Re: [MLUG] [Help Needed] Issue in Linux – System Freezing After Update

[Tom P]

I forget that the keystroke is to get a text-mode console-- maybe Ctrl+Alt+Fx where x is 1, 2, 3, 4,or 5. Or is it Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Fx ? Some distros might use that.

There should be another virtual terminal available via each Fx key. 

Once the machine is locked up, try Ctrl+Alt+F2 and see if you get a text mode login prompt. If you can log in, then maybe the desktop or display manager is locking up. You could at least issue a clean reboot command: sudo reboot now

Actually, you can do this any time, even when the machine is working fine. Issue the key sequence and see what happens. One of the Fx keys-- probably F7 (Ctrl+Alt+F7 maybe) will return you to your current GUI session.

If it's just the desktop or display manager that's locked up and you can get a text mode login, there are other troubleshooting steps that I'm sure someone will mention. 

I recommend you try the Ctrl+Alt+F1 (or F2 or F3 or...) before it locks up. One you've logged in at the text command line, you can noodle around in BASH, then type exit or Ctrl+D to log out of that virtual TTY, then switch back to your GUI session with CTRL+ALT+F7 (which I think is CTRL+ALT+F6 on some distros.)

Another question: Does the lockup happen at a fixed timeout after your last keystroke or mouse move? Maybe the drivers for power management are buggy or the screen lock timeout has an issue. 

Anyone else?

-T

On Thu, Sep 11, 2025 at 9:06 AM Sarah Kim <sarahk...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hello everyone,

I’m experiencing a problem with my Linux system and need some advice.

• Distribution & Version: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

• Hardware Details: Dell Inspiron laptop, Intel i5, 8GB RAM

• Problem Description: After a recent system update, my laptop keeps freezing randomly. Sometimes it happens while browsing the web, and other times even when the system is idle. I have to force restart every time.

• Steps Tried So Far:

  • Updated all packages using sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

  • Checked system logs with dmesg and journalctl, but I’m not sure how to interpret the errors

  • Tried booting with the older kernel from GRUB – the problem still occurs

• Error Messages (if any): Occasionally I see “GPU hang” errors in the logs.

If anyone has faced this issue or knows possible fixes (maybe graphics driver or kernel-related), please guide me.

Thank you for your help!

Best regards,

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[James Meyer]

On Thursday, September 11, 2025 2:15:25 PM CDT James Meyer wrote:
> What Tom said is a good start.
> Typically this is a graphics driver problem, and when it happens it can lock
> the keyboard,mouse up as well.
>
> If what Tom said doesn't work, then try using ssh from a different computer.
>
> What is the model of the Dell?

>
> On Thursday, September 11, 2025 10:10:13 AM CDT Tom P wrote:
> > I forget that the keystroke is to get a text-mode console-- maybe
> > Ctrl+Alt+Fx where x is 1, 2, 3, 4,or 5. Or is it Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Fx ? Some
> > distros might use that.
> >
> > There should be another virtual terminal available via each Fx key.
> >
> > Once the machine is locked up, try Ctrl+Alt+F2 and see if you get a text
> > mode login prompt. If you can log in, then maybe the desktop or display
> > manager is locking up. You could at least issue a clean reboot command:

> > *sudo reboot now*

> >
> > Actually, you can do this any time, even when the machine is working fine.
> > Issue the key sequence and see what happens. One of the Fx keys-- probably
> > F7 (Ctrl+Alt+F7 maybe) will return you to your current GUI session.
> >
> > If it's just the desktop or display manager that's locked up and you can
> > get a text mode login, there are other troubleshooting steps that I'm sure
> > someone will mention.
> >
> > I recommend you try the Ctrl+Alt+F1 (or F2 or F3 or...) before it locks
> > up.
> > One you've logged in at the text command line, you can noodle around in

> > BASH, then type *exit* or Ctrl+D to log out of that virtual TTY, then

> > switch back to your GUI session with CTRL+ALT+F7 (which I think is
> > CTRL+ALT+F6 on some distros.)
> >
> > Another question: Does the lockup happen at a fixed timeout after your
> > last
> > keystroke or mouse move? Maybe the drivers for power management are buggy
> > or the screen lock timeout has an issue.
> >
> > Anyone else?
> >
> > -T
> >
> > On Thu, Sep 11, 2025 at 9:06 AM Sarah Kim <sarahk...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > Hello everyone,
> > >
> > > I’m experiencing a problem with my Linux system and need some advice.
> > >

> > > -
> > >
> > > *Distribution & Version:* Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
> > > -
> > >
> > > *Hardware Details:* Dell Inspiron laptop, Intel i5, 8GB RAM
> > > -
> > >
> > > *Problem Description:* After a recent system update, my laptop keeps

> > > freezing randomly. Sometimes it happens while browsing the web, and
> > > other
> > > times even when the system is idle. I have to force restart every
> > > time.

> > > -
> > >
> > > *Steps Tried So Far:*
> > > -

> > >
> > > Updated all packages using sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

> > > -

> > >
> > > Checked system logs with dmesg and journalctl, but I’m not sure
> > > how
> > > to interpret the errors

> > > -

> > >
> > > Tried booting with the older kernel from GRUB – the problem still
> > > occurs

> > > -
> > >
> > > *Error Messages (if any):* Occasionally I see “GPU hang” errors in

> > > the
> > > logs.
> > >
> > > If anyone has faced this issue or knows possible fixes (maybe graphics
> > > driver or kernel-related), please guide me.
> > >
> > > Thank you for your help!
> > >
> > > Best regards,
> > >
> > > --
> > > Homepage: http://www.milwaukeelug.org/home
> > > This forum online: https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/MilwaukeeLUG
> > > ---
> > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
> > > Groups
> > > "Milwaukee Linux User's Group" group.
> > > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send
> > > an
> > > email to MilwaukeeLUG...@googlegroups.com.
> > > To view this discussion visit
> > > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/MilwaukeeLUG/d3875d27-e357-416c-b4a8-f
> > > 4c
> > > eb90f1dbdn%40googlegroups.com

> > > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/MilwaukeeLUG/d3875d27-e357-416c-b4a8-> > > f
> > > 4ceb90f1dbdn%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> .

[Sarah Kim]

Thank you all 

[Tom P]

Did you make any progress?

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/MilwaukeeLUG/771a475a-f595-4ff0-817b-eb0a30096b47n%40googlegroups.com.

[Tom]

I'm trying to us a program called GRAMPS (genealogy) on my Fedora KDE machine. Gramps runs from a snap. I got an shortcut created on the KDE desktop and changed its icon to one from the software, so it looks like what it does.

 

So far so good.

 

But I'm not used to a GUI, being a command line kinda guy.

 

So I want to change where it stores its data so it's on my array, not in my home directory. And I want it to do its backups on a NAS I have mounted.

 

In the Edit-->Preferences  menu, the Database Path field, and the Backup Path, won't show certain directories.

 

The NASs are all mounted in /data but I can't get the dialog to show me that directory.

The RAID array on this machine is mounted in /raid

 

[root@simak sbin]# ll -d /raid /data

drwxrwxrwx. 10 root root 4096 Apr 21 2025 /data

drwxrwxrwx. 6 root root 64 Dec 19 15:32 /raid

 

Those directoroes were owned by nobody:nobody originally.

 

Niether of those can be selected in the GUI. I changed ownership to tom:tom then exited the software and started it again, but that made no difference.

 

The dialog box shows only Recent Home Documents Downloads Music Pictures Videos Tom

I can click on the +Other Locations link, and then it shows Computer and when I click on that, I get a long list of directories, but NOT /raid or /data.

 

Some of the dirs I see are:

bin

bin.usr-is-merged

boot

dev

etc

home

<skip some>

opt

proc

root

run

sbin

sbin.usr-is-merged

snap

srv

sys

tmp

usr

var

writeable

 

They are in order by name and I can sort them forward or reverse by name, size, modified, etc. As you can see, /data is not represented here, nor is /raid. And yet it looks like a complete list of the top-level directories, with some stubbornly missing.

 

Any idea? Is this somehow because it's snap?

 

[root@simak sbin]# getfacl /raid

# file: raid

# owner: tom

# group: tom

user::rwx

group::rwx

other::rwx

 

[root@simak sbin]# getfacl /data/

# file: data/

# owner: tom

# group: tom

user::rwx

group::rwx

other::rwx