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I installed Ubuntu less than a month ago and since then have been playing around with things I can do so I may have broken something in the process.

Recently I have restarted my computer (Matebook x Pro) and it is stuck on a loop where the keyboard lights up, the fans spin up for a second, the black screen with the Huawei logo comes on, and then immediately everything turns off. Then after a second, it repeats again.

I have tried powering it off, waiting, then turning it on again, but the loop continues.

I want to know if there is any boot repair shortcut I can use to boot properly again.

I am not dual booting. Ubuntu is the only OS on the computer. The computer is new; I bought it a month ago so I doubt there was a hardware failure. I assume I can fix this by bringing up some sort of command line or using some sort of a shortcut.

I am not sure what caused the issue. I may have accidentally installed some packages for Ubuntu 16 and this could have broken something? I installed different things through the terminal and the instructions said to restart the computer and here I am now. I don't remember what exactly I was trying to install since I have played around with many things, but I didn't think this could affect the boot up instructions since they are read-only?

This is what I get when I follow the link in the comments:

BIOS/UEFI settings

The ctrl+alt+f2 combination brings me to InsydeH20 Setup Utility.

Edit: I think this is because my BIOS is outdated. My version is something.17 but there is the .18 version available. I have downloaded the zip file onto my flash drive but the computer doesn't see it

Zanna
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Jared
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  • I find it weird that it just poweroff (or reboot). Did you tried running from a livecd/usb?, it may be a hardware issue with temperature that is powering off your computer to avoid hardware damage. Another option is to press CTR+ALT+F1 to see the console output and record it. You could see some errors or reasons there. – bistoco Nov 24 '18 at 21:18
  • Sorry I don't know how to directly reply to your comment but I'll do it by replying to my own post. It didn't restart randomly, I did it manually because some guide i was following told me to do so. It did not shut down because of overheating because it is cool to the touch – Jared Nov 24 '18 at 21:21
  • Pressing ctr alt f1 does not bring up any console, it just keeps trying to boot up and failing. I found a guide on some sort of a boot repair program that I have to download on a USB and run it from there, but I do not have a working computer to do that – Jared Nov 24 '18 at 21:23
  • Try https://stackoverflow.com/a/18642325/1810128 – bistoco Nov 24 '18 at 21:32
  • Thank you, I got a setup utility screen up. However, I am not sure what to do now – Jared Nov 24 '18 at 21:35
  • It just shows a bunch of options that are enabled – Jared Nov 24 '18 at 21:36
  • If you record that screen, it should show an error (or several) just before restarting. Write that error or add screenshots here so we can diagnose it. – bistoco Nov 24 '18 at 22:04
  • I don't have enough reputation on the forum to post an image, but there is no restart option or any errors showing when I exit the menu – Jared Nov 24 '18 at 22:10
  • Let us continue this discussion in chat. – bistoco Nov 24 '18 at 23:45
  • did you install nvidia or amd graphics drivers before this started happening ? if so you can revert that install from the boot up rescue mode prompt and go back to using normal ubuntu nouveau graphics drivers ... besides see if it boots up using LiveUSB – Scott Stensland Nov 25 '18 at 19:16
  • @ScottStensland my drivers were automatically installed when i first booted up Ubuntu and since then i could restart the machine without problems so i doubt that it is a graphics driver issue. I am having trouble bringing up the boot up rescue mode because I am not sure how to do it. The ctrl alt f1 combination just shows a bunch of enable/disable options to do with peripherals – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 19:19
  • as suggested above does it run OK when you boot up using LiveUSB ? use same media you used to do initial ubuntu install just pick the try option ... it that is good then your issue is fixable – Scott Stensland Nov 25 '18 at 20:10
  • @ScottStensland the USB stick I used o install Ubuntu is not currently with me as I am away from home and only coming back in three weeks, so I don't want to create a new bootable USB from my work stick. Is there a way of attempting to fix it first? – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 20:12
  • If its helps, it seems that my left fan does a clicking sound as it spins up on booting, but then seems to make normal spinning sounds. I think it is a Huawei thing to spin up fans every time I wake the computer up from sleep because it does that every time, but that clicking sound is bothering me. Should I check that the fan isn't stuck or does that not affect my booting up? – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 20:14
  • Also, the fan has been making a clicking sound ever since I unboxed the device and it has been restarting fine when i told it to, which is why I think that it is a separate issue but still worth mentioning – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 20:16
  • People with Matebooks seem too have the same problem on reddit, however their restart looping is also accompanies by no bootable drives found in BIOS menu, but mine clearly says that my ssd is bootable, so I don't know why it's not booting – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 20:27

3 Answers3

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Alright, so I have solved the issue and I really hope that anyone who has it can benefit from my answer.

All I had to do was to go into BIOS Ctrl+Alt+F2 then disable secure boot that is enabled by default. Then it all booted up and none of my data was lost. Thank you to everyone who tried to help

slava
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Jared
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Before you change or delete any files or settings, be sure that the system has not run out of disk space (0 bytes free) by doing df -h in a terminal. (Do a non-graphical login by pressing CTRL-ALT-F1 at the login screen.) If 0 bytes free turns out to be the problem, free up several tens of megabytes of space or more, and then do CTRL-ALT-F7 to attempt graphical login again.

David Newkirk
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the exhaustive answer is at My computer boots to a black screen, what options do I have to fix it?

however its possible you deleted your desktop packages so you need to reach a command prompt for details see https://www.howtogeek.com/196740/how-to-fix-an-ubuntu-system-when-it-wont-boot/

boot up and repeatedly tap the shift key which should boot you into a purple menu screen like the top most purple screen shown here https://www.howtogeek.com/196520/grub2-101-how-to-access-and-use-your-linux-distributions-boot-loader/ UPDATE if shift key fails to take you to grub menu instead hit ESC key during boot up to reach grub menu details at Grub menu at boot time... "holding shift" not working

if yes then use arrow keys to navigate to menu choice : 

Advanced options for Ubuntu

then hit enter which should take you to the second purple screen shown in same link above ... now navigate down to top most line which says (recovery mode) and hit enter

now you should see the Recovery Menu if so then naviate down to root (Drop to root shell prompt)

your filesystem will be in read-only mode so lets make it writable ... for details see How do I change file system in recovery mode to read-write mode? in your root terminal issue

mount -o rw,remount /

make sure you carefully type exactly above command ... if true now issue this to attempt to install your desktop packages

sudo apt-get install --reinstall ubuntu-desktop

tell us how you get on - good luck and yes your machine is fixable however it will require patience, time and fortitude ... alternative is to just perform a fresh install of Ubuntu (note 18.10 is nicer than 18.04)

Scott Stensland
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  • I am pressing shift after turning it on but I am not taken to the purple menu, the cycle just continues as if nothing is happening. Any suggestions? – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 21:02
  • then try to hit ESC key repeatedly during boot to reach grub menu – Scott Stensland Nov 25 '18 at 21:10
  • Hitting escape doesn't work either, I have tried this multiple times – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 21:11
  • if you can get into your BIOS then have it load up Default Settings to give you a level playing field then I would try above once again ... if no luck burn 18.10 onto a USB stick and do a fresh install ... I keep such a LiveUSB in my travel bag at all times ... as always keep all important files on Dropbox for just this kind of pickle – Scott Stensland Nov 25 '18 at 21:18
  • Loading up the defaults doesn't work... Oh man I was just about to do a full backup when it refused to boot aswell... Guess we learn from our mistakes, thanks for your time – Jared Nov 25 '18 at 21:21
  • no problem ... we have all been there too – Scott Stensland Nov 25 '18 at 21:22