Arch Linux

darkghost568

Member

Registered: 2018-02-24

Posts: 34

[SOLVED] X Server crashing after Nvidia driver installation

Hey guys! I just fresh installed Arch, but I'm having a lot of problems with the display drivers. On first boot I ran these commands in this order (installed nvidia drivers before xorg in hopes of avoiding issues with nouveau driver conflicts entirely):

`sudo pacman -S nvidia nvidia-utils nvidia-lts nvidia-settings`

`sudo pacman -S xorg xorg-xinit`

`sudo pacman -S plasma-desktop`

`echo "exec startkde" > ~/.xinitrc`

`startx`

On first boot, KDE desktop was able to start correctly (I could see the colorful desktop display-out on my HDMI monitor), but after rebooting when I run `startx` I get this error message (sorry for the potato cam quality lol): https://imgur.com/FQPaJcL

Here are some logs referenced in the error message:

Xorg.0.log (/var/log/Xorg.0.log): https://pastebin.com/TRZKgawe

xorg.conf (/etc/X11/xorg.conf): https://pastebin.com/c4eiT5vU

xorg.conf.d folder (zipped) (/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d): https://www.dropbox.com/s/nrgov0g1m6t1k … d.zip?dl=0

My rig has 2x GTX Titan X (Maxwell) SLI, but I've also tried pulling them from my system and using a GT710 for debug purposes. No dice. I've tried running `sudo nvidia-xconfig` and `sudo mkinitcpio -p linux` as suggested in other threads, but that has done nothing to fix the problem, and I get the same error as above. I've tried wiping and fresh installing multiple times, but every time on first boot `startx` works and then on all successive boots X Server won't start and force quits. Thanks in advance for your help!

Last edited by darkghost568 (2018-02-25 22:59:12)

seth

Member

Registered: 2012-09-03

Posts: 51,017

Re: [SOLVED] X Server crashing after Nvidia driver installation

Start by etc/X11/xorg.conf - that file should not exist in the first place; the posted log is from "Fri Feb 23 17:20:03 2018" and suggests the X11 server was successfully up for ~2.5 seconds. If anything the plasma session crashed, so try with a simpler xinitrc (starting an xterm) and check your journal for corresponding plasma crashes.

Also your xinitrc is broken, see https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Xinitrc

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How to upload text · How to boot w/o GUI · Disable Windows Fast-Start! · Fix your xinitrc

darkghost568

Member

Registered: 2018-02-24

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED] X Server crashing after Nvidia driver installation

Start by etc/X11/xorg.conf - that file should not exist in the first place; the posted log is from "Fri Feb 23 17:20:03 2018" and suggests the X11 server was successfully up for ~2.5 seconds. If anything the plasma session crashed, so try with a simpler xinitrc (starting an xterm) and check your journal for corresponding plasma crashes.

Also your xinitrc is broken, see https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Xinitrc

Actually, I fixed it (kinda) by running `sudo pacman -S xorg-server xorg-apps xorg-xinit xorg-twm xorg-xclock xterm` . Xorg was missing a few dependencies it looks like. However, I'm still unable to get multi-GPU to work. For `startx` to work, I need to pull one of my graphics cards. If I leave them both in, I get the same errors as above. I've tried running `nvidia-settings -q all | grep SLIMode` and `nvidia-xconfig --multigpu=on --sli=on` , but that didn't help. I also can't get displayport to work, and my 4K display is only running at 1080p over HDMI.

What makes you think my xinitrc is broken?

Last edited by darkghost568 (2018-02-24 08:39:12)

V1del

Forum Moderator

Registered: 2012-10-16

Posts: 21,657

Re: [SOLVED] X Server crashing after Nvidia driver installation

Read the resources you are pointed to. Your xinitrc is broken because "exec startkde" is not enough content for setting up a valid session.

As for SLI, look at https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/NVIDIA#TwinView the second configuration block in that section for pointers, your current xorg.conf doesn't make much sense.

And the fact that you only get 1080p over HDMI can and is likely to be normal, HDMI != HDMI

Last edited by V1del (2018-02-24 10:48:09)

darkghost568

Member

Registered: 2018-02-24

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED] X Server crashing after Nvidia driver installation

Read the resources you are pointed to. Your xinitrc is broken because "exec startkde" is not enough content for setting up a valid session.

As for SLI, look at https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/NVIDIA#TwinView the second configuration block in that section for pointers, your current xorg.conf doesn't make much sense.

And the fact that you only get 1080p over HDMI can and is likely to be normal, HDMI != HDMI

Sorry, I did read the page, but I guess I had to read it more closely. Thanks for the info. I've fixed my xinitrc now.

I also read the SLI Twin View link you sent. I only have one monitor but two graphics cards. I used `$ lspci | grep VGA` to get my BusID and modified my xorg.conf as such. Here's my current xorg.conf (https://pastebin.com/Ry0Cj105). Now when I try to `startx` with both GPUs my display goes completely black, and I lose all display out. Even hitting ctl+alt+F2 won't bring up command line.

I should be getting 4K over HDMI as my card and monitor use HDMI 2.0, and I get 4K over HDMI on Windows. It doesn't matter too much though since after a few reboots and messing with my displayport cables a bit, I'm now getting 4K out over displayport!

Sorry for my ignorance; this is my first time installing Linux, hence my posts in the Newbie Corner.

Last edited by darkghost568 (2018-02-25 03:06:59)

darkghost568

Member

Registered: 2018-02-24

Posts: 34

Re: [SOLVED] X Server crashing after Nvidia driver installation

Actually, after a few more reboots, and reinstalling nvidia-settings. My last xorg.conf file is working, and SLI is enabled! Thanks for your help, I'll mark this thread as solved now.