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 23 Nov 2010, 19:25
by dedanna1029
I think what I will do is reinstall F13 again and leave it there. Then, reinstall Arch to the latest, and see what happens. I seem to remember this not happening on the 2.6.34 kernel - would like to test that.

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 23 Nov 2010, 20:55
by viking60
It is hard to tell since you do not have the testing possibilities.

Re: Monitor blanks, don't know how to stop it

Posted: 23 Nov 2010, 22:08
by dedanna1029
Well, what I have done so far is downgrade to the nvidia-173xx driver in Arch - have yet to leave it alone long enough to see if the blanking issue comes up. Will do so probably tonight when I go to bed and see how it does in the morning.

It is running a tad quieter now on this.