[SOLVED] Alternative terminal menu for Ctrl + Alt + F2..F9

Br33213 · 2017-10-10 14:53:53

Hello to everyone,

My PC gets stuck during booting (it just has a '_' flickering fast after the message 'starting version 234'). I think the issue has to do with nvidia or maybe startx, as I fiddled around with those things before rebooting. If I can get to a terminal I'm pretty positive I can fix the problem. The problem is that when using the standard hotkey to go to another virtual terminal (Ctrl + Alt + F3 for example), the screen starts flickering hence and forth between the new terminal and the screen it got stuck on (starting version 234) like a maniac. I can still read what I type at this point, however, my PC does not accept all my key strokes. To clarify that, typing just root would only show rot for example. You would have to type rroooott to get something like root, this is ok for the username because you can see what you type but I cannot type my password like this because I cannot see what I type.

Question being: Is there an alternative terminal menu that can be accessed even earlier in the boot process such that I can login to a terminal with all my keystrokes being accepted (and without the flickering)? A key combination that would somehow reset the screen and stop the flickering would also do I reckon.

Thanks in advance!

P.S.: If anything at all is not clear, please let me know such that I can clarify it further, English is not my native language so ambiguities might be possible.

Last edited by Br33213 (2017-10-11 11:21:27)

Trilby · 2017-10-10 15:00:51

You can change the boot target - but there are simpler tests first.

1) Add "intel_iommu=off" to your kernel line. With a recent kernel update many users have needed to add this in order to avoid similar problems to yours. If this fixes it, you're done.

2) If the above doesn't help, add "nomodeset" to the kernel line. There is a good chance this avoid the problems you are having with the tty.

3) Change the boot target. First try multi-user.target, but if that doesn't help, rescue.target almost certainly will.

4) If none of the above work, you could change add "init=/bin/bash" to the kernel line or boot from a live media and chroot.

Br33213 · 2017-10-10 15:05:25

Thank you for your answer. However, I do not have access to a terminal so I cannot edit the kernel. I will see if there will be other replies, otherwise I will have to boot from a live media.

Trilby · 2017-10-10 15:07:40

You can modify the kernel line in your boot loader, that's the whole point, and why I posted the link to the wiki page with instructions on how to do so.

Br33213 · 2017-10-10 15:10:46

Ok I see what you mean now, I will try this and let something know if it worked.

Edit: Adding init=/bin/bash helped me get back on track, everything should be fixed now, thanks again

Last edited by Br33213 (2017-10-11 11:15:55)

Arch Linux

#1 2017-10-10 14:53:53

[SOLVED] Alternative terminal menu for Ctrl + Alt + F2..F9

#2 2017-10-10 15:00:51

Re: [SOLVED] Alternative terminal menu for Ctrl + Alt + F2..F9

#3 2017-10-10 15:05:25

Re: [SOLVED] Alternative terminal menu for Ctrl + Alt + F2..F9

#4 2017-10-10 15:07:40

Re: [SOLVED] Alternative terminal menu for Ctrl + Alt + F2..F9

#5 2017-10-10 15:10:46

Re: [SOLVED] Alternative terminal menu for Ctrl + Alt + F2..F9

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