Comment 115 for bug 993187

Using Ubuntu 12.04 LTS 64 bit and stock kernel 3.2.0.24 (i5-3570K, MSI Z77 MB). Had complete freezes with Gnome-shell, Unity 3D, Unity 2D, Gnome classic with effects. I had been running Gnome classic without effects for over a week with no problems but I just had my first complete system freeze editing an email with Thunderbird. So much for this LTS release. I am going to try the 3.2 patched kernel in post #103 and will post my findings. Problem with a bug like this is that you never really know if your machine is really running stable. I thought I could get by with Gnome classic without effects but I now know different. It does seem to freeze less under simpler GUI.

By the way, I haven't downloaded the proposed backports but after enabling it in sources, I noticed there is a kernel update. After reading the description, I found no references to our particular bug in the update description so I decided to try the #103 patch and wait for an official update instead.

For the inexperienced, updating the kernel can seem complicated and dangerous but correct me if I am wrong, with Linux, you can run multiple kernels right from grub (Hence the need to purge kernels after a year of updates). It is one of the reasons why I like Linux. If an updated kernel is unstable or buggy, you can always revert back to the old one by selecting it in the grub menu at boot. The only real trouble arises when you use third party hardware drivers that patch the kernel. You sometimes have to install them for every kernel version you use.