All Kernels since 4.2.8 result in a black screen on boot

[aproposnix]

When I install Ubuntu 16.04 on my computer the screen goes blank at login. I can blindly login and it boots but I cannot use the display (external monitor through HDMI).

I've looked online for an answer to this issue but could not find a solution. However, many people report this issue in forums with the 4.4x kernel.

On my main computer, I upgraded from 14.04 to 16.04.1. On this computer I was able to switch back to the 3.13 kernel which *does work*.

On the same computer, if I use a 16.04 live CD, it does the same thing. The screen goes blank.

UEFI may be part of the issue as well. I have it disabled in bios (set to legacy mode) but when I first boot, it seems to go into UEFI mode first and then, after rebooting with <ctrl><alt><delete> it shows me the list of kernels. I can select the kernel from there but if I use a 4.4x kernel, it blanks out at encryption passphrase screen.

There are also people with similar issues on AskUbuntu.

Here's some basic HW info. If you require more, please ask.

sudo lshw | head
zbox
    description: Notebook
    product: ZBOX-ID18 (NA)
    vendor: ZOTAC
    version: XX
    serial: GXXXX211XXXXX
    width: 64 bits
    capabilities: smbios-2.7 dmi-2.7 vsyscall32
    configuration: boot=normal chassis=notebook family=NA sku=NA uuid=00020003-0004-0005-0006-000700080009
  *-core

sudo lshw -C display
  *-display
       description: VGA compatible controller
       product: 3rd Gen Core processor Graphics Controller
       vendor: Intel Corporation
       physical id: 2
       bus info: pci@0000:00:02.0
       version: 09
       width: 64 bits
       clock: 33MHz
       capabilities: msi pm vga_controller bus_master cap_list rom
       configuration: driver=i915 latency=0
       resources: irq:45 memory:f7800000-f7bfffff memory:e0000000-efffffff ioport:f000(size=64)

lsb_release -rd
Description: Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS
Release: 16.04
---
ApportVersion: 2.20.1-0ubuntu2.1
Architecture: amd64
AudioDevicesInUse:
 USER PID ACCESS COMMAND
 /dev/snd/controlC0: user 5536 F.... pulseaudio
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 16.04
HibernationDevice: #RESUME=UUID=edaa55c6-eb56-43fb-8004-495948b72b38
InstallationDate: Installed on 2014-07-23 (743 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Alpha amd64 (20140313)
MachineType: ZOTAC ZBOX-ID18
Package: linux (not installed)
ProcEnviron:
 LANGUAGE=en_US
 TERM=xterm
 PATH=(custom, no user)
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcFB: 0 inteldrmfb
ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/vmlinuz-3.13.0-92-generic root=/dev/mapper/ubuntu--vg-root ro quiet splash
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.13.0-92.139-generic 3.13.11-ckt39
PulseList:
 Error: command ['pacmd', 'list'] failed with exit code 1: Home directory not accessible: Permission denied
 No PulseAudio daemon running, or not running as session daemon.
RelatedPackageVersions:
 linux-restricted-modules-3.13.0-92-generic N/A
 linux-backports-modules-3.13.0-92-generic N/A
 linux-firmware 1.157.2
RfKill:

StagingDrivers: rts5139
Tags: xenial staging
Uname: Linux 3.13.0-92-generic x86_64
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to xenial on 2016-07-31 (3 days ago)
UserGroups:

_MarkForUpload: True
dmi.bios.date: 03/13/2014
dmi.bios.vendor: American Megatrends Inc.
dmi.bios.version: B211P011
dmi.board.asset.tag: NA
dmi.board.name: ZBOX-ID18
dmi.board.vendor: ZOTAC
dmi.board.version: XX
dmi.chassis.asset.tag: NA
dmi.chassis.type: 10
dmi.chassis.vendor: NA
dmi.chassis.version: NA
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnAmericanMegatrendsInc.:bvrB211P011:bd03/13/2014:svnZOTAC:pnZBOX-ID18:pvrXX:rvnZOTAC:rnZBOX-ID18:rvrXX:cvnNA:ct10:cvrNA:
dmi.product.name: ZBOX-ID18
dmi.product.version: XX
dmi.sys.vendor: ZOTAC

[Paul White (paulw2u)]

Refiling against the kernel for the kernel team to assess whether they can fix or help with this problem.

[Brad Figg (brad-figg)]

This bug is missing log files that will aid in diagnosing the problem. From a terminal window please run:

apport-collect 1609242

and then change the status of the bug to 'Confirmed'.

If, due to the nature of the issue you have encountered, you are unable to run this command, please add a comment stating that fact and change the bug status to 'Confirmed'.

This change has been made by an automated script, maintained by the Ubuntu Kernel Team.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

Would it be possible for you to test the latest upstream stable kernel? Refer to https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KernelMainlineBuilds . Please test the latest v4.4 stable kernel[0].

If this bug is fixed in the mainline kernel, please add the following tag 'kernel-fixed-upstream'.

If the mainline kernel does not fix this bug, please add the tag: 'kernel-bug-exists-upstream'.

If you are unable to test the mainline kernel, for example it will not boot, please add the tag: 'kernel-unable-to-test-upstream'.
Once testing of the upstream kernel is complete, please mark this bug as "Confirmed".

Thanks in advance.

[0] http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.4.16

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

apport information

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

I ran apport but I'm doing it with the 3.13 kernel as the 4.x kernels result in a black screen (can't even get into a terminal).

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

I'm installing kernel 4.7 at the moment - just noticed this in the output:

update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-4.7.0-040700-generic
W: Possible missing firmware /lib/firmware/i915/kbl_dmc_ver1.bin for module i915
W: Possible missing firmware /lib/firmware/i915/skl_guc_ver6.bin for module i915

I already tried version 4.5 - same result though, black screen.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Was asked to change status after providing supporting info

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Can confirm that even the newest mainline (4.7) doesn't work. Tag added to bug report.
kernel-unable-to-test-upstream

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

Can you also give the 4.8-rc1 kernel a try? If it still exhibits the bug, we can perform a kernel bisect. 4.8-rc1 can be downloaded from:

http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.8-rc1/

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Unfortunately, it's the same behavior. As with all other 4.x kernels, I see the following errors when installing the deb packages:

update-initramfs: Generating /boot/initrd.img-4.8.0-040800rc1-generic
W: Possible missing firmware /lib/firmware/i915/kbl_dmc_ver1.bin for module i915
W: Possible missing firmware /lib/firmware/i915/kbl_guc_ver9_14.bin for module i915
W: Possible missing firmware /lib/firmware/i915/bxt_guc_ver8_7.bin for module i915
W: Possible missing firmware /lib/firmware/i915/skl_guc_ver6_1.bin for module i915
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postinst.d/pm-utils 4.8.0-040800rc1-generic /boot/vmlinuz-4.8.0-040800rc1-generic

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I'd like to perform a kernel bisect to figure out which commit caused this regression. We need to identify the earliest kernel that did not exhibit the bug and the first kernel that did exhibit the bug.

Can you test the following kernels and post back?

v4.4 final: http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.4-wily/
If v4.4 final exhibits the bug, we should move on to testing some of the v4.4 release candidates.

v4.4-rc4: http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.4-rc4-wily/

If v4.4-rc4 does not exhibit the bug then test v4.4-rc6:
v4.4-rc6: http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.4-rc6-wily/

If v4.4-rc4 does exhibit the bug then test v4.4-rc2:
v4.4-rc2: http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.4-rc2-wily/

If all of the 4.4 kernels do in fact have the bug, then we should test the 4.3 final kernel. It is available from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.3-wily/

Thanks in advance!

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Ugh... that was painful testing :) All Kernels 4.3-4.4.x are broken.

I've been using 14.04 for two years now. Does this mean I'll need to go through every Kernel between the releases?

I'll download the Kernel for 15.04 now. Hopefully it'll work.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Success with Kernel 4.2.7-040207-generic!

I'll start going through the newer builds right before 4.3.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

4.2.8 was successful.

For the 4.3 unstable versions I installed linux-4.3.0-040300rc4-generic - It's broken like the 4.4-8 Kernels.

Unfortunately I will have to stop testing for now. Adding all the kernels broke my system :/ I'll need to clean that up before I continue.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

OK. Just tried to run 4.3rc1. It's broken.

What I noticed in 4.2.8 (it works though) for the first time was this error at start-up:

kernel: [ 1.606885] Console: switching to colour frame buffer device 170x48
Aug 11 15:08:30 Zbox kernel: [ 1.611424] i915 0000:00:02.0: fb0: inteldrmfb frame buffer device
Aug 11 15:08:30 Zbox kernel: [ 1.611426] i915 0000:00:02.0: registered panic notifier
Aug 11 15:08:30 Zbox kernel: [ 1.622749] [drm:intel_set_pch_fifo_underrun_reporting [i915]] *ERROR* uncleared pch fifo underrun on pch transcoder A
Aug 11 15:08:30 Zbox kernel: [ 1.622862] [drm:intel_pch_fifo_underrun_irq_handler [i915]] *ERROR* PCH transcoder A FIFO underrun

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

So the bug does not exist in 15.04? If that is the case, this bug may have already been fixed in a stable update and a bisect is not necessary. Would it be possible for you to test 16.04 to see if it is fixed there as well?

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

I'm a bit confused.

I've not installed 15.04 - I was installing every kernel (newest to oldest) on my 16.04 (upgraded from 14.04) computer until I found one that worked (4.2.8).

What else can I test on my 16.04 computer? I cannot use any kernel since 4.2.8.

If it's been fixed, will there be an update for 16.04 soon? I would very much like to do a clean install but cannot because of the blackscreen.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

OK. Some success. :)

I created an Ubuntu 16.04 bootable flash with Unetbootin.

At the boot page, I clicked on tab which enabled me to add 'nomodeset' to the boot parameters. It then booted (weird digital artifacts for a second) into the desktop with the 4.4 Kernel.

When logging out I accidentally clicked on the Sleep command. This was interesting because when it 'woke up' I had a blackscreen again.

I also managed to get the modinfo if it's useful at all:

ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ modinfo i915
filename: /lib/modules/4.4.0-31-generic/kernel/drivers/gpu/drm/i915/i915.ko
license: GPL and additional rights
description: Intel Graphics
author: Intel Corporation
author: Tungsten Graphics, Inc.
firmware: i915/bxt_dmc_ver1.bin
firmware: i915/skl_dmc_ver1.bin
firmware: i915/skl_guc_ver4.bin
srcversion: 6247501712EC8B949DDED97
alias: pci:v00008086d000022B3sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d000022B2sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d000022B1sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d000022B0sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000162Dsv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000162Asv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000162Esv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000162Bsv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00001626sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00001622sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000161Dsv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000161Asv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000160Dsv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000160Asv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000161Esv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000161Bsv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00001616sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00001612sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000160Esv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d0000160Bsv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00001606sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00001602sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000155sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000157sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000F33sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000F32sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000F31sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000F30sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000D26sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000D16sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000D06sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000A2Esv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000A1Esv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000A0Esv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000A26sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000A16sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000A06sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000C26sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000C16sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000C06sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000426sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000416sv*sd*bc03sc*i*
alias: pci:v00008086d00000406sv*sd*bc03...

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

Can you test 4.2 final, since it is linear to 4.3-rc1. If it is good, we can bisect between 4.2 final and 4.3-rc1, which will identify the commit that introduced this regression.

The 4.2 final kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.2-wily/

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Done. No issues with 4.2 Final.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I started a kernel bisect between v4.2 final and v4.3-rc1. The kernel bisect will require testing of about 7-10 test kernels.

I built the first test kernel, up to the following commit:
dd5cdb48edfd34401799056a9acf61078d773f90

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

Thanks in advance

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

No problem with the test kernel. It boots without issue.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

@Joseph - I only tested the generic kernel. Did you want me to test the low latency kernel as well?

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
f377ea88b862bf7151be96d276f4cb740f8e1c41

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

Thanks in advance

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

No need to test the low latency kernel. Testing just the generic kernel is fine.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

OK. That one is broken. Does that mean it's the culprit?

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

That kernel means that it was commited after the first bad commit that caused this bug. There are still about 10 kernels to test for the bisect. Some of them will be bad and some will be good. Eventually we will be able to narrow it down to one commit.

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
abebcdfb64f1b39eeeb14282d9cd4aad1ed86f8d

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

Thanks in advance

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

this one works. It boots without blackscreen.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
bef2c7bd578e91c9c10983e0c15c4501127b77ca

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

this one is broken. Same blackscreen.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
97d3308ab245c51ae237b3444afa7ae87aa9bcd4

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

This one was broken but not in the same way. With this one, right after the PC booted it gets stuck in a console (only a blinking cursor in the upper left corner) right before plymouth is supposed to load.

The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had to physically restart the computer.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
430b7ad5d3d07e9869085d777264a37ae2dd5c26

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Joseph,

It appears that there are two kernels in the list. Which one should I use? Both?

For example:
linux-headers-4.1.0-040100rc6_4.1.0-040100rc6.201608291255_all.deb
linux-headers-4.1.0-040100rc6_4.1.0-040100rc6.201608231554_all.deb

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

I went ahead and installed linux-image-4.1.0-040100rc6-generic_4.1.0-040100rc6.201608291255_amd64

As with the last kernel:
>This one was broken but not in the same way. With this one, right >after the PC booted it gets stuck in a console (only a blinking >cursor in the upper left corner) right before plymouth is supposed to >load.

>The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had to physically >restart the computer.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
75289874e4484cd4702b3341b654b45b4a09b9d3

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same as before with this one:

>This one was broken but not in the same way. With this one, right >after the PC booted it gets stuck in a console (only a blinking >cursor in the upper left corner) right before plymouth is supposed to >load.

>The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had to physically >restart the computer.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
c0165304e10f317672e20f2b40770d74c51e287f

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same as before with this one:

>This one was broken but not in the same way. With this one, right >after the PC booted it gets stuck in a console (only a blinking >cursor in the upper left corner) right before plymouth is supposed to >load.

>The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had to physically >restart the computer.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
70d0c5742013b888a9254f54ee527e9941171297

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same as before with this one:

>This one was broken but not in the same way. With this one, right >after the PC booted it gets stuck in a console (only a blinking >cursor in the upper left corner) right before plymouth is supposed to >load.

>The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had to physically >restart the computer.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Hi All,

Until this issue is resolved, is there anything I could do to protect myself (esp., since I'm not getting any security updates using the mainline 4.2.8 kernel)?

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
623e01e53927b05e96781532bdb40536e833e276

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same as before with this one:

>This one was broken but not in the same way. With this one, right >after the PC booted it gets stuck in a console (only a blinking >cursor in the upper left corner) right before plymouth is supposed to >load.

>The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had to physically >restart the computer.

I will say, maybe it's evident to everyone, but I keep seeing similar messages in all broken kernels while installing:

>W: Possible missing firmware >/lib/firmware/i915/skl_dmc_ver4.bin for module i915

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

@jsalisbury How's it looking with this bug? Are we any closer to find the root cause? Please let me know how I can help further. I'm ready to test whatever you throw at me :)

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

Sorry for the delay. There are about 3 more test kernels for the bisect.

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
318bd821d65d37fb12c5673607e2b013f7a86a01

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

@jsalisbury the "all" headers are missing. Should I install without?

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

Yes, there is no need to install the headers.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same as before with this one:

>This one was broken but not in the same way. With this >one, right after the PC booted it gets stuck in a console >(only a blinking cursor in the upper left corner) right >before plymouth is supposed to load.

>The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had >to physically >restart the computer.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
5fcece80ecdac932a0acb71e3a239c39dd4af20f

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same as before with this one:

>This one was broken but not in the same way. With this >one, right after the PC booted it gets stuck in a >console (only a blinking cursor in the upper left corner) >right before plymouth is supposed to load.

>The keyboard and everything else is unresponsive. I had >to physically restart the computer.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

@jsalisbury If I'm not mistaken, I think we have one more kernel to test. Would it be possible to test the last one today?

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Just for kicks, I went ahead and tried booting into the latest 16.10 beta. As expected, I get the black screen on boot.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
0d2e42970cfa8814ce5f73e329f61c94b7ec2dab

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same issue as before. As with all of the 4.1 kernels, the screen freezes before going into Plymouth. Only the cursor is visible and I have to manually restart the computer.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
b1b38278e12b04cf9a227f6af2c24651cf6e8a85

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Same issue as before. As with all of the 4.1 kernels, the screen freezes before going into Plymouth. Only the cursor is visible and I have to manually restart the computer.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

The bisect reported the following as the first bad commit:

commit b1b38278e12b04cf9a227f6af2c24651cf6e8a85
Author: David Weinehall <email address hidden>
Date: Wed May 20 17:00:13 2015 +0300

    drm/i915: add a context parameter to {en, dis}able zero address mapping

I built a Xenial test kernel with this commit reverted. The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not?

Note, to test this kernel, you need to install both the linux-image adn linux-image-extra .deb packages.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

@jsalisbury

Sorry for my ignorance but could you help me understand something?

In the past you were putting the kernels in the root folder. This time there were no kernels in the root folder. I assumed that I should go to the folder with the same commit number (b1b38278e12b04cf9a227f6af2c24651cf6e8a85).

You then mention that I must install the linux-extra package but there's no extras package in that folder.

Could you please clarify the steps I need to take?

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Please disregard my previous post. I didn't see the "revert" folder before. I assume now that this is the correct folder.

From the "revert" folder I installed the following:

linux-headers-4.4.0-43_4.4.0-43.63~lp1609242Commitb1b38278Reverted_all.deb
linux-headers-4.4.0-43-generic_4.4.0-43.63~lp1609242Commitb1b38278Reverted_amd64.deb
linux-image-4.4.0-43-generic_4.4.0-43.63~lp1609242Commitb1b38278Reverted_amd64.deb
linux-image-extra-4.4.0-43-generic_4.4.0-43.63~lp1609242Commitb1b38278Reverted_amd64.deb

Installing this produces the same results as all other kernels in the 4.4-4.8 series. I get a black screen on boot.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Hi Again. I decided to try something new today. As I mentioned previously, when I boot it goes directly into a blackscreen - but I believed I could blindly log in. So today I did the following:

1. Cleared my syslog (just wanted to see if there were obvious errors going forward)
2. Rebooted my computer (with the 4.4x kernel)
3. As soon as the screen turned black I entered in the pass-phrase for the encryption.
4. I waited until the HDD light stopped flashing
5. Once the HDD stopped flashing, I entered my login password (again- I'm doing this blindly as I could not see anything).
6. The screen flashed for a second and the desktop actually loaded!

Not sure if this helps your investigation or not but I hope so.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

It looks like our bisect when wrong if that kernel with the reverts doesn't fix the bug. I'll review what kernels were reported good vs bad and see where we could have gone wrong.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

maybe on comments 45-46? I wasn't sure what to test.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I'll restart the bisect using the last good and bad test commits:

good abebcdfb64f1b39eeeb14282d9cd4aad1ed86f8d
bad bef2c7bd578e91c9c10983e0c15c4501127b77ca

Can you also give the v4.9-rc1 kernel a try? It can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.9-rc1/

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

This one is just like the other kernels. I get a blackscreen on boot but can blindly log in.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I started a second bisect and built the first test kernel up to commit:
2c6625cd545bdd66acff14f3394865d43920a5c7

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

linux-image-4.2.0-040200rc7-generic_4.2.0-040200rc7.201610181505_amd64.deb

This kernel works.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
d2944cf21305c754fa8b2d6c1eea05ad5dad7944

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

linux-image-4.2.0-040200rc6-generic_4.2.0-040200rc6.201610191537_amd64.deb

This kernel works fine. I do not get the blackscreen.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I built the next test kernel, up to the following commit:
97d3308ab245c51ae237b3444afa7ae87aa9bcd4

The test kernel can be downloaded from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~jsalisbury/lp1609242

Can you test that kernel and report back if it has the bug or not? I will build the next test kernel based on your test results.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Sorry for the delay.... I was on holiday over the past week.

I've tested linux-image-4.1.0-040100rc6-generic_4.1.0-040100rc6.201610211158_amd64.deb

It gives me the second issue where it get's stuck in the console (with the blinking cursor in the upper left corner) before booting into Plymouth. Requires a physical reboot (i.e. pressing the power button).

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

I think this is where our bisect went wrong. I'll take a look at this commits to see if this should be marked good or bad.

In the mean time, can you give the latest drm kernel a test? It is available from:
http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/drm-intel-nightly/2016-11-04/

[William Hardwick (william-hardwick)]

I can report that I ran into the same issue. I'm using Ubuntu 16.04 LTS and I got the blinking cursor in the upper left corner at the sd_crypt password screen (although it's not a "black" screen, it's the standard splash screen with password prompt).

If I disable the "splash" option in grub, I can enter my encryption password at the prompt and see the normal login screen from then on, but once booted into Ubuntu videos will play very slow/choppy, so it doesn't work correctly. (This is with the default kernel, 4.4.0-45-generic.)

If I choose to boot with the 4.4.0-31-generic kernel, the graphics are working normally from start to finish (sd_crypt screen, login screen, etc. all work), so that seems to be an acceptable workaround for people in the same situation as me.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

@jsalisbury

Unfortunately none of the builds I could use compiled correctly. I'll have to wait until there's a successful build. Could I use the mainline 4.9?

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

It does appear the drm images have not been compiling for amd64. It might be a good idea to test 4.9-rc4. It is available from:

http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v4.9-rc4/

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

As expected, the 4.9 kernel gives me the black screen on boot. In addition, I'm getting all kinds of screen tearing when I boot into the desktop (blindly of course) with this kernel, unlike the others.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

Ok, since we keep running into this second bug, it would probably be better to bisect the Ubuntu kernels, versus the Upstream ones. There may be a fix in Ubuntu that prevents this second bug.

To do that, we also need to find the last good Ubuntu kenrel and the first bad one. The last 4.2 based kernel before a fork to 4.3 for Xenial was: 4.2.0-16.19

The first kernel based on v4.3-rc1 was: 4.3.0-0.9, so we should be able to bisect between those two.

Can you first test the following two kernels and confirm 4.2.0-16.19 is good and 4.3.0-0.9 is bad.
4.2.0-16.19: https://launchpad.net/~canonical-kernel-team/+archive/ubuntu/ppa/+build/8287818
4.3.0-0.9: https://launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/4.3.0-0.9/+build/8360668

NOTE: With both these kernels, you have to install both the linux-image and linux-image-extra .deb packages.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for linux (Ubuntu Xenial) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

[Expired for linux (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Could we give this a try again? The issue still exists even with the newest mainline kernels. I'm still stuck with Linux 4.2.9.

[Kai-Heng Feng (kaihengfeng)]

Does it happen on v4.13-rc1?

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Yes. It happens on 4.13-rc1. Black Screen.

The last good version of the kernel was 4.2.8 - all others since give me the black screen.

[Kai-Heng Feng (kaihengfeng)]

You need to do a kernel bisection.
Build kernel yourself will be a much faster process.

Also, give daily build iso [1] a try - maybe the fix is in userspace.

[1] http://cdimages.ubuntu.com/daily-live/current/artful-desktop-amd64.iso

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Yeah, we tried to do the bisect (see the history). For whatever reason it wasn't successful. Unfortunately I haven't the knowledge to do the bisect on my own.

[Kai-Heng Feng (kaihengfeng)]

If latest daily build iso doesn't work, here's the step to do a bisection:

$ git clone git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git
$ cd linux
$ git bisect start
$ git bisect good v4.2
$ git bisect bad v4.3-rc1
$ make localmodconfig
$ make -j`nproc` && make -j`nproc` modules && sudo make modules_install && sudo make install

Reboot to the newly built kernel.

If it's good, then go to linux source tree and type "git bisect good", otherwise "git bisect bad".
Repeat it until you find the regression commit.

[aproposnix (aproposnix)]

Thanks Kai-Heng! Just a noob question - Is it OK to compile the kernel on a different computer than the one impacted by the issue? I assume it'll be OK to do this.

[Kai-Heng Feng (kaihengfeng)]

Well, that will complicate things a little.
You need to copy `lsmod` to your build machine, then do what [1] describes.
Also, you should use "$ make -j`nproc` deb-pkg`" to make a deb package, it's easier to move a deb package to another machine.

[1] https://unix.stackexchange.com/questions/253245/what-does-make-localmodconfig-do