Kernel panic [SOLVED]

bn727yn · 2025-04-19 19:56:36

Hello Arch Linux Community.
I've been attempting to install Arch Linux on my older PC for days now, and I've been running into the same recurring problem that I haven't been able to fix. Hopefully, someone here could possibly assist me in troubleshooting or at least direct me as to where I should go from here.
The Problem:
Whenever I try to install Arch Linux, I receive system errors—sometimes on boot, sometimes in the middle of the installation. It's not an Arch-specific problem; I've tried several other Linux distributions via live USBs (like Ubuntu, Debian, and some lighter ones), and I experience the same instability or outright crashes in all of them. It's gotten to the point where I'm confident that there's a problem with my hardware, but I haven't been able to identify exactly what.
Images : https://imgur.com/a/y34mg20
What I've Tried:
MemTest86+: Ran for several passes error-free—RAM appears good on the surface.
Re-created Installation Media: Used `dd` mode in rufus and also ISO, balenaEtcher, and Rufus to create new USB installers. Same issue across the board.
Multi Distros: Attempted live environments and installers for Arch, Ubuntu, Debian, and others. All ultimately crash or fail in one manner or another.
Further Clues:
USB Wi-Fi dongle also faulty on all distros. Either not detected or causes bizarre system behavior (e.g., freezing, ridiculous I/O latency, or kernel panics). I'm sure the dongle itself is functional, and I've used it on other machines successfully. Possibly a compatibility or power issue.
System Specs:
CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 @ 2.40GHz
RAM: 2GB DDR3
Graphics: Integrated graphics (using VGA, no discrete GPU separate)
Motherboard: American Megatrends-branded (possibly First Tech), no UEFI—only legacy BIOS
Boot Method: MBR (Legacy BIOS)
Storage: Samsung M3 500GB external USB hard drive (installation target)
Network: USB Wi-Fi dongle (instability culprit)
My Goal:
I'm attempting to install Arch Linux on this computer with the goal of a minimal effective system that's still functional for the bare essentials. I know it's quite old hardware, but I've seen individuals with sets of specs like this and being able to run lightweight Linux installations decently enough.
My Question:
Has anyone else ever noticed anything like this before—where DDR3 RAM or a USB Wi-Fi dongle is creating crashes across multiple distros? Is this a motherboard compatibility issue, power supply issue, or some other form of underlying hardware fault? Anything I can do to further isolate this or get things stable enough to get a successful install?
Any guidance would be hugely appreciated. I’m determined to get Arch running if it’s at all possible. Thanks so much in advance to anyone who takes the time to read this and respond.

Last edited by bn727yn (2025-04-21 16:25:59)

jonno2002 · 2025-04-20 00:48:34

those cpus dont have integrated graphics so the graphics chip will be on the motherboard, from the looks of that second photo the graphics chip/motherboard is bad, i have a core2 duo at my workshop and have gone through a few motherboards. check to see if the board has a bend in it.
but yea a core2 duo with ddr2 is still perfectly usable, plays music and browses the web perfectly, i see yours has ddr3 so is even faster than mine !

bn727yn · 2025-04-20 06:20:54

but i dont know whats causing it? it surely cant be the graphics or ram

jonno2002 · 2025-04-20 06:32:04

as i already said, that 2nd photo is very much pointing to graphics problem, can you try a pcie graphics card and see if that fixes it ?
also check to see if the board has a bend in it, if it does that puts stress on the solder joins under the chipset and causes things like what you see in the second photo

bn727yn · 2025-04-20 11:17:12

exept checking hardware stuff is there anything i can do? i tried multiple linux ditros and even windows and after 3-7 minutes they all crash

seth · 2025-04-20 15:20:50

@jonno2002 do you base the graphics card problem on the corrupted output or some pattern in the stack trace?
There's a stack corruption in the kernel for sure.

MemTest86+: Ran for several passes error-free—RAM appears good on the surface.

What's "several passes"? Reliably detecting corrupted RAM this way takes hours (days)

But for clarification: do you get this, at all, w/o the wifi dongle? Or can you reliably run some live distro for hours and days w/o wifi (is there a wired port?)

What /is/ that wifi dongle?

lsusb

Have you tried to plug it into a different USB port?
Do you have other means to get the system internet, eg. https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Tethering ?

wifi dongles are typically power hungry and that system has likely only USB2 which will be on the edge powerwise and not all usb ports are created equal (I once figured that w/ a dvb-c dongle that kept causing trouble and esp. after S3 on a USB2 port but worked nicely on a different (usb2) hub (both onboard) and ended up completely trashing the usb stack.

bn727yn · 2025-04-20 15:53:47

thanks for your help ram i ran the ram test 3-4 times without an error (i only have 2gb ddr3 ram) i am a begginer when coming to linux using the usb dongle is a realtek usb driveive tried plugging it in the pack and then the front same with the usb and the hard drive (forgot to mention in the OG that i dont have an harddrive and installing the system from a SAMSUNG M3 500GB ) and when unplugging the usb dongle it seems fine but i cant procced with the setup without wifi

so is there anyway i can use my usb dongle without it kernel panicing?

seth · 2025-04-20 16:37:13

so is there anyway i can use my usb dongle without it kernel panicing?

Apparently not.
No wired network?
Did you click the https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Tethering link?

bn727yn · 2025-04-20 16:40:13

Does it work if i only have wifi no mobile network if yes il try it and update you (sorry if im being stupid)

seth · 2025-04-20 16:48:19

Tethering makes your phone a wired network device (or with a very recent kernel-clusterfuck a WWAN modem, in that case networkmanager will likely not properly work but dhcpcd and systemd.networkd should™, but the latter not automatically)

However the phone then gets access to the interwebz doesn't matter.

bn727yn · 2025-04-20 17:01:53

thank you very much il try it tommorow i cant right now

bn727yn · 2025-04-20 18:20:09

ok the problem is the ubs adapter after installing on a laptop that has built in wifi it had no crashes no errors no so dont install with a usb dongle plugged in

now how do i mark this post as solved

seth · 2025-04-20 21:04:16

Mark resolved threads by editing your initial posts subject - so others will know that there's no task left, but maybe a solution to find.
Thanks.

But it's not very surprising that you didn't run into this on completely different HW anyway.
The question would be whether you can use the critical system realibly w/o the wifi dongle (and then, how to deal with that)

jonno2002 · 2025-04-20 21:54:38

seth wrote:

@jonno2002 do you base the graphics card problem on the corrupted output or some pattern in the stack trace?
There's a stack corruption in the kernel for sure.

i based it on the colours and artifacts on the screen, thats usually bad ram/gfx/gfx-ram , also ive had/seen ALOT of c2d boards die like that so i was a bit biased by my own experiences

im very surprised a usb dongle was the issue but glad that the board is good

mmy8x · 2025-04-21 05:19:03

I'm not sure if it really counts as "solved" if the solution was installing Arch on a different computer.

I have seen graphics artifacts caused by bugs (perhaps DMA to GPU memory by another device in absence of IOMMU), but usually it's bad hardware indeed.

bn727yn · 2025-04-21 06:31:09

it is the usb dongle when i installed arch on a usb harddrive with the dongle on i coudnt get past the login screen it just freezes and without everything is normal if i plug it in when im logged in and then access the internet il crash

seth · 2025-04-21 11:40:00

Have you tried to plug it into a different USB port?
Do you have other means to get the system internet, eg. https://wiki.archlinux.org/title/Tethering ?
wifi dongles are typically power hungry and that system has likely only USB2 which will be on the edge powerwise and not all usb ports are created equal (I once figured that w/ a dvb-c dongle that kept causing trouble and esp. after S3 on a USB2 port but worked nicely on a different (usb2) hub (both onboard) and ended up completely trashing the usb stack.

resp. if you've successfully avoided the problems around that dongle indeed mark the thread as solved, thanks.

Arch Linux

#1 2025-04-19 19:56:36

Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#2 2025-04-20 00:48:34

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#3 2025-04-20 06:20:54

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#4 2025-04-20 06:32:04

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#5 2025-04-20 11:17:12

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#6 2025-04-20 15:20:50

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#7 2025-04-20 15:53:47

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#8 2025-04-20 16:37:13

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#9 2025-04-20 16:40:13

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#10 2025-04-20 16:48:19

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#11 2025-04-20 17:01:53

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#12 2025-04-20 18:20:09

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#13 2025-04-20 21:04:16

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#14 2025-04-20 21:54:38

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#15 2025-04-21 05:19:03

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#16 2025-04-21 06:31:09

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

#17 2025-04-21 11:40:00

Re: Kernel panic [SOLVED]

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