[nouveau, GeForce 7300 LE] screen background overlaid with scan type artifact in red

[Paul Collinsworth]

My desktop has both it's usual items in place; toolbar on left and desktop icons distributed around the screen. Then there's what appears to be a bunch of scan line, raster line artifacts, in red, laid over my normal background, which is a star field photo on what is ordinarily a black field.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 18.04
Package: xorg 1:7.7+19ubuntu7.1
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.15.0-74.84-generic 4.15.18
Uname: Linux 4.15.0-74-generic x86_64
.tmp.unity_support_test.0:

ApportVersion: 2.20.9-0ubuntu7.9
Architecture: amd64
CompositorRunning: None
CurrentDesktop: ubuntu:GNOME
Date: Tue Jan 21 13:04:20 2020
DistUpgraded: 2018-10-03 14:38:19,863 DEBUG icon theme changed, re-reading
DistroCodename: bionic
DistroVariant: ubuntu
ExtraDebuggingInterest: Yes
GraphicsCard:
 NVIDIA Corporation G72 [GeForce 7300 LE] [10de:01d1] (rev a1) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
   Subsystem: Dell G72 [GeForce 7300 LE] [1028:0405]
InstallationDate: Installed on 2016-08-19 (1249 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS "Xenial Xerus" - Release amd64 (20160719)
MachineType: Dell Inc. Inspiron 531
ProcEnviron:
 PATH=(custom, no user)
 XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-4.15.0-74-generic root=UUID=08d8f7c1-e351-4abe-8ebe-443d6a751497 ro plymouth:debug=1 quiet splash vt.handoff=1
SourcePackage: xorg
Symptom: display
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to bionic on 2018-10-03 (474 days ago)
dmi.bios.date: 11/09/2007
dmi.bios.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.bios.version: 1.0.7
dmi.board.name: 0RY206
dmi.board.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.board.version: ���
dmi.chassis.type: 3
dmi.chassis.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.chassis.version: Chassis Version
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnDellInc.:bvr1.0.7:bd11/09/2007:svnDellInc.:pnInspiron531:pvr00:rvnDellInc.:rn0RY206:rvr:cvnDellInc.:ct3:cvrChassisVersion:
dmi.product.name: Inspiron 531
dmi.product.version: 00
dmi.sys.vendor: Dell Inc.
version.compiz: compiz 1:0.9.13.1+18.04.20180302-0ubuntu1
version.libdrm2: libdrm2 2.4.99-1ubuntu1~18.04.1
version.libgl1-mesa-dri: libgl1-mesa-dri 19.2.1-1ubuntu1~18.04.1
version.libgl1-mesa-glx: libgl1-mesa-glx 19.2.1-1ubuntu1~18.04.1
version.xserver-xorg-core: xserver-xorg-core 2:1.19.6-1ubuntu4.3
version.xserver-xorg-input-evdev: xserver-xorg-input-evdev 1:2.10.5-1ubuntu1
version.xserver-xorg-video-ati: xserver-xorg-video-ati 1:18.0.1-1
version.xserver-xorg-video-intel: xserver-xorg-video-intel 2:2.99.917+git20171229-1
version.xserver-xorg-video-nouveau: xserver-xorg-video-nouveau 1:1.0.15-2
xserver.bootTime: Wed Oct 3 10:41:28 2018
xserver.configfile: default
xserver.devices:
 input Power Button KEYBOARD, id 6
 input Power Button KEYBOARD, id 7
 input Dell Dell USB Keyboard KEYBOARD, id 8
 input Logitech USB Trackball MOUSE, id 9
xserver.logfile: /var/log/Xorg.0.log
xserver.version: 2:1.18.4-0ubuntu0.8
xserver.video_driver: nouveau

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

When does the problem start? Does it occur only after resuming from suspend?

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

I suspect you will be able to avoid the problem if you can switch to the Nvidia proprietary driver. Please look in Software & Updates > Additional Drivers > ...

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

It starts during the boot process. The display is normal from the Dell
boot/startup screen through the grub screen to the Ubuntu logo screen
and the password screens; in the instant that the top tool bar and left
tool bar come on screen, the scan/diagonal artifact appears. The system
was normal yesterday when I shut down and on boot-up this morning, it
wasn't. I did run the Ubuntu software updater yesterday, and I didn't
cycle power until shutdown last night.

On 1/21/20 6:54 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> When does the problem start? Does it occur only after resuming from
> suspend?
>
> ** Tags added: nouveau
>
> ** Summary changed:
>
> - screen background overlaid with scan type artifact in red
> + [nouveau] screen background overlaid with scan type artifact in red
>
> ** Package changed: xorg (Ubuntu) => mutter (Ubuntu)
>
> ** Changed in: mutter (Ubuntu)
> Status: New => Incomplete
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

I considered that. Went to the Nvidia web page before I pushed the bug
report out and got some sort of null message there. I'll check software
& updates and see if I get a positive result.

On 1/21/20 7:00 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> I suspect you will be able to avoid the problem if you can switch to the
> Nvidia proprietary driver. Please look in Software & Updates >
> Additional Drivers > ...
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Did not get a positive result. Additional drivers displays a "No
Additional Drivers Available" message, and the only active button on
that page is "Close".

On 1/21/20 7:48 PM, Paul Collinsworth wrote:
> I considered that. Went to the Nvidia web page before I pushed the bug
> report out and got some sort of null message there. I'll check
> software & updates and see if I get a positive result.
>
>
> On 1/21/20 7:00 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
>> I suspect you will be able to avoid the problem if you can switch to the
>> Nvidia proprietary driver. Please look in Software & Updates >
>> Additional Drivers > ...
>>
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

OK then. We'll treat this as a pure nouveau driver bug, because that's the most plausible and common explanation for issues like this.

Please try booting Ubuntu 20.04 from USB (don't need to install it) and tell us if that has the same problem: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/daily-live/current/

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

I'll try that shortly or in a little while. May be a couple of hours.

On 1/21/20 8:06 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> OK then. We'll treat this as a pure nouveau driver bug, because that's
> the most plausible and common explanation for issues like this.
>
> Please try booting Ubuntu 20.04 from USB (don't need to install it) and
> tell us if that has the same problem: http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/daily-
> live/current/
>
> ** Package changed: mutter (Ubuntu) => mesa (Ubuntu)
>
> ** Also affects: linux (Ubuntu)
> Importance: Undecided
> Status: New
>
> ** Changed in: linux (Ubuntu)
> Status: New => Incomplete
>
> ** Also affects: mutter (Ubuntu)
> Importance: Undecided
> Status: New
>
> ** Changed in: mutter (Ubuntu)
> Status: New => Incomplete
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Please also try booting Ubuntu 18.04.3 from USB. It's slightly different to what you have and might have fixed this issue already... http://releases.ubuntu.com/18.04/

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

OK. I'm back and loading a USB with bootable images. Back later.

On 1/21/20 8:28 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> Please also try booting Ubuntu 18.04.3 from USB. It's slightly different
> to what you have and might have fixed this issue already...
> http://releases.ubuntu.com/18.04/
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Loaded a USB with 18.04.3 and the problem wasn't there. The screen,
apart from the tool bars, was the default Ubuntu screen with nothing
unusual about it.

On 1/21/20 11:00 PM, Paul Collinsworth wrote:
> OK. I'm back and loading a USB with bootable images. Back later.
>
>
> On 1/21/20 8:28 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
>> Please also try booting Ubuntu 18.04.3 from USB. It's slightly different
>> to what you have and might have fixed this issue already...
>> http://releases.ubuntu.com/18.04/
>>
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

OK, thanks. Assuming the bug isn't just hiding and wouldn't reappear later in 18.04.3 if used long enough, then this implies a fix exists somewhere in the HWE packages (which are the difference between 18.04 fully updated and 18.04.3 fully updated).

The only two sets of HWE packages I can think of that affect graphics are Xorg and the kernel.

Firstly Xorg: Does the bug occur if you log into "Ubuntu on Wayland" instead?

Secondly the kernel: Does the bug occur if you install the latest test kernel packages from here? https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/ Remember to run 'uname -a' to check which kernel is active.

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

I encountered an issue after advising you that 18.04.3 works. Perhaps it
sheds some light on the problem.

It occurred to me that perhaps there is a graphics issue and that part
of what I was seeing is contamination of the background image I was
using. So I tried to open "Settings" in order to revert to the default
image. Didn't work; that is, "Settings" doesn't work. No response. I can
click on "Settings" on either toolbar or try to access it through "Show
Applications" and no response.

What's more, after getting no response there, other stuff is locked out
and doesn't respond. I have to reboot to get functionality back. In
getting to reboot, the shutdown process does report that anything I've
tried to open or start, after trying to reach "Settings", isn't
responding, and then it hangs. If I click on "Power down" again at that
point, it doesn't, it just puts up an image and stalls (the image it
displays is the background image I've been using, without the toolbars
and the contaminant artifact!). At that point, I've just hit the power
switch.

I've not tried "Ubuntu on Wayland" or the test kernel package. I'll see
what happens there. I can boot into the prior Linux generic via grub;
haven't tried to pull up any apps there, but the image issue was still
there.

On 1/22/20 12:43 AM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> OK, thanks. Assuming the bug isn't just hiding and wouldn't reappear
> later in 18.04.3 if used long enough, then this implies a fix exists
> somewhere in the HWE packages (which are the difference between 18.04
> fully updated and 18.04.3 fully updated).
>
> The only two sets of HWE packages I can think of that affect graphics
> are Xorg and the kernel.
>
> Firstly Xorg: Does the bug occur if you log into "Ubuntu on Wayland"
> instead?
>
> Secondly the kernel: Does the bug occur if you install the latest test
> kernel packages from here? https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-
> ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/ Remember to run 'uname -a' to check which kernel
> is active.
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

I tried "Ubuntu on Wayland". Crash. Logged in. Screen loaded improperly
and keyboard and mouse froze; handlers blocked and who knows what else.
The screen didn't have the red artifact though; it had a cluster of
diagonal black and white scan lines covering about the middle third of
the screen, an incomplete population of the left hand tool bar icons I
use and none of the desktop icons. The top tool bar seemed complete, but
was non-functional.

Tried "Unity" while I was at it, and that was a complete flop
post-log-in. Blank screen, except for an oversized audio slider icon at
the top right and the cursor arrow, and the cursor was frozen; once
again, no handlers.

On 1/22/20 8:40 AM, Paul Collinsworth wrote:
> I encountered an issue after advising you that 18.04.3 works. Perhaps
> it sheds some light on the problem.
>
> It occurred to me that perhaps there is a graphics issue and that part
> of what I was seeing is contamination of the background image I was
> using. So I tried to open "Settings" in order to revert to the default
> image. Didn't work; that is, "Settings" doesn't work. No response. I
> can click on "Settings" on either toolbar or try to access it through
> "Show Applications" and no response.
>
> What's more, after getting no response there, other stuff is locked
> out and doesn't respond. I have to reboot to get functionality back.
> In getting to reboot, the shutdown process does report that anything
> I've tried to open or start, after trying to reach "Settings", isn't
> responding, and then it hangs. If I click on "Power down" again at
> that point, it doesn't, it just puts up an image and stalls (the image
> it displays is the background image I've been using, without the
> toolbars and the contaminant artifact!). At that point, I've just hit
> the power switch.
>
> I've not tried "Ubuntu on Wayland" or the test kernel package. I'll
> see what happens there. I can boot into the prior Linux generic via
> grub; haven't tried to pull up any apps there, but the image issue was
> still there.
>
>
>
> On 1/22/20 12:43 AM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
>> OK, thanks. Assuming the bug isn't just hiding and wouldn't reappear
>> later in 18.04.3 if used long enough, then this implies a fix exists
>> somewhere in the HWE packages (which are the difference between 18.04
>> fully updated and 18.04.3 fully updated).
>>
>> The only two sets of HWE packages I can think of that affect graphics
>> are Xorg and the kernel.
>>
>> Firstly Xorg: Does the bug occur if you log into "Ubuntu on Wayland"
>> instead?
>>
>> Secondly the kernel: Does the bug occur if you install the latest test
>> kernel packages from here?https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-
>> ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/ Remember to run 'uname -a' to check which kernel
>> is active.
>>
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Thanks. This is starting to sound like general problems with the nouveau kernel driver, or maybe GPU memory corruption, since multiple desktop environments are broken.

Next please try the latest kernel packages from https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Should I try all the amd64 packages, i.e. headers, images, and modules
in both generic and low latency flavors, or is there a specific package?
I've pulled down the entire amd64 set, and the headers-all as well.

On 1/22/20 6:55 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> Thanks. This is starting to sound like general problems with the nouveau
> kernel driver, or maybe GPU memory corruption, since multiple desktop
> environments are broken.
>
> Next please try the latest kernel packages from
> https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/
>
> ** No longer affects: mutter (Ubuntu)
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

I know, this is a common question and we should do better to make it clear. You only need the non-lowlatency packages:

https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-headers-5.5.0-050500rc7_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_all.deb

https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-headers-5.5.0-050500rc7-generic_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_amd64.deb

https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-image-unsigned-5.5.0-050500rc7-generic_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_amd64.deb

https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-modules-5.5.0-050500rc7-generic_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_amd64.deb

[Timo Aaltonen (tjaalton)]

and can skip the headers too, if there are no dkms modules that need those

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Thanks. I'll try the install shortly.

On 1/23/20 12:23 AM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> I know, this is a common question and we should do better to make it
> clear. You only need the non-lowlatency packages:
>
> https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-
> headers-5.5.0-050500rc7_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_all.deb
>
> https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-
> headers-5.5.0-050500rc7-generic_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_amd64.deb
>
> https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-image-
> unsigned-5.5.0-050500rc7-generic_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_amd64.deb
>
> https://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/v5.5-rc7/linux-
> modules-5.5.0-050500rc7-generic_5.5.0-050500rc7.202001192030_amd64.deb
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

If dkms is installed, where is it in the filesystem? I checked /var and
it isn't there - and I run a (more-or-less) standard system, with regard
to file organization; don't know that I have any modules that require dkms.

On 1/23/20 12:34 AM, Timo Aaltonen wrote:
> and can skip the headers too, if there are no dkms modules that need
> those
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

It would be putting files in /var/lib/dkms if it was in use. You would also have a deb package called 'dkms' installed.

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

I thought that might be the case, and looked in a couple of the /var
subdirectories and didn't see dkms. I may run a more exhaustive search
before trying the new linux install. I'll be doing that within an hour
or so; had to be out most of the day on other business.

At the moment the system with the fault is backing up a bunch of work
files. I have another drive on the system and may install 18.04.3 if the
issue doesn't resolve with the new linux install (that alternate drive
is just sitting there with 16.04 and hasn't been in use).

On 1/23/2020 6:47 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> It would be putting files in /var/lib/dkms if it was in use. You would
> also have a deb package called 'dkms' installed.
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

It's not important whether dkms is in use or not. You can just assume the worst case and install the four packages in comment #17.

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Installed and that wasn't the root cause. Still the same problem.

On 1/23/20 8:03 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> It's not important whether dkms is in use or not. You can just assume
> the worst case and install the four packages in comment #17.
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Please run:

  uname -a

to confirm the newer kernel version is active.

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

OTOH, I tried APT update and upgrade after the installation didn't
change things and I did get a screen change. Attached is a post-restart
screenshot.

On 1/23/20 11:29 PM, Paul Collinsworth wrote:
> Installed and that wasn't the root cause. Still the same problem.
>
> On 1/23/20 8:03 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
>> It's not important whether dkms is in use or not. You can just assume
>> the worst case and install the four packages in comment #17.
>>
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Please run:

  uname -a

to confirm the newer kernel version is active.

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Doesn't look like it - uname returned 4.16.0-74-generic #84-Ubuntu SMP.

May have overlaid the new generic by running APT upgrade. I'll try
re-installing.

On 1/23/20 11:39 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> Please run:
>
> uname -a
>
> to confirm the newer kernel version is active.
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Yes. Re-installed. uname reports 5.5.0..... and the screen is back to
the red raster diagonal mess.

On 1/23/20 11:58 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> Please run:
>
> uname -a
>
> to confirm the newer kernel version is active.
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Just checked the Nvidia web site and they recommend proprietary driver version 304 for your GPU (which also implies versions after 304 won't support it). It appears the reason why Software & Updates told you "No Additional Drivers Available" is because that's also older than any Nvidia shipped with Ubuntu 18.04.

As a next step I would recommend you get the driver that Nvidia themselves recommend and manually install that: https://www.nvidia.com/Download/driverResults.aspx/123709/en-us

Annoyingly, Ubuntu 16.04 does offer Nvidia driver version 304 but that Ubuntu release is older and did not ship with a version of Gnome Shell that we support.

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Although downloading the driver from the above link might cause even greater problems than we have here. Maybe hold that thought, since the only issue right now is corrupt wallpaper that might be the lesser evil.

It's still possible this bug could be fixed with a kernel/mesa/mutter update.

[Ubuntu Kernel Bot (ubuntu-kernel-bot)]

This change was made by a bot.

[Timo Aaltonen (tjaalton)]

don't try to install 304, it doesn't support the xserver in 18.04 which was one of the reasons it got dropped

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Perhaps I should just get a new GPU card. Or a new system.

In the meantime, at boot this morning, the first thing I tried to do
after log-in was to access "Settings"; no response. After a few minutes
of 'nothing happening', I clicked the e-mail ("Thunderbird") icon; no
response there, as well. Went to the shutdown/restart panel (the
pull-down at the upper right), clicked "Restart", the system reported
that there was no response from "Thunderbird", switched to an
unpopulated version (no desktop icons or tool bars) of my screen
background image (with none of the corrupting artifact) and stalled.

Pushed the "big red reset" button (power), let it sit for a minute or
two, booted, and after log-in, went straight to e-mail, which behaved
more-or-less normally, accessed the 'net (no particular loss of browser
functionality), and here I am.

Nvidia 304 is a familiar number. I had to re-install that thing several
years ago; seems to me that it was pre-16.04, in fact. Took more than
one iteration of the install process to get it functioning properly;
recollection is that there was some issue with the digital video output.
I did have to switch to the VGA output on the board a couple of years
ago. Something finally got permanently hosed on the digital interface
side, and that may be the root cause now - some sort of problem in the
VGA interface.

On 1/24/20 12:46 AM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> Just checked the Nvidia web site and they recommend proprietary driver
> version 304 for your GPU (which also implies versions after 304 won't
> support it). It appears the reason why Software & Updates told you "No
> Additional Drivers Available" is because that's also older than any
> Nvidia shipped with Ubuntu 18.04.
>
> As a next step I would recommend you get the driver that Nvidia
> themselves recommend and manually install that:
> https://www.nvidia.com/Download/driverResults.aspx/123709/en-us
>
> Annoyingly, Ubuntu 16.04 does offer Nvidia driver version 304 but that
> Ubuntu release is older and did not ship with a version of Gnome Shell
> that we support.
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

There seems to be some sort of problem with nouveau, too. Or it may just
be a hardware issue.

On 1/24/20 2:54 AM, Timo Aaltonen wrote:
> don't try to install 304, it doesn't support the xserver in 18.04 which
> was one of the reasons it got dropped
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Another result. When I tried the v18.04.3 system preview from the USB
FD, the background was "normal". I just finished installing the system,
and the background now has the transparent red raster overlay. I could
get to "Settings" though without locking up the system, so there was at
least a marginal improvement there; haven't tried to reproduce any other
the other "no response"/lockup failures.

On 1/24/20 12:50 AM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> Although downloading the driver from the above link might cause even
> greater problems than we have here. Maybe hold that thought, since the
> only issue right now is corrupt wallpaper that might be the lesser evil.
>
> It's still possible this bug could be fixed with a kernel/mesa/mutter
> update.
>
> ** Changed in: linux (Ubuntu)
> Importance: Undecided => Medium
>
> ** Changed in: mesa (Ubuntu)
> Importance: Undecided => Medium
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Disregard the 1/25 12:37 AM message.

I reinstalled v18.04.3 and there's no problem with the system on that
drive (sda1). There's a clear sharp "Bionic Beaver" line drawing.

I had managed to complete the install last night on the drive I'd been
using, sdb2, and that still has the display problem.

A mixup happened at the mid-install restart; the bios was still queued
up for boot on sdb2.

On 1/25/20 12:37 AM, Paul Collinsworth wrote:
> Another result. When I tried the v18.04.3 system preview from the USB
> FD, the background was "normal". I just finished installing the
> system, and the background now has the transparent red raster overlay.
> I could get to "Settings" though without locking up the system, so
> there was at least a marginal improvement there; haven't tried to
> reproduce any other the other "no response"/lockup failures.
>
>
> On 1/24/20 12:50 AM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
>> Although downloading the driver from the above link might cause even
>> greater problems than we have here. Maybe hold that thought, since the
>> only issue right now is corrupt wallpaper that might be the lesser evil.
>>
>> It's still possible this bug could be fixed with a kernel/mesa/mutter
>> update.
>>
>> ** Changed in: linux (Ubuntu)
>> Importance: Undecided => Medium
>>
>> ** Changed in: mesa (Ubuntu)
>> Importance: Undecided => Medium
>>
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Spoke (wrote) too soon. The artifact is there, in the screen of the new
install.

After the intitial install and restart, it wasn't there, while the
system was running the intitial image from sda1. I then powered down and
booted into sdb1, and, of course, the artifact was still present (well,
why wouldn't it be? I hadn't changed anything.). I did some stuff there,
since that's where my registered e-mail and 'net accounts are. Then I
restarted again, booting up in sda1.

And the artifact was there.

BTW, the linux generics for sda1 are the version of 5.3 that was being
loaded with the system installs yesterday. The sdb1 linux image set is
still 5.5...

The artifact as displayed when sda1 is up seems to be slightly different
from that of sdb1, but that may just be perceptual, due to the way the
two desktops are populated.

On 1/25/20 1:46 PM, Paul Collinsworth wrote:
> Disregard the 1/25 12:37 AM message.
>
> I reinstalled v18.04.3 and there's no problem with the system on that
> drive (sda1). There's a clear sharp "Bionic Beaver" line drawing.
>
> I had managed to complete the install last night on the drive I'd been
> using, sdb2, and that still has the display problem.
>
> A mixup happened at the mid-install restart; the bios was still queued
> up for boot on sdb2.
>
>
>
>
> On 1/25/20 12:37 AM, Paul Collinsworth wrote:
>> Another result. When I tried the v18.04.3 system preview from the USB
>> FD, the background was "normal". I just finished installing the
>> system, and the background now has the transparent red raster
>> overlay. I could get to "Settings" though without locking up the
>> system, so there was at least a marginal improvement there; haven't
>> tried to reproduce any other the other "no response"/lockup failures.
>>
>>
>> On 1/24/20 12:50 AM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
>>> Although downloading the driver from the above link might cause even
>>> greater problems than we have here. Maybe hold that thought, since the
>>> only issue right now is corrupt wallpaper that might be the lesser evil.
>>>
>>> It's still possible this bug could be fixed with a kernel/mesa/mutter
>>> update.
>>>
>>> ** Changed in: linux (Ubuntu)
>>> Importance: Undecided => Medium
>>>
>>> ** Changed in: mesa (Ubuntu)
>>> Importance: Undecided => Medium
>>>
>>
>

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Possibly related to bug 1860178.

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Could be. Bug 1860178's write-up seems similar to 1860483.

I have been able to use "Settings" in the sda1 install, and switched the
background to "black", at which point the raster type corruption in the
desktop went away. Now there's occasionally an odd speckled background
in the top tool bar, which blanks out to black around the top tool bar
icons and text, leaving something that looks like video noise between
the leftmost text/dropdown and the day/time text at the middle, and
between that middle item and the rightmost icon set. At the same time,
there's a little noise speckling on the left tool bar, and a bright
narrow vertical line between the tool bar and the desktop region; all
that blanks out to black too. The blanking-to-black occurs as the screen
cursor is traversed over the tool bars.

I am occasionally getting a non-response for item icons associated with
sda1 installs, just as I have been with items in sdb1. That kind of
looks to me like the system is losing or overwriting the pointer to the
app/item associated with the icon. For instance, I still can't get to
sdb1's "Settings"; I can click on any one of the "Settings" icons, the
activity indicator runs for a short period, stops, and nothing happens.
I've waited for a few minutes, up to around 5 or so, just to see if it's
a matter of timing, but nothing happens. And frequently, after that
happens, other items become non-responsive as well, up to the point
where the keyboard and mouse push-button handlers quit responding.

On 1/27/20 7:57 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> Possibly related to bug 1860178.
>
> ** Also affects: mutter (Ubuntu)
> Importance: Undecided
> Status: New
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

Thanks. I'm still working on my (sda) install of 18.04.3; haven't
completely restored what I had on (sdb).

Fewer issues with either the operating system or applications failing to
respond, and very few events where I/O handlers have seemingly disappeared.

Still have minor issues with screen presentation; none of the
raster-type overlay in the desktop area though.

I'm going to try a re-install on the sdb drive after completing system
restoration on sda. May be able to rule drive corruption in or out at
that point.

Also considering replacing the Nvidia GeForce 7300 graphics card with
something a bit less on the obsolete side.

On 2/2/20 7:15 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> ** Also affects: xserver-xorg-video-nouveau (Ubuntu)
> Importance: Undecided
> Status: New
>

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

The problem started at opening. Log-in to Ubuntu and there it is. Return
from terminal or application, where the screen is normal, and there it
is, or rather, there it was.

The "red scan type artifact", which covered the entire screen, has
changed. The video problem now presents differently. I had sent in a
screen shot of the artifact earlier, but that isn't the video artifact
that shows up when I log in on my (now) secondary drive (drive "sdb").

I went into the system chassis yesterday and pulled the Nvidia
GeForce7300 video card out completely and connected my monitor to the
motherboard VGA connector. The video artifacts that I was seeing when I
logged into my primary drive, drive "sda", haven't changed, but the
artifacts as displayed when logging into sdb have. I've attached
screenshots of the "new" artifacts.

I've not looked at the open source to see what might differentiate the
video data flow when there's a video card installed versus what happens
with the mb video circuit.

On 1/21/20 6:54 PM, Daniel van Vugt wrote:
> When does the problem start? Does it occur only after resuming from
> suspend?
>
> ** Tags added: nouveau
>
> ** Summary changed:
>
> - screen background overlaid with scan type artifact in red
> + [nouveau] screen background overlaid with scan type artifact in red
>
> ** Package changed: xorg (Ubuntu) => mutter (Ubuntu)
>
> ** Changed in: mutter (Ubuntu)
> Status: New => Incomplete
>

[Tim Hockin (thockin)]

I just filed https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xorg/+bug/1875712 which feels like it might be similar?

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

I replaced the Nvidia video card in my system and the problem seems to
have gone with it.

I had seen an improvement with the Nvidia card after switching from the
digital video output to the on-card VGA output, but over a period of a
couple of weeks or so, the video degraded again.

The new card is a VisionTek Radeon 5450.

On 4/28/20 1:42 PM, Tim Hockin wrote:
> I just filed https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xorg/+bug/1875712
> which feels like it might be similar?
>

[Tim Hockin (thockin)]

How is the Radeon 5450 - any problems with it? I may have to go the same route.

On Tue, Apr 28, 2020 at 10:20 PM Paul Collinsworth
<email address hidden> wrote:
>
> I replaced the Nvidia video card in my system and the problem seems to
> have gone with it.
>
> I had seen an improvement with the Nvidia card after switching from the
> digital video output to the on-card VGA output, but over a period of a
> couple of weeks or so, the video degraded again.
>
> The new card is a VisionTek Radeon 5450.
>
>
> On 4/28/20 1:42 PM, Tim Hockin wrote:
> > I just filed https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xorg/+bug/1875712
> > which feels like it might be similar?
> >
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to a
> duplicate bug report (1875712).
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1860483
>
> Title:
> [nouveau, GeForce 7300 LE] screen background overlaid with scan type
> artifact in red
>
> Status in linux package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
> Status in mesa package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
> Status in mutter package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
> Status in xserver-xorg-video-nouveau package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> My desktop has both it's usual items in place; toolbar on left and
> desktop icons distributed around the screen. Then there's what appears
> to be a bunch of scan line, raster line artifacts, in red, laid over
> my normal background, which is a star field photo on what is
> ordinarily a black field.
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 18.04
> Package: xorg 1:7.7+19ubuntu7.1
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.15.0-74.84-generic 4.15.18
> Uname: Linux 4.15.0-74-generic x86_64
> .tmp.unity_support_test.0:
>
> ApportVersion: 2.20.9-0ubuntu7.9
> Architecture: amd64
> CompositorRunning: None
> CurrentDesktop: ubuntu:GNOME
> Date: Tue Jan 21 13:04:20 2020
> DistUpgraded: 2018-10-03 14:38:19,863 DEBUG icon theme changed, re-reading
> DistroCodename: bionic
> DistroVariant: ubuntu
> ExtraDebuggingInterest: Yes
> GraphicsCard:
> NVIDIA Corporation G72 [GeForce 7300 LE] [10de:01d1] (rev a1) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
> Subsystem: Dell G72 [GeForce 7300 LE] [1028:0405]
> InstallationDate: Installed on 2016-08-19 (1249 days ago)
> InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS "Xenial Xerus" - Release amd64 (20160719)
> MachineType: Dell Inc. Inspiron 531
> ProcEnviron:
> PATH=(custom, no user)
> XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
> LANG=en_US.UTF-8
> SHELL=/bin/bash
> ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-4.15.0-74-generic root=UUID=08d8f7c1-e351-4abe-8ebe-443d6a751497 ro plymouth:debug=1 quiet splash vt.handoff=1
> SourcePackage: xorg
> Symptom: display
> UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to bionic on 2018-10-03 (474 days ago)
> dmi.bios.date: 11/09/2007
> dmi.bios.vendor: Dell Inc.
> dmi.bios.version: 1.0.7
> dmi.board.name: 0RY206
> dmi.board.vendor: Dell Inc.
> dmi.board.version: ���
> dmi.chassis.type: 3
> dmi.chassis.vendor: Dell Inc.
> dmi.chassis.version: Chassis Version
> dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnDellInc.:bvr1.0.7:bd11/09/2007:svnDellInc.:pnInspiron531:pvr00:rvnDellInc.:rn0RY206:rvr:cvnDellInc.:ct3:cvrChassi...

[Paul Collinsworth (collinsworth)]

No problems to date. It's been installed for a couple of months.

On 4/29/20 9:08 AM, Tim Hockin wrote:
> How is the Radeon 5450 - any problems with it? I may have to go the
> same route.
>
> On Tue, Apr 28, 2020 at 10:20 PM Paul Collinsworth
> <email address hidden> wrote:
>> I replaced the Nvidia video card in my system and the problem seems to
>> have gone with it.
>>
>> I had seen an improvement with the Nvidia card after switching from the
>> digital video output to the on-card VGA output, but over a period of a
>> couple of weeks or so, the video degraded again.
>>
>> The new card is a VisionTek Radeon 5450.
>>
>>
>> On 4/28/20 1:42 PM, Tim Hockin wrote:
>>> I just filed https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xorg/+bug/1875712
>>> which feels like it might be similar?
>>>
>> --
>> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to a
>> duplicate bug report (1875712).
>> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1860483
>>
>> Title:
>> [nouveau, GeForce 7300 LE] screen background overlaid with scan type
>> artifact in red
>>
>> Status in linux package in Ubuntu:
>> Confirmed
>> Status in mesa package in Ubuntu:
>> Confirmed
>> Status in mutter package in Ubuntu:
>> Confirmed
>> Status in xserver-xorg-video-nouveau package in Ubuntu:
>> Confirmed
>>
>> Bug description:
>> My desktop has both it's usual items in place; toolbar on left and
>> desktop icons distributed around the screen. Then there's what appears
>> to be a bunch of scan line, raster line artifacts, in red, laid over
>> my normal background, which is a star field photo on what is
>> ordinarily a black field.
>>
>> ProblemType: Bug
>> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 18.04
>> Package: xorg 1:7.7+19ubuntu7.1
>> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.15.0-74.84-generic 4.15.18
>> Uname: Linux 4.15.0-74-generic x86_64
>> .tmp.unity_support_test.0:
>>
>> ApportVersion: 2.20.9-0ubuntu7.9
>> Architecture: amd64
>> CompositorRunning: None
>> CurrentDesktop: ubuntu:GNOME
>> Date: Tue Jan 21 13:04:20 2020
>> DistUpgraded: 2018-10-03 14:38:19,863 DEBUG icon theme changed, re-reading
>> DistroCodename: bionic
>> DistroVariant: ubuntu
>> ExtraDebuggingInterest: Yes
>> GraphicsCard:
>> NVIDIA Corporation G72 [GeForce 7300 LE] [10de:01d1] (rev a1) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
>> Subsystem: Dell G72 [GeForce 7300 LE] [1028:0405]
>> InstallationDate: Installed on 2016-08-19 (1249 days ago)
>> InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 16.04.1 LTS "Xenial Xerus" - Release amd64 (20160719)
>> MachineType: Dell Inc. Inspiron 531
>> ProcEnviron:
>> PATH=(custom, no user)
>> XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
>> LANG=en_US.UTF-8
>> SHELL=/bin/bash
>> ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-4.15.0-74-generic root=UUID=08d8f7c1-e351-4abe-8ebe-443d6a751497 ro plymouth:debug=1 quiet splash vt.handoff=1
>> SourcePackage: xorg
>> Symptom: display
>> UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to bionic on 2018-10-03 (474 days ago)
>> dmi.bios.date: 11/09/2007
>> dmi.bios.vendor: Dell Inc.
>> dmi.bios.version: 1.0.7
>> dmi.board.name: 0RY206
>> dmi.board.vendor: Dell Inc.
>> dmi.board.version: ���
>> d...

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Actually I just realised the duplicates of this bug are closer related to each other than to this one. So I will separate them.

[Aaron Wagner (baron77)]

I have been experiencing a similar problem with a GeForce 7300 GT on a Mac Pro 1,1. I also have visual artifacts in 18.04 and 20.04. With 18.04, there are no artifacts or other problems during installation from a DVD, but when booting the installed system there are artifacts after login and eventually programs start hanging. With 20.04, the installation program itself has artifacts when running off the DVD.

Just did a clean install of 14.04.6 and that works fine.

[Aaron Wagner (baron77)]

Just upgraded to 16.04 LTS and that works as well. To be clear, for both 14.04 and 16.04, the proprietary NVIDIA drivers are available via the nvidia-304 package, but I'm not using those. The nouveau driver itself works on 14.04 and 16.04.

FWIW, back when I tried running 18.04/20.04, when programs were hanging I checked dmesg and saw errors of the form "watchdog: BUG: soft lockup - CPU#3 stuck for 22s"

[Aaron Wagner (baron77)]

Possibly related to this:

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/1530405

That bug focuses on the soft lockup but nouveau has come up as a factor.

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Thank you for reporting this bug to Ubuntu.

Ubuntu 18.04 (bionic) reached end-of-standard-support on May 31, 2023.

See this document for currently supported Ubuntu releases:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Releases

We appreciate that this bug may be old and you might not be interested in discussing it anymore. But if you are then please upgrade to the latest Ubuntu version and re-test. If you then find the bug is still present in the newer Ubuntu version, please add a comment here telling us which new version it is in.