screen resolution autodetection when plugging monitor

[Jaime]

1) Ubuntu 8.04.1
2) Unknown package (xorg-x11? fglrx?)
3) When plugging external monitor (VGA port), re-detect the available resolutions and enable them in Preferences -> Screen Resolutions. It would be desirable if it also resizes the desktop to the maximum, but this should be optional.
4) The maximum available display is limited by the available detected screens at boot time (x11 startup), and I can only change it by restarting X session.

Details:

I have a Thinkpad T60 Laptop (ATI Radeon X1300, FGLRX 2.1.7659)

The available resolutions (Preferences -> Screen Resolutions) are determined at boot time (EDID), and I'm unable to change them when plugging or unplugging external monitors.

I usually move the laptop to three different locations using several display resolutions:

- Internal display (1024x768)
- External monitor (home) : 1440x900
- External monitor (work) : 1280x1024

If I boot with one of the low res monitor plugged, the available resolutions are limited to that maximum.

In order to use all the available resolutions, I have to boot with the highest posible resolution (1440x900) so the combo box has all the possibilities.
Then I suspend the laptop, move it to the preferred location and manually set the new resolution.

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

xorg.conf

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. Please attach your X server log file (/var/log/Xorg.0.log) to the bug report as an uncompressed file attachment using the "Attachment:" box below. Could you please also try to run without any /etc/X11/xorg.conf and let Xorg autodetect your display and video card? Please also attach the /var/log/Xorg.0.log from this attempt. As you're running Ubuntu 8.04.1, you should no longer need to specify modelines for your monitor in your X server configuration file in order for the correct resolutions to be detected. I assume that this machine was upgraded from an older Ubuntu release?

By default, Ubuntu 8.04.1 ships with a very minimal X server configuration file. You may still need the minimal configuration file in order to be able to enable the fglrx driver using the Restricted Drivers Manager. In order to recreate this, type the following in to a terminal:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg

...then edit your /etc/X11/xorg.conf file to add the following line to the 'Devices' section:

 Driver "fglrx"

Try running with this configuration, and attach your X server log file (/var/log/Xorg.0.log) from this attempt also. If you still have problems, please provide the following additional information (captured at the point in time when you experience the problem):
1. Output of "xrandr"
2. Output of "sudo ddcprobe"

Thanks in advance.

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

Current Xorg.0.log (now I have plugged to a 1280x1024 monitor) and the output of the requested commands with my currently working settings.

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

Now I followed your directions in order to have the default configuration, but the situation went worst.

- I removed previous working /etc/X11/xorg.conf
- I reconfigured xserver-xorg (both with and without fbdev)
- I restarted gdm, with my external display (1280x1024) plugged in.
- Xorg tried to autodetect the modes (screen blinking) , falling back to default low res mode (800x600?), only internal display
- Logged into gdm
- White background and unusable desktop (compiz fault?). Switched to VT-1 and runned DISPLAY=:0 metacity --replace in order to fix it.
- Then I could run xrandr and ddcprobe, I am attaching the results (test1.tgz)
- Recovered my old xorg.conf and back to work...!

Thanks in advance

[unggnu (unggnu)]

Seems to be a duplicate of Bug 158415. It could be fixed through adding the Virtual line to the Display section.

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

Adding the virtual 2048 2048 didn't solved my problem. Instead, I get an unusable huge login gdm theme, with the login input box outside the desktop, without the possibility of scroll outside the limits. Please note that I'm using fglrx (not Intel) and my xorg.conf has some customization (without the autodetected defaults, because they didn't work).

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

Jamie - I want you to try the following steps to try and get to a default xorg.conf that a new user would normally end up with after installing Ubuntu and enabling the restrcited (fglrx) driver.

1. Log in using your normal configuration, and disable desktop effects completely (System -> Preferences -> Appearance -> Visual Effects -> None).
1. Do "sudo dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg" to recreate the default (bare) X server configuration. Don't make any customisations to it yet.
3. Restart
4. GDM should load, and your X server will probably be running with either the VESA driver or open source ATI driver. At this stage, the resolution might also be low.
5. Log in
6. Enable the resrtricted fglrx driver (System -> Administration -> Hardware Drivers). This should add the fglrx driver to your xorg.conf along with any of the other default options necessary to get the driver working.
7. Once this is done, reboot again.
8. Report the outcome. If the resolution is not correct, please re-attach the information I requested earlier. Also try enabling desktop effects.

Thanks

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

Chris,

I followed your directions again. After disabling desktop-effects, reconfiguring xserver-xorg AND rebooting with only the internal LCD display, I could see a bare desktop with the default settings and without the lowres error message I got in my last reboot. The output of the commands and logs are in test2.tgz

Afterwards, I did a few tests:

- Plugged an external monitor 1440x900. The new resolution wasn't automatically detected neither I could get the new resolutions in the Screen Resolutions applet. I took another snapshot of ddclient and xrandr with no differences with test2.tgz

- Restarted X session WITH the monitor plugged. It wasn't detected either. Same output from ddclient and xrandr.

- Manually edited Display section of xorg.conf. Tried to force Driver "fgrlx". White background after X restart.

- Replaced "fglrx" by "radeon". With the next restart both screens were detected but with a few limitations: internal display was the maximum virtual space available, but the larger display showed its full resolution (1440x900) with empty room around the 1024x768 inner box. Apart from the screen background, all the other widgets were constrained to 1024x768. I got the requested files in test3.tgz

- With this configuration plugging and unplugging the external monitor didn't made any difference in the screen resolutions combo.

- Using radeon driver I wasn't able to enable desktop effects, so I'm back to my beloved fglrx customized xorg.conf ... to the beginning :-(

Thanks,

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

For unrelated reasons, I had to reinstall Ubuntu and X configuration went to the defaults. After enabling "propietary driver", X had more or less the same issue:

- Booting without the external monitor limit the maximum resolution up to 1024x768
- Plugging the external monitor makes no difference
- Restarting X gives the higher resolution BUT all the widgets are constrained to a inner square of 1024x768 (only the desktop is outside this area)

I think this bug limits usability of Ubuntu as a desktop system. Mac OSX behaves better when plugging or unplugging monitors (redetecting and autoadjusting the desktop size to the new maximum).

As a workaround, now I am using envy-ng with customized xorg.conf and amdccle (AMD Control Center) in order to redetect and readjust resolution

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

This bug remains unfixed in Intrepid Ibex

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

I don't think this issue is related with fglrx. Now I have an Intel GM965 with everything autodetected and no propietary drivers at all, and fails the same way

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

I've posted a new version of the -fglrx driver to our xorg-edgers PPA,
would you mind testing it either on Jaunty or Karmic and see if it
resolves this bug?

Get fglrx 8.620 here:

  https://edge.launchpad.net/~xorg-edgers/+archive/ppa

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

We're closing this bug since it is has been some time with no response from the original reporter. However, if the issue still exists please feel free to reopen with the requested information. Also, if you could, please test against the latest development version of Ubuntu, since this confirms the bug is one we may be able to pass upstream for help.

[Jaime (jaime-lopez)]

Hi, I'm the original reporter. My former laptop died, and my current configuration (Thinkpad X61s + Intel GM965 + Ubuntu 9.04) doesn't have the issue.

Regards,

Jaime