XPS 13 9350 black screen with kernel versions > 4.15.0-20-generic

[Christopher Torgalson]

With any Ubuntu variant I've tried (Ubuntu, Ubuntu Mate, Ubuntu Budgie), the graphical installer works correctly, but on every post-install login, the screen goes black at the disk decryption screen.

The kernel version post-install is 4.14.0-29-generic (edited to add: this SHOULD have read '4.15.0-29-generic').

Other things seem to be working. If I'm careful, I can enter the disk decryption password and tell (via sounds) that I've gotten through to the login screen, but the screen remains dark.

This happens with standard or minimal installs.

If I then try to boot with the previous kernel--4.15.0-20-generic--everything works flawlessly.

The only non-standard thing about this system is that I replaced the onboard wireless card with an Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 8625.

---

I don't have a clue about kernel debugging, but I can provide further system info as needed.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 18.04
Package: xorg 1:7.7+19ubuntu7
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.15.0-20.21-generic 4.15.17
Uname: Linux 4.15.0-20-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.20.9-0ubuntu7
Architecture: amd64
BootLog: Error: [Errno 13] Permission denied: '/var/log/boot.log'
CompositorRunning: None
CurrentDesktop: Budgie:GNOME
Date: Sat Jul 21 20:35:45 2018
DistUpgraded: Fresh install
DistroCodename: bionic
DistroVariant: ubuntu
ExtraDebuggingInterest: Yes
GraphicsCard:
 Intel Corporation Iris Graphics 540 [8086:1926] (rev 0a) (prog-if 00 [VGA controller])
   Subsystem: Dell Iris Graphics 540 [1028:0704]
InstallationDate: Installed on 2018-07-21 (0 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu-Budgie 18.04 LTS "Bionic Beaver" - Release amd64 (20180426)
Lsusb:
 Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0003 Linux Foundation 3.0 root hub
 Bus 001 Device 004: ID 0c45:670c Microdia
 Bus 001 Device 003: ID 04f3:20d0 Elan Microelectronics Corp.
 Bus 001 Device 002: ID 8087:0a2b Intel Corp.
 Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
MachineType: Dell Inc. XPS 13 9350
ProcKernelCmdLine: BOOT_IMAGE=/vmlinuz-4.15.0-20-generic root=/dev/mapper/ubuntu--budgie--vg-root ro quiet splash
SourcePackage: xorg
Symptom: display
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
dmi.bios.date: 01/16/2018
dmi.bios.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.bios.version: 1.7.0
dmi.board.name: 09JHRY
dmi.board.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.board.version: A00
dmi.chassis.type: 9
dmi.chassis.vendor: Dell Inc.
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnDellInc.:bvr1.7.0:bd01/16/2018:svnDellInc.:pnXPS139350:pvr:rvnDellInc.:rn09JHRY:rvrA00:cvnDellInc.:ct9:cvr:
dmi.product.family: NULL
dmi.product.name: XPS 13 9350
dmi.sys.vendor: Dell Inc.
version.compiz: compiz N/A
version.libdrm2: libdrm2 2.4.91-2
version.libgl1-mesa-dri: libgl1-mesa-dri 18.0.0~rc5-1ubuntu1
version.libgl1-mesa-glx: libgl1-mesa-glx 18.0.0~rc5-1ubuntu1
version.xserver-xorg-core: xserver-xorg-core 2:1.19.6-1ubuntu4
version.xserver-xorg-input-evdev: xserver-xorg-input-evdev N/A
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

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

This change was made by a bot.

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Do the backlight keys help at all?

I'm wondering if it's just the backlight being turned off.

[Christopher Torgalson (bedlamhotel)]

Hi Daniel. The backlight keys do not help.

Prior to the kernel version in question, Ubuntu 17.x and 18.x on this machine had occasional backlight problems on waking from suspend that I could resolve by closing the lid, waiting a few seconds and reopening the lid.

As far as I can tell, this doesn't respond to function keys or the switch in the hinge.

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Does switching VTs (Ctrl+Alt+F4) turn it on?

Also if you SSH into the machine while it's still on the login screen, does writing to:

  /sys/class/backlight/*/brightness

like

  cp /sys/class/backlight/*/max_brightness /sys/class/backlight/*/brightness

then make the login screen visible?

[6d6f6f (6d6f6f)]

I am experiencing the same problem. When I boot with any other kernel than 4.15.0-20-generic the internal display goes black after GRUB.

IMPORTANT: External display through USB-C works fine.

* Dell XPS 13 9350 Developer Edition.
* Ubuntu 18.04 (fresh install).
* Any other kernel than 4.15.0-20-generic.
* Internal display goes black, external display works fine.
* Switching VT does not turn the screen on.
* Adjusting backlight does nothing.
* Changing resolution does nothing.

[Joseph Salisbury (jsalisbury)]

Would it be possible for you to test the latest upstream kernel? Refer to https://wiki.ubuntu.com/KernelMainlineBuilds . Please test the latest v4.18 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'.

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/v4.18-rc6

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Almost, maybe related to bug 1782739

[Christopher Torgalson (bedlamhotel)]

@jsalisbury: Thanks!

Tested with 4.18.0-041800rc6 & no change. Issue tags and status updated.

[Christopher Torgalson (bedlamhotel)]

Update: I wanted to make sure of the problem still existing in the 4.18.0 kernel, so I started from scratch again with the following steps:

1. Reinstall Ubuntu minimal install (without downloading updates which is what updates the kernel to the problem version),
2. Update kernel to 4.18.0,
3. Install updates.

It now works. I'm not sure what happened the last time with the new kernel version. Presumably I borked it somehow.

Removing "kernel-bug-exists-upstream", but retaining "Confirmed" status (I hope that's correct).

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

Thanks.

I think the next step is to find out exactly where the fix first appeared. Please try more kernel versions and find the two versions closest together where one works and the other does not...

http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/?C=N;O=D

[Christopher Torgalson (bedlamhotel)]

Thanks Daniel. I've spent all morning testing kernels, and here're my results. Spoiler nothing after 4.15 works reliably, and mostly doesn't work at all.

In detail:

- 4.15.0-12-generic: Works
  This is what I get after a minimal install where I don't allow the installer to download updates.
- 4.16.0-generic: Fails
- 4.17.0-generic: Fails
- 4.18.0-rc6: Fails
- 4.18.0-rc6: Fails

With both of 4.18.0 rc6 and rc7, I can get to the desktop by restarting in recovery mode only. It loses my displays settings (this machine has the hdpi screen), but appears to work otherwise. I'm still not sure how one time out of three, I seem to have gotten a working install on the rc6 kernel.

Also with both rcs, at boot time here's what I see:

- Black screen (normal)
- Turns grey (normal, I expect to see the decrypt screen next)
- Flash of terminal text (not normal)
- Screen goes dark (not normal)

I don't know how to recover the text that flashes up, but if you know where it might be logged etc, I can dig it up.

[Kai-Heng Feng (kaihengfeng)]

Does this still happen to latest mainline kernel or latest Ubuntu 18.04 kernel?

[Christopher Torgalson (bedlamhotel)]

It was still happening on 4.19-rc1. I'll test on later 4.19 rcs over the weekend.

[Oliver Rew (oliver-rew)]

I did not see it mentioned above, so I figured it was worth noting.

This black screen problem is also experienced by many Dell XPS 13 windows users.
https://www.dell.com/community/XPS/XPS-13-9350-Black-Screen/td-p/5912336

No one has yet found a real fix, but there is some speculative talk about it relating to microcode on the Intel HD 520 Embedded Graphics. It is pretty much agreed in that community that this first started taking place after the 2-13-2018 release of the Intel HD 520 Graphics Driver(15.65.4.4944). It did on my own Dell XPS 13 (9350).

https://downloadcenter.intel.com/product/88355/Intel-HD-Graphics-520

The only widely accepted fix was reverting back to the default Windows Graphics Driver. I personally reinstalled Windows multiple times and tried to install every past HD 520 driver to no avail. After that, I switched to Ubuntu and it worked for a while until this bug.

[Kai-Heng Feng (kaihengfeng)]

Would it be possible for you to do a kernel bisection?

First, find the last good -rc kernel and the first bad -rc kernel from http://kernel.ubuntu.com/~kernel-ppa/mainline/

Then,
$ sudo apt build-dep linux
$ git clone git://git.kernel.org/pub/scm/linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux.git
$ cd linux
$ git bisect start
$ git bisect good $(the good version you found)
$ git bisect bad $(the bad version found)
$ make localmodconfig
$ make -j`nproc` deb-pkg
Install the newly built kernel, then reboot with it.
If the issue still happens,
$ git bisect bad
Otherwise,
$ git bisect good
Repeat to "make -j`nproc` deb-pkg" until you find the commit that causes the regression.

[Christopher Torgalson (bedlamhotel)]

I'll try to to the bisection this coming weekend.

[A S (eenuep)]

Are there known fixes to this bug?

I was using Ubuntu 18.04-22.04 up until a few weeks ago without a problem.
Now I'm experiencing the exact same bug - Black screen starting at encryption login.
External monitor works fine.

it seems like recent kernel or Intel HD 520 driver updates did break this again after it worked for years.

[A S (eenuep)]

Additional information:
6.2.0-34 and -35 does not work
6.2.0-26 does not produce the black screen issue. (but iwlwifi stopped working, so I'm reinstalling the system)

If you need additional information or if I should create a new bug ticket, please let me know.

lshw -C display shows:
product: Skylake GT2 [HD Graphics 520]
Version: 07
configuration: depth=32 resolution=3200,1800

while I am logged in with the working 6.2.0-26 kernel.

---------

When reinstalling Ubuntu 22.04 on the XPS 13 9350 make sure to not use the "connect to WiFi and update system during installation" or else you end up with the newer kernel and black screen issue again.

If you don't connect to Wifi during installation you should be fine using this device.
Unfortunatelly, even `apt update && apt upgrade` and restarting the system breaks it again -.-

I guess no updates anymore until I seel this to a windows user who can have some more years with this nice notebook :)

[Daniel van Vugt (vanvugt)]

This bug is over 5 years old now so it would probably be helpful to get a fresh bug report from 22.04 if you're experiencing something similar. Please run:

  ubuntu-bug linux