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I was trying to install Ubuntu 16.04-2 on my new machine now and it was pretty much working until I do apt upgrade. After upgrade, the kernel was updated from 4.8 to 4.10 and thereafter the ubuntu refuses to login.

It manages to get into the login session(GUI), but after I type in the password, the whole system freezes and doesn't respond to any key press and I am forced to power off the computer. However, I can boot into 4.8 from grub.

How can I report this kernel issue to ubuntu team? Where can I get the log from?

The exact kernel version is the following:

4.10.0-27-generic

4.8.0-36-generic

Jason Hu
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  • I suggest you boot with the working kernel and then fully update: sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade and then try again. Other possibility: Have you installed proprietary Nvidia drivers not from the official repositories, using a binary downloaded from Nvidia? That creates a problem because the driver need to be reinstalled for any new kernel version. –  Jul 25 '17 at 02:34
  • @MichaelBay man you rock! indeed i just tried to install nvidia driver and solved this issue. – Jason Hu Jul 25 '17 at 02:35
  • Nice. I'll convert it into an answer then. –  Jul 25 '17 at 02:40
  • worth noting is that one can try to freeze kernel update if knowing it might not be necessary without having to worry yet-another driver issue. following post https://askubuntu.com/questions/678630/how-can-i-avoid-kernel-updates shows how to freeze kernel updates. – Jason Hu Jul 25 '17 at 03:00
  • Indeed, but there are good reason to keep the OS fully updated including the currently supported kernel. Freezing the kernel because of the Nvidia driver IMO is not a good reason. The recommendation in the answer's last paragraph is all about that ;-) –  Jul 25 '17 at 03:03
  • @MichaelBay yeah, at least in a controlled pace. i am the type who does update without looking into details so i tend to fall into issues. Also there isn't a guarantee that the ubuntu package is problem free, is there? i saw a couple posts discussing screen blinking caused by nv driver already. – Jason Hu Jul 25 '17 at 03:06
  • The drivers in the official repositories are tested and even patched if needed. The drivers from the semi-official PPA, which provides newer versions than the ones included with a given Ubuntu release, are also usually safe. The problems you mentioned in almost all the cases have to do with wrong versions and other dumb things many users do. I installed hundreds of machines with several different Nvidia cards and never had an issue. –  Jul 25 '17 at 03:10

1 Answers1

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The comments indicate a problem with Nvidia graphics drivers. The driver was installed using a binary downloaded directly from Nvidia and that needs to be reinstalled for any new kernel version. As such. the following procedure is recommended:

  • Boot using the old kernel - 4.8.0-36-generic -, the one that currently works;

  • Fully update the OS->

    sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade
  • Reinstall the Nvidia driver using the same procedure as before.
  • Reboot

In order to avoid this issues please follow the recommended installation method for Nvidia drivers in Ubuntu, as outlined in "NVIDIA drivers provided by the Ubuntu repositories".

Zanna
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