Arch Linux

VirtualHogger

Member

Registered: 2010-08-11

Posts: 5

[SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

Hello,
I am new to Linux and have been installing Arch Linux closely following the beginner's guide.  However, when I got to Step 3: Update system, I turned the system off for the evening and when I restarted this morning, my screen resolution has changed and I cannot see the first few characters of the command line and the bottom line is not visible at all.  At that point I have to switch to another console (Alt F2) so I can see what I'm typing.  I changed the vga=773 to 769 and 771 in /boot/grub/menu.lst, but it doesn't fix the problem.
How can I get the screen resolution lowered so I can see my command line?  This is my HTPC, so I don't want to mess with the screen positioning and get that out of whack for the other functions it provides.
Thanks,
Ted

Last edited by VirtualHogger (2010-08-13 00:46:53)

karol

Archivist

Registered: 2009-05-06

Posts: 25,440

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

I'd go with the screen positioning. Push the 'Auto' button on your monitor, the screen should wiggle a bit and fix itself. It's not foolproof, it can go wrong, but a reboot will reset it.

ewaller

Administrator

From: Pasadena, CA

Registered: 2009-07-13

Posts: 19,793

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

Expanding on what karol said.

Most modern monitors remember the settings based upon the scan parameters (horizontal period and number of lines between vertical syncs).  In other words, each mode has its own set of settings, so this will have no impact when or if you do operate in other modes.  When you come back to this mode, it will still be correct.

If auto setup does not work, play with the H offset, V offset, H Scale and V Scale settings.

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VirtualHogger

Member

Registered: 2010-08-11

Posts: 5

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

Thanks both for the replies.
I should have mentioned that I am connected to my Samsung 42" TV via HDMI/DVI, not VGA.  Neither of my video cards have a VGA connector, only DVI.  So I don't have an Auto function for that mode, and looking through the menus, I cannot find a screen position function, only mode a selection (16:9, 4:3, etc) which do not help.  Even setting it at 4:3 leaves the image clipped so that I cannot see the extremities of the screen that is being produced.  When I first boot up, it is in a low resolution that is 100% viewable, but after all the daemons get loaded up and before I am prompted for a login, the resolution changes to a higher setting and I loose the edges.  Shouldn't there be a way to force it to a lower resolution, like when it first starts up?
This is making it extremely difficult to enter the commands I need to set up Arch on this PC.

Proofrific

Member

Registered: 2008-01-05

Posts: 215

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

When I first boot up, it is in a low resolution that is 100% viewable, but after all the daemons get loaded up and before I am prompted for a login, the resolution changes to a higher setting and I loose the edges.

It sounds like the resolution is changing when KMS kicks in.  A Google, forum, or Wiki search should come up with a bunch of posts on how to change the resolution.

karol

Archivist

Registered: 2009-05-06

Posts: 25,440

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

I changed the vga=773 to 769 and 771 in /boot/grub/menu.lst, but it doesn't fix the problem

The resolution changes back but the screen remains clipped? The using 'nomodeset' instead.

Last edited by karol (2010-08-12 10:44:27)

VirtualHogger

Member

Registered: 2010-08-11

Posts: 5

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

Oh, not clear what I meant there.  When I say it doesn't fix the problem, I mean that the behavior did not change - the resolution changes to the same high resolution and clipped view every time it gets to the login prompt after booting up, no matter what value I give to vga=.  Until it gets to that point, the screen is low res and 100% viewable - the way I would like for it to stay. 

karol

Archivist

Registered: 2009-05-06

Posts: 25,440

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

Oh, not clear what I meant there.  When I say it doesn't fix the problem, I mean that the behavior did not change - the resolution changes to the same high resolution and clipped view every time it gets to the login prompt after booting up, no matter what value I give to vga=.  Until it gets to that point, the screen is low res and 100% viewable - the way I would like for it to stay. 

If it's related to KMS, you can disable it with 'nomodeset' or 'modeset=0'.

VirtualHogger

Member

Registered: 2010-08-11

Posts: 5

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

OK I will try that tonight when I get home from work.  Just so I get this straight, I change "vga=773" to "nomodeset" or "modeset=0" on the kernel line in /boot/grub/menu.lst, right?

Thanks for the help,
Ted

karol

Archivist

Registered: 2009-05-06

Posts: 25,440

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

Just so I get this straight, I change "vga=773" to "nomodeset" or "modeset=0" on the kernel line in /boot/grub/menu.lst, right?

Right.

cesura

Package Maintainer (PM)

From: Tallinn, Estonia

Registered: 2010-01-23

Posts: 1,867

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

What type of video card do you have? I have an ATI card and I have to do:

radeon.modeset=0

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VirtualHogger

Member

Registered: 2010-08-11

Posts: 5

Re: [SOLVED] How to reset screen resolution?

Replacing "vga=" with nomodeset worked, I can now move on with my configuration.  Thanks to all for your advice!