Installation problem

Mon Jul 3 23:00:11 UTC 2017

Sorry this is a bit long, but there's quite a lot of information to 
give. [text is also attached as a pdf]

Installation problem

I recently bought an Acer Aspire S 13 which came with Windows 10. I have 
put up with earlier versions of Windows for many years, but Windows 10 
was the last straw. After seeing what Windows 10 was like, I decided 
that I had to remove it from the computer altogether, which basically 
meant that I had to switch to Linux. I had not used Linux before, but 
got some help from a friend who had.

We worked through the installation process, with several hiccups, and 
eventually had /Linux Mint 18.1 Serena/ up and running from the hard 
drive. A restart then failed, with "No bootable device". We got around 
this problem with help from the web, by reinstalling Linux with 
diffferent settings, but sorry I can't remember details. We managed to 
close and restart the m/c once successfully, but then it wouldn't start. 
It gave a stream of messages ending with: "The X server is now disabled. 
Restart MDM when it is configured correctly.".

But then, after a few other actions, I found I could get the m/c to 
restart and run OK. But it isn't OK really .....

..... can anyone help me to get the m/c to power up and run normally?

The full(ish) history is as follows:

  *

    Downloaded Linux Mint 18.1 Cinnamon 64-bit from (I think)
    https://www.linuxmint.com/download.php

  *

    Wrote a USB memory stick (20GB reqd) as instructed in
    http://www.avoiderrors.net/uninstall-windows-and-install-linux-mint/
    except that I didn't do the "change the boot sequence in the BIOS"
    because I was on a different computer at the time (and then forgot).

  *

    Booted the Acer from the memory stick.

  *

    Ran "Install Linux Mint" to get Linux onto the hard drive. Used
    options to remove Windows 10 completely - no going back. It took
    several attempts at this, trying different settings, before it worked.

  *

    Restarted from hard drive successfully (ie, memory stick removed
    before turning on).

  *

    Shut down the m/c, powered on next morning, and got: "Failed to
    start the X server (your graphical interface). It is likely that it
    is not set up correctly. Would you like to view the X server output
    to diagnose the problem?" - answered "Yes".

  *

    The resulting output stream contained (selected lines only):

- - -

(WW) The directory "usr/share/fonts/x11/cyrillic" does not exist. Entry 
deleted from font path.

(WW) -- same message for ../100dpi

(WW) -- same message for ../75dpi

(WW) -- same message for ../100dpi [again]

(WW) -- same message for ../75dpi [again]
- - -

(++) using VT number 7
- - -

(EE) VESA (0): V_BIOS address 0x0 out of range
- - -
(EE) Screen(s) found, but none have a usable configuration
(EE) Fatal server error:
(EE) no screens found (EE)
(EE) Please consult the X.org foundation support at http://wiki.x.org 
for help
(EE) Please also check the log file at "var/log/Xorg.0.log"
(EE)
(EE) Server terminated with error (1). Closing log file.

[Exit]

  *

    I then was given the message: "The X server is now disabled. Restart
    MDM when it is configured correctly.".

I couldn't check the log file, because I couldn't access anything on the 
m/c.

One of the websites I have visited trying to find the causes of the 
various problems indicated that the Acer itself was a cause of problems. 
Sorry I can't remember which one.

On https://www.x.org/wiki/ConfigurationHelp/ it advised "As root just 
run: |X -configure|".

After turning the m/c off and on again, there was a screen saying:

Linux Mint 18.1 Serena mike-Aspire-S5-371T login:

I gave my userid ("mike" - should I have used "root"?) and password, and 
then keyed in:
             X -configure

The multi-line reply went thus:

X.org X Server 1.18.4
Release Date: 2016-07-19
X Protocol Version 11. Revision 0
Build Operating System: Linux 4.4.0-45-generic x86_64 ubuntu
Current Operating System: Linux mike-Aspire-S5-371T 4.4.0-53-generic 
#74-ubuntu SMP Fri Dec 2 15:59:10 UTC 2016 x86_64
Kernel command line: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-4.4.0-53-generic 
root=UUID=5cba3833-f404-4f25-b775-2f750ad191b6 ro recovery nomodeset
Build Date: 02 November 2016 10:06:10pm
xorg-server 2:1.18.4-0ubuntuu0.2 (For technial support please see 
http://www.ubuntu.com/support)
Current version of pixman: 0.33.6
Before reporting problems, check http://wiki.x.org
to make sure that you have the latest version.
Markers: (--) probed, (**) from config file, (==) default setting,
(++) from command line, (!!) notice, (II) Informational,
(WW) warning, (EE) error, (NI) not implemented, (??) unknown.
(==) Log file: "/home/mike/.local/share/xorg/Xorg.0.log", Time: Mon Jul 
3 12:57:26 2017
List of video drivers:
amdgpu
ati
intel
nouveau
qx1
vboxvideo
vmware
modesetting
fbdev
vesa
radeon
xf86enableIOPorts: failed to set IOPL for I/O (Operation not permitted)
(++) using config file: "home/mike/xorg.conf.new"
(==) Using system config directory "usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d"
modprobe: ERROR: could not insert '1915': Operation not permitted
intel: waited 2020 ms for 1915.ko driver to load
modprobe: ERROR: could not insert '1915': Operation not permitted
Number of created screens does not match number of detected devices.
Configuration failed.
(EE) Server terminated with error (2). Closing log file.

I held down the power button for some seconds in order to shut down.

Then, in spite of the above error messages, I tried restarting. This 
time I held down F2 while powering on, and the m/c started normally 
after presenting a 'boot' dialogue. Programs such as Firefox and 
Thunderbird worked OK with web connection etc. All good. I closed down 
normally.

I then pressed Power key to restart. Nothing (black screen, keyboard 
turned itself off after a few seconds). Tried shift-Power. Still black 
screen, but keyboard stayed lit up. I had to hold Power down to get it 
to turn off.

F2-Power still worked, but there's a 'boot' dialogue to press Enter on, 
and it's a pretty unsatisfactory way of powering up.

PS. After writing all of the above, I tried a normal startup again - 
just the Power button - and it worked! I don't know whether I'm now in 
the clear, or whether the problem will recur. Any help is welcome.

PPS. I definitely downloaded /Cinnamon/, but the system says it's /Serena/.

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