Login screen loops unless you login as Guest

Question

I am running a VMWare Player with a Ubuntu 12.04 LTS Precise Pangloin as Guest on my Windows 7. Sometimes I get the shutdown blue screen error in Windows, this time it happened when I was running the Player. When I restarted everything Ubuntu gave the not so unfamiliar in this forum Login Loop in adminstrator login. I login and there's this black screen where I can only read: "piix4...smbus:0.0.0.07.3 Host Smbus controller not enabled" . When I go to the Prompt in root mode it fails to update and only upgraded, specially some plugins ( I think graphic plugins) which also appear in one an error message after quitting the prompt, but they´are successfully installed. They are not the error message. After that I have been working with the Fail/safe Mode recovery panel.

When I try to update via Root I get errors like this:

W:failed to fetch http://extras.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/precise/release.gpg could not        resolve 'extras/ubuntu.com

There are 8 more like this referring to areas like:

-archive/canonical.com
-ppa.Launchpad.net
-security.Ubuntu.com
-Us.archive.ubuntu.com - release.gpg
                        precise-updates/release.gpg
                        precise_backport/release.gpg

Final Message: some index files failed to download.....they have been ignored or old files are used.

The black screens most of the time pass by too fast for me to pick up any information. But in general I think I have done everything I was able to in the recovery panel including updating network and graphic packages and recovering filesystem packages and the basic stuff ( I am a beginner regarding Linux ) in the root prompt.

Now I am stuck in this screen with graphic options:

- Run in low-graphics mode just for one session
- Reconfigure Graphics
- Troubleshoot the error
- Exit to console login

I am trying to choose to reconfigure graphics but the mouse disappears in the virtual machine screen and sometimes when options change ity´s only the first and last option. ut this happens from the blue without messages. This particular option menu is in the regular GUI style against a black screen in Terminal style. Really strange.

Thanx in advance, all is welcome and appreciated.

When you have multiple users, do the other users work? I have two users, the main user loops, the other works perfectly fine. Unfortunately I cannot access my data via the user but I could login as a main user via ctrl+alt+F1. Message for startx: Server is already active for display 0 Delete the locked file "filename" mentioned, then sudo reboot

Eliah Kagan · Answer 1 · 2012-07-03 00:52:49Z

I am not sure if what I was experiencing is the same but maybe this will work for you.

I have Ubuntu 12.04 Server LTS updated 6-7-2012 and Desktop installed. I am also running this as a VM in vmware player, not sure if that matters or not.

I had done a ctrl+alt+F1 from desktop to get a shell. When I tried to to start the gui again (sudo startx), I got errors, then after a reboot I got the log-in and when I put in my password it would just loop no error for bad PW! But when I switched to the Guest log-in it would boot normally! What a pain, huh!

So what I did was

switch to shell (Ctrl+Alt+F1)
logged in as the user
cd /home/user (I think that cd ~ will get you to the same place)
sudo mv .Xauthority .XauthorityBak
sudo reboot

This worked it booted normal and all is good!

There are specifics of my installation which may not apply to yours but maybe it will work.

Hope this helps, K

P.S. I got this info from http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1890457 Thanks carranty

EDIT: I started to get a System Problem Detected when I would log in from a locked desktop so I sudo chown 777 .Xauthority and that seemed to have cleared up the problem. I am not sure if this causes a security issue.

EDIT: Not sure if this did clear up the problem, things are getting funky!

Matthias · Answer 2 · 2012-06-16 10:56:51Z

startx doesn't work

Seems like you lost write-rights... Check whether the solution described here will work for you. This happened to me.

I found a solution for me:

I changed my password, reinstalled xserver-xorg by typing: sudo apt-get install --reinstall xorg

After a reboot it worked for me. Notice: I removed the .XAuthority files in /home/username by: sudo rm /home/username/.XAuthority*

to get a shell try Strg-Alt-F1 when you turn on your computer. I actually got my write-rights back by usingclear in recovery mode.

JohnM · Answer 3 · 2012-07-02 15:46:15Z

Logging in as root at the command shell level and renaming the user's /home/user/.Xauthority and then rebooting seemed to cure the issue. Not sure why it occurred in first place though

Kurt Louis A. Montemor · Answer 4 · 2013-01-01 23:45:36Z

These suggested instructions apply to my case only and should be considered as a non-professional comment and therefore to be tried AT YOUR OWN RISK.

I am using ACER Aspire 4755g with Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS.

I have also encountered this problem, and in my case, I had a problem with lightdm. As a temporary measure, when you get to the login screen, press the keyboard sequence Ctrl+Alt+F1. This will get you to a terminal-like screen. It will show you something like this:

[COMPUTER NAME] login:

for example,

Aspire-4755g login:

type in your username and press Enter. This will result into something like this,

Aspire-4755g login: shiela

Password:

Enter your password, and, if correct, would show something like this:

Aspire-4755g login: shiela

Password:

Last login: Tue Jan 1 06:45:02 JPT 2013 on tty1

Welcome to Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS (GNU/Linux 3.2.0-35-generic-pae i686)

* Documentation: https://help.ubuntu.com/

2 packages can be updated.

0 update are security updates.

shiela@Aspire-4755g:~s

Then, press the keyboard sequence Ctrl+Alt+F7 to get you back to the login screen. This procedure logs you into the system using the terminal-like window. You can now try to login to your account using the login screen. In my experience, I was able to reach the desktop. It seems that there is something wrong with the lightdm configuration that it was not able to log you in to the system.

Should you not make it to the desktop (as it was called in Windows), you may try adding an additional command by pressing the Ctrl+Alt+F1:

shiela@Aspire-4755g:~s ecryptfs-mount-private

press Enter, and it will ask you your password. Enter your password, then press the keyboard sequence Ctrl+Alt+F7 to get you back to the login screen (or to where you last left).

This command loads your Home folder, together with its contents, should you have chosen to encrypt the home folder upon installation of Ubuntu.

Once successful, you may try to review your lightdm configuration located on /etc/lightdm/lightdm.conf.

Aditya · Answer 5 · 2013-02-28 15:08:45Z

up vote 0 down vote

I had same issue, I uninstalled 12.04 version and installed 12.10 Version and the problem is gone.

edited Feb 28 at 15:08

Aditya
2,867 5 16 43

answered Feb 28 at 14:39

NewUbuntuUser
1

Dig · Answer 6 · 2013-03-10 22:53:14Z

Yes I caused a Login Loop on my main Ubuntu 12.10 user and the fix was simple.

Background: Ubuntu 12.10 is installed in VirtualBox running on Windows 7 and uses Unity.

Cause: From the Desktop I Ctrl+Alt+T into terminal mode and then tried to run 'startx' (I was trying to help a friend over the phone late at night...but this was a stupid thing to do). A new blank Unity desktop appeared and everything hung...

Problem: Forcing VirtualBox to close and then rebooting Ubuntu I got to the login screen but kept looping back to this same screen everytime after entering the password. No errors were displayed. I could login as Guest but I had no Sudo rights and thus no control... However once logged in as Guest I Ctrl+Alt+F3 and got to a terminal login. I entered my main user name and password and logged in with command mode. Logout took me back to CLI login and Ctrl+Alt+F7 took me back to Guest desktop. So my account still worked. I then added a test user and gave them sudo rights. From the Unity login I could login and logout Test user with no problem. So Unity still worked.

Fix: So my main account was still accessable via CLI and Unity was working for all other accounts. This indicated a configuation problem on my main account. I followed the advice of Ubuntu 12.10 gets stuck in a Login Loop and did chown username:username .Xauthority. This fixed my problem.

12 revs · Answer 7 · 2013-08-09 08:33:59Z

Remove and purge the current version, then install the updates:

sudo apt-get --purge remove fglrx*
sudo apt-get install fglrx-updates fglrx-amdcccle-updates
Reboot

Making sure fglrx is fully removed is an important step. It didn't work for me the first time I tried to install the updates and in the end I removed each fglrx package individually, purged each one individually, removed no longer dependencies sudo apt-get autoremove, rebooted, then installed the updates sudo apt-get install fglrx-updates fglrx-amdcccle-updates, rebooted, and (as of writing) I got catalyst version 11.11 (which still doesn't work with gnome3).

12.10

21 Oct 2012 - fglrx is not working in 12.10, see bug report.
4 Jan 2013 - no fix yet, bug reports are on fire,
27 July 2013 - Still no fix sigh

12.10 Troubleshooting

If you have problems with graphics after installing or updating to 12.10, you will need to remove fglrxand use open source drivers:

    $ sudo apt-get remove fglrx*

If you get stuck on a warning about "low graphics":

Open the terminal Ctrl+Alt+F1
Remove fglrx: sudo apt-get remove fglrx*
Reboot: sudo reboot

For more see the SO question Can't install ATI proprietary drivers in 12.10.

13.04

27 July 2013 - fglrx does not work. sigh

Notes

What packages are currently installed? dpkg -l fglrx*

$ dpkg -l fglrx*
un  fglrx          <none>         (no description available)
un  fglrx-amdcccle <none>         (no description available)
ii  fglrx-amdcccle 2:8.911-0ubunt Catalyst Control Center for the AMD graphics
un  fglrx-control  <none>         (no description available)
un  fglrx-control- <none>         (no description available)
un  fglrx-driver   <none>         (no description available)
un  fglrx-kernel-s <none>         (no description available)
un  fglrx-modalias <none>         (no description available)
ii  fglrx-updates  2:8.911-0ubunt Video driver for the AMD graphics accelerato

What do the various dpkg flags like 'ii' 'rc' mean?

Confirm the drivers are working fglrxinfo

$ fglrxinfo 
display: :0  screen: 0
OpenGL vendor string: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc.
OpenGL renderer string: AMD Radeon HD 6300M Series
OpenGL version string: 4.2.11733 Compatibility Profile Context

For Catalyst <=11.11 with gnome <=3.2 Expect screen flickering and system hangs.
AMD Catalyst Proprietary Display Driver - Linux x86 & Linux x86_64
Get device information: lspci or verbose lspci -vv

Octavian Damiean · Answer 8 · 2011-11-16 17:12:23Z

All Jockey does is install fglrx and fglrx-amdcccle in the case of normal drivers, and fglrx-updates and fglrx-amdcccle-updates when you select the post-release updates option, though it fails somehow for I don't know what reason.

You can simply install/activate ATI/AMD proprietary FGLRX graphics driver (post-release update) option by typing the following line into the terminal:

sudo apt-get install fglrx-updates fglrx-amdcccle-updates

or search for these packages within the Ubuntu Software Center and install them from there.

Community · Answer 9 · 2012-06-06 13:07:51Z

up vote 3 down vote

An excellent resource for installing the latest driver from ATI and easy to follow. Installing Catalyst latest driver from ATI in Ubuntu 11.10

Bob Bowles (ed.): I found the ATI download site very user-friendly, with good self-documentation on the download/build/deploy process. ATI Download site.

edited Jun 6 '12 at 13:07

Community ♦
1

answered Jan 7 '12 at 22:12

duffydack
2,740 4 10

Luis Alvarado · Answer 10 · 2013-04-14 21:33:08Z

Will try to answer the ones I can:

Assuming the answer by Jokerdino was already checked: http://askubuntu.com/a/141607/7035

Nvidia / Ati issues

This happens when a driver has a problem installing correctly (Most cases). For this do the following:

Boot PC leaving SHIFT pressed to make the GRUB Menu show.
Select Recovery Mode which will continue booting correctly until the Recovery Menu appeares.
Select from the recovery menu failsafeX.
In some cases failsafeX will load fine (You lucky dog), for others (Me) it will give an error along the lines of "The system is running in low-graphics mode" and will stay there forever. When this happens, press CTRL+ALT+F1 to go to the terminal. Type in your Username and Password.
Reinstall the drivers depending on your case:

NVIDIA

sudo apt-get install nvidia-current - More stable/tested version sudo apt-get install nvidia-current-updates - More up-to-date version

For other cases see this answer for details and follow the links there to help you along the way.

ATI

The simple way is to sudo apt-get install fglrx. If this does not work keep reading.

Go to http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/Pages/index.aspx, download the one you need, put it in some folder (rename it to "ati.run" to simplify name). Go to the folder where you downloaded the file and type chmod +x ati.run to give it Executable Permission. Now just simply ./sh ati.run and follow the onscreen steps.

After rebooting all problems should be solved. If you test 'Additional Drivers' with a problem like this it will finish downloading the package but then it will give an error. It also gives the same error if you use 'Software Center' and 'Synaptic'. The only way was to go to the failsafeX option and do the workaround about changing to the tty1 terminal and doing it via command line.

I also need to add that I do not recommend downloading the Drivers from the Nvidia site since they:
- Might create additional problems with Ubuntu
- Are not updated automatically
- Are not tested thoroughly in Ubuntu
Always use the nvidia-current package or the nvidia-current-updates one. This are tested and approved already for the Ubuntu version you are using and will give less errors and incompatibility bugs.

Intel

For Intel it is recommended to do the following after doing all the steps mentioned above but before installing anything (When you are in the Terminal). You can choose from the Xorg-Edgers which is an Unstable PPA or the X-Swat which is more stable:

Warning: This PPA is very unstable for some things. So do it with that in mind.
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:xorg-edgers/ppa -y

or X-Swat:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-x-swat/x-updates -y

After that sudo apt-get update and you should receive several updates. X-Swat currently does not have Intel drivers in the latest versions of Ubuntu.

UPDATE: Added this extensive answer to solve many of the problems that might end with the error mentioned here: Which driver should I install when using an Nvidia, Ati or Intel video card

Like always please test and give feedback so I can enhance my answer since others will be also reading it. The better it is, the more people it will help.

After trying all the other solutions, that's the one that worked for me. Thanks!
This worked! Running in VirtualBox on Mac. Did: sudo apt-get install fglrx; sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-x-swat/x-updates -y; sudo apt-get update; Also reinstalled ubuntu-desktop before this, not sure if that had an effect
This worked great for my virtualbox machine on my windows laptop. However I didn't have to enter Recovery Mode. I was able to just boot, hit CTRL - ALT - F1 when I see the screen, then run the command for nvidia and sudo reboot. Thanks for the tip!

Jonah · Answer 11 · 2012-07-07 02:52:45Z

up vote 24 down vote

I solved this problem by reinstalling ubuntu-desktop.

When the message that "your system is running in low-graphics mode" appears, press Ctrl+Alt+F1, then login with your credentials.

And then, run the following commands:

sudo apt-get install --reinstall ubuntu-desktop
sudo reboot

edited Jul 7 '12 at 2:52

Jonah
237 1 12

answered Apr 26 '12 at 18:20

user41938
249 2 2

1

when i give this command!i got memory is full no more space available! – Thiyagu Apr 4 at 14:33

1

This may help when the problem is to do with the desktop, but usually for me this type of problem comes from a combination of the graphics drivers and a kernel upgrade. In this case the other answers here are more appropriate, with particular reference to @Luis. – Bobble Jun 12 at 6:06

3 revs · Answer 12 · 2012-07-26 07:47:46Z

The greeter is invalid

This is a bug in LightDM and a bug report has already been filed.

The reason why you end up with this failsafe X is because the pantheon-greeter you installed along with the elementary desktop is now not available and LightDM is not able to identify an alternative greeter.

As a workaround, you can edit the LightDM conf file and correct the error.

Run the following command in a terminal:

sudo nano /etc/lightdm/lightdm.conf

and change the line

greeter-session=pantheon-greeter

to

greeter-session=unity-greeter

and save it.

After changing the file, reboot and you will now be greeted with Unity greeter.

That workaround doesn't works for me. I'm speaking around three hundreds clients that doesn't works. But the bug is not continous, it's appears randomly.

Bryce · Answer 13 · 2011-10-20 00:38:14Z

When this happens there is often an error message indicating why it failed to start X.

Look in your /var/log/Xorg.0.log.old or /var/log/Xorg.0.log. The error (if there is one) will be at the tail end of the file. Another good place to look is the log files in /var/log/gdm/* (or /var/log/lightdm/* in oneiric).

Did you happen to manually install fglrx prior to noticing the problem? If it was not uninstalled properly it can cause weird random issues. Directions for purging fglrx are available at here.

Is your video card an AGP model? If so, a common issue with ati agp cards is having an incorrect AGPMode. Sometimes you can adjust this setting in your BIOS (which perhaps windows screwed with?) There is also a setting in /etc/X11/xorg.conf for adjusting it in X.

Aditya · Answer 14 · 2013-01-15 10:10:25Z

up vote 14 down vote

You have too many files on your computer, and have exhausted disk space

Try moving personal files off the computer onto a USB drive.

To check whether this is the issue:

Press Ctrl + Alt + F1
Type df -h
If you see that there is no space available on the root (/) then you need to free some space.

To free space you can:

sudo apt-get autoclean
Look for large directories with sudo du -sc /*/* |sort -g and delete unwanted content,
Clean your home directory using a combination of
```
cd ~   
du -sc * |sort -g
rm myLargeFile
```

When this is done, restart: shutdown -r now

edited Jan 15 at 10:10

Aditya
2,867 5 16 43

answered May 18 '12 at 2:42

Azul Mascara
177 1 7

It is a valid reason. If you exhaust disk space. Ubuntu will run in low graphics mode. I tested this in virtual machine. – Web-E Nov 23 '12 at 10:46

thanks Azul, it worked for me – RameshVel Apr 1 at 6:26

1

Thanks! This did the job for me. Initially I did not think of checking the remaining space on the SSD. – Andre May 5 at 0:31

Thanks that was my problem. – EFalco Jun 12 at 8:36

Happens also in 13.04. This is definitely a usability bug since there is no message anywhere that can give a clue about the disk space issue. – Avio Jul 18 at 6:32

Community · Answer 15 · 2012-09-12 13:46:43Z

Only for ATI graphics cards

When the message that "your system is running in low-graphics mode" appears:
Press Ctrl+Alt+F1 to see the terminal one. Then login with your credentials, and then run the following commands:

sudo apt-get install fglrx    
sudo reboot

The same can be done from the recovery mode (after enabling networking), if your Ubuntu completly refuses to enter anything but recovery mode.

Eliah Kagan · Answer 16 · 2013-09-05 21:57:20Z

Let's assume, arrogantly, that it is a problem with your X display manager.

Enter the terminal (you can use a virtual console if you cannot use a graphical terminal window), the one you said that you have access to, and enter the following:

sudo apt-get install gdm

. . . and choose gdm.

Then type:

sudo service gdm restart

(Or ... start instead of restart.)

According to https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/1070150 this is a way to workaround a bug with lightdm.

Before typing that, you may need to first stop the other display manager that is running. This is usually LightDM:

sudo service lightdm stop

If you have trouble getting GDM to start, and this is an installed system rather than a live environment, then you can just reboot and it will start automatically because you configured it as the default display manager. (You should be able to shut down and restart normally. Otherwise, one way to reboot if the GUI is not working properly is to press Ctrl+Alt+Delete while on a virtual console.)

NikTh · Answer 17 · 2012-10-20 09:34:18Z

If you have a problem with the restricted (closed source) driver , then try to remove it.

Open a terminal and give this command

gksudo software-properties-gtk

Goto Additional drivers and remove the dirver. You have to mark the Using X.Org X server -- Nouveau.

Then Reboot.

Ubuntu 12.04 双显卡笔记本安装驱动【汇总】

If you have not access at all to the Desktop Environment then use the Recovery Mode.

To remove the Nvidia current driver in Ubuntu 12.10

Ubuntu 12.04 双显卡笔记本安装驱动【汇总】

Select the Network and your root partition will mounted as Read-Write.

Ubuntu 12.04 双显卡笔记本安装驱动【汇总】

Select the Root Ubuntu 12.04 双显卡笔记本安装驱动【汇总】

And then give these commands with order

apt-get remove --purge nvidia-current 
rm /etc/X11/xorg.conf 
apt-get install ubuntu-desktop
reboot

The last command will reboot your system and hopefully you will login normally in next reboot with the Open Source nouveau driver.

If you have problem with the open source driver (nouveau) , in the same manner (from recovery mode) try to install the restricted (Nvidia) driver with these commands

When you reach the Root selection and after select root

To install nvidia-current driver.

 apt-get install linux-source 
 apt-get install linux-headers-$(uname -r)
 apt-get install nvidia-current 
 nvidia-xconfig 
 reboot

According to this answer : Ubuntu 12.10 Desktop does not show when I installed nvidia drivers! may need to install or reinstall the linux-headers to get the restricted Nvidia drivers work properly.

This is not a problem with the restricted or closed driver. It came just after i had a fresh install of 12.10 on my laptop.
Then try to do the opposite . Follow the guide from recovery mode and install the restricted driver , when you reach the root environment give these commands apt-get install nvidia-current and nvidia-xconfig and reboot I edited my answer.
You are a legend, man. This solved my problems. It astounds me that after TWELVE years they still haven't included a solid default multi-monitor installation for one of the TWO most common graphics card types in the world.

Community · Answer 18 · 2012-11-19 16:21:29Z

Follow these commands:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get -d install --reinstall gdm
sudo apt-get remove --purge gdm

(I ran this command above, but was told by the system to use # sudo apt-get autoremove instead, after the #sudo apt-get remove --purge gdm command.)

sudo apt-get install gdm

select GDM when prompted

sudo reboot

That fixed it for me :)

It took very long to start after the reboot, 10+ mins. But I got in eventually.

Mc1brew · Answer 19 · 2012-05-16 12:58:55Z

I have recently received a similar issue with myPangolin Performance laptop. The folks at System 76 told me to do the following:

Click Okay and then select the option to get a terminal. (alternatively you can press ctr+alt+f1 to bring up another tty)

sudo chown lightdm:lightdm -R /var/lib/lightdm
sudo chown avahi-autoipd:avahi-autoipd -R /var/lib/avahi-autoipd
sudo chown colord:colord -R /var/lib/colord

reboot

These commands did the trick for me.

Tron · Answer 20 · 2012-11-22 03:17:28Z

This problem destroyed my morning. It turns out that if your root filesystem runs out of space then Ubuntu will boot into low graphics mode and it's hard to figure out why since the xorg log shows nothing wrong. To find out from the command line if you're low on space type

df -h

Sample output from my machine:

Filesystem      Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda6        18G   10G  6.6G  61% /
udev            3.9G  4.0K  3.9G   1% /dev
tmpfs           3.9G  108K  3.9G   1% /tmp
tmpfs           1.6G  1.2M  1.6G   1% /run
none            5.0M     0  5.0M   0% /run/lock
none            3.9G  1.3M  3.9G   1% /run/shm
none            100M   16K  100M   1% /run/user
/dev/sda4       317G   33G  285G  11% /media/data
/dev/sda1       197M   16M  182M   8% /boot/efi

If your / mount has a high Use% (90%+) then this could be your problem. In my case,~/.xsession.errors had grown to fill most of my partition and caused me to fall into low-graphics mode. Found my answer for that in this Ubuntuforums thread:

rm ~/.xsession-errors
mkdir ~/.xsession-errors

Mateo · Answer 21 · 2012-05-17 14:09:52Z

Well, I had the same problem and solved it.

Start ubuntu with recovery mode from grub then choose filesystem check followed by enable networking.
Choose root option to get to terminal. Now uninstall the old drivers

sh /usr/share/ati/fglrx-uninstall
Then reinstall the drivers following the methods for precise from this websitehttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/BinaryDriverHowto/ATI.
After that everything works out just fine, I suggest you do

apt-get update && apt-get upgrade && apt-get autoremove

-everytime you complete a step. Good luck.

torbenl · Answer 22 · 2012-05-21 19:11:07Z

I had the same problem with an Acer Aspire 3810tg. I solved it by doing the following:

Do a normal boot
Press Ctrl-Alt-F1 on the "Your system is running in low-graphics mode" screen
Download the correct driver from http://support.amd.com/us/gpudownload/Pages/index.aspx, in my case (ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4330): wget http://www2.ati.com/drivers/linux/amd-driver-installer-12-4-x86.x86_64.run which should also cover your case (Mobility Radeon HD 4xxx Series)
chmod 755 amd-driver-installer-12-4-x86.x86_64.run to make the file executable
sudo ./amd-driver-installer-12-4-x86.x86_64.run and follow the standard steps
You might need to run: sudo aticonfig --initial, but that was not necessary for me.

In my case the driver installation finished with an error, but it still worked. I hope this helps.

sccott · Answer 23 · 2013-05-01 22:50:30Z

It is not related to nvidia drivers. Because by default Ubuntu uses non-nvidia drivers even though you might have nvidia GPUs. I have an nvidia GPU too.

My Ubuntu used to boot fine until something happened which caused the same issue. After reading posts, reading logs and little bit trial and error, turns out the problem is related to lightdm GUI server.

I dont know solution to the problem but there is a quick work around in 3 steps. This will save you from reinstalling Ubuntu.

Step1: When the error shows up, hit Ctrl+Alt+F1. This will open the commandline interface. Login as root.

Step2: Remove a particular X11 config file. This file is not really required.

rm /etc/X11/xorg.conf.failsafe

Somehow the existence of the above X11 configuration file causes the OS to throw that error.

Step3: Restart lightdm GUI server.

service lightdm restart

This will restart the lightdm GUI server and voila your desktop is back!

Extender · Answer 24 · 2010-11-01 04:26:47Z

up vote 1 down vote

Try delete your /etc/X11/xorg.conf and restart.

Before restart, run

sudo apt-get install xserver-xorg-video-ati xserver-xorg-video-radeon

answered Nov 1 '10 at 4:26

Extender
1,360 11 19

fossfreedom · Answer 25 · 2011-10-08 20:27:03Z

I had a similar problem.

When I was booting my PC, i was getting the following message: “Ubuntu is running in low-graphics mode”

When I used startx on the command prompt however, everything was fine and i could start the xserver.

Now I found out that for some strange reason GDM has been uninstalled (it took me hours to realize that), i did fix the problem by reinstalling gdm with:

apt-get install gdm

now everything's running. Hope this helps you.

devav2 · Answer 26 · 2012-10-08 19:22:19Z

up vote 1 down vote

Install gdm.

During the installation of gdm you will be asked to select either gdm or lightdm as the default login display manager. Select gdm.

By the way, the fact that you have this problem on 2 different computers is a sign that there may be an irregular voltage to your computer power supply. To test for this possibility take one computer to a different address and try booting it there.

edited Oct 8 '12 at 19:22

devav2
7,492 4 17 46

answered Oct 6 '12 at 11:07

karel
2,881 4 8 17

Seth · Answer 27 · 2013-02-13 00:26:42Z

Wich ubuntu version are you running? Did you installed graphics drivers before the problem or is it a post clean-os-install issue? Giving some more info would be helpful for us to help you.

If you messed with the graphic drivers before the problem came up, get to the login screen, press Ctrl+Alt+F1, login, then:

sudo apt-get purge nvidia-*
sudo apt-get autoremove
sudo apt-get linux-source linux-headers-generic
sudo apt-get install nvidia-current
sudo nvidia-xconfig
sudo shutdown -r now

Of course, if you have an ATI videocard you have to change the nvidia-* and nvidia-current for your ATI drivers package.

What are you expecting to do with sudo apt-get linux-source linux-headers-generic, apt-get will return error.

LinuxCanuck · Answer 28 · 2010-11-08 18:30:01Z

up vote 0 down vote

Try to boot from grub using a different parameter or even booting an older kernel from the list.

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BootOptions

See the section on kernel options. Something like: xforcevesa

Good luck! :)

answered Nov 8 '10 at 18:30

LinuxCanuck
352 1 2

John · Answer 29 · 2011-02-01 03:35:51Z

Follow these commands:

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get -d install --reinstall gdm
sudo apt-get remove --purge gdm
sudo apt-get install gdm
sudo apt-get remove --purge xserver-xgl compiz compiz-plugins compiz-core compiz-manager csm cgwd cgwd-themes
sudo apt-get install --reinstall compiz compiz-core compiz-fusion-plugins-extra compiz-fusion-plugins-main compiz-gnome compiz-plugins libcompizconfig0
sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

choose the driver 'ati' and when you get to monitor resolution choose the resolution you want to run and any resolution ABOVE that resolution should be removed. Once that is done issue the following:*

sudo reboot

You will most likely get errors on specific packages. Repeat the command removing the problem package until it works.

There will be a time where you will be without the desktop, so have another internet connected device nearby to reference this from or to Google with in case of emergency.

This worked for me, hope this helps.

*If you are never prompted, just skip this.

Kris Harper · Answer 30 · 2011-09-02 16:01:34Z

I had a special case of this problem, where I somehow caused the removal of some packages. I only noticed the actual problem after some time spent looking at the problem.

So:

Log into the text mode console
Enter the command: sudo apt-get install ubuntu-desktop

This will ensure all the needed packages are installed. Without some of those, symptoms like those described here may occur.

N.N. · Answer 31 · 2011-09-12 16:40:12Z

up vote 0 down vote

You said that you were stuck in low graphics mode and now you say that you can only get a command prompt. What happens when you type: startx

If you are stuck in a command prompt all is not lost. You can still reconfigure xserver with: sudo dpkg --reconfigure --phigh xserver-xorg

edited Sep 12 '11 at 16:40

N.N.
3,462 6 24 65

answered Nov 2 '10 at 0:22

LinuxCanuck
352 1 2

1

dpkg-reconfigure xorg no longer does anything useful, since X is generally much better at detecting your hardware than our crufty old maintainer scripts were. – RAOF Nov 2 '10 at 5:50

not allays true @RAOF, I have some old hardware that can not be properly detected unless I reinstall xorg completely. – Mateo Nov 30 '12 at 22:15

Jeremy · Answer 32 · 2012-05-06 20:35:48Z

up vote 0 down vote

I had the issue when I upgraded from 11.10 on my Acer Aspire One AO-722. I also had the propriety ATi/AMD driver installed from 11.10, which carried over to the 12.04 installation. I followed this guide to remove the proprietary drivers and use the Open Source drivers.http://wiki.cchtml.com/index.php/Ubuntu_Oneiric_Installation_Guide#Removing_Catalyst.2FfglrxEverything seems to be working now.

answered May 6 '12 at 20:35

Jeremy
1

1

Welcome to Ask Ubuntu! Whilst this may theoretically answer the question, it would be preferable to include the essential parts of the answer here, and provide the link for reference. – fossfreedom♦ May 7 '12 at 8:58

Martin · Answer 33 · 2012-10-20 08:53:21Z

up vote 0 down vote

You need to install the kernel headers manually then reinstall nvidia for some reason then the nvidia drivers will work

answered Oct 20 '12 at 8:53

Martin
1

	The modules for the driver have to be build for the individual kernel to use and this is why the kernel headers have to be installed. Usually they are pulled in via dependencies when installing the drivers. – LiveWireBT Oct 23 '12 at 4:10
	It didn't work for me. I installed the headers and then the drivers as mentioned :( – Vivek Anand Oct 24 '12 at 14:36

Mateo · Answer 34 · 2012-11-30 22:13:40Z

up vote 0 down vote

Your Memory may be bad.

If you experience Low graphics mode intermittently like I was.

Run a memory check to check for memory errors.
Buy New memory(Make sure it is the right type for your computer)
Run the memory test again, to make sure all is good.

The Low Graphics Mode error should now be gone.

edited Nov 30 '12 at 22:13

Mateo
3,331 4 19 40

answered Oct 8 '11 at 17:43

Bruce
1

Krige · Answer 35 · 2013-03-28 11:14:46Z

up vote 0 down vote

Press CTRL+ALT+F1 to open a terminal
log in
look at the end of your /var/log/Xorg.0.log
if the message error is Cannot run in framebuffer mode. Please specify busIDs. then run the following commands:
```
sudo apt-get install --reinstall lightdm
sudo reboot
```

answered Mar 28 at 11:14

community wiki

Krige

David · Answer 36 · 2013-03-31 13:57:57Z

up vote 0 down vote

I'm running Ubuntu 12.04 on a Toshiba Portege R100. I got this error after the first bootup after install. After downloading and updating the graphics driver (Trident Cyberblade), what worked for me was creating a driver-specific .conf file as described in this Arch-Linux wiki:https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Trident.

answered Mar 31 at 13:57

community wiki

David

Wanted to add that, clearly, this is an Arch Linux link, not an Ubuntu link, but the solution worked for me. Now, however, I'm digging into it further, in terms of turning different options on and off, and I realize it works very differently from the way described in the comments. So keep this in mind if you try this. – David Apr 29 at 1:47

3 revs · Answer 37 · 2013-04-02 21:08:14Z

Phenomenon: I first saw Booting without full network configuration message that never ended. After Action-1 below, I faced The system is running in low-graphics mode issue.

Action-1: Force to shutdown the machine (by keeping power button pressed as normal). Choose recovery boot.

Effective solution: Remove & install xserver-xorg, inspired by this thread.

Edit) after creating xorg.conf and had it read in xserver, I faced the same issue again. This time, in addition to re-install xserver-xorg, I had to create /etc/X11/xorg.conf file (I did so by copying the backup file I already made).

1kb · Answer 38 · 2013-06-02 12:05:01Z

up vote 0 down vote

I fixed this problem by creating a new xorg.conf file (copying the text from xorg.conf.failsafe).

Details: http://askubuntu.com/a/296217/55223

answered Jun 2 at 12:05

community wiki

1kb

LinuxCanuck · Answer 39 · 2010-11-01 12:15:10Z

Go to System, Administration and click on Hardware drivers (in Maverick it is called Additional Drivers). It will search for and allow you to install the proper graphics driver which should allow you to run in higher res.

In Linux there are two ways to do most things, by the GUI or by the terminal. This is easier for most people used to a graphical user interface. The second GUI way to do it would be to go to Software Center or Synaptic and install the packages in the previous post. Search for them in the search bar. I don't think that Ubuntu has used xorg.conf for awhile, so it would not help to look for it.

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