[Nottingham] ironic Xserver failure

[Robert Postill]

David Wolfson wrote:

>The syptoms we're users not being able to log in, and various 'no gos' on print jobs and the like, leading to hitting the reset button.  At the suggstion of the reboot process I ran a verification test of '/' which found MULTIPLE bad/cloned blocks 
>  
>
The first thing to do is post your log files (/var/log/messages is the 
one that initially will be of most interest), that will allow others to 
make some educated guesses regarding  whats going on.  Also some details 
of your config, (output of df -k, lspci, vmstat, lsmod and dmesg )My 
first thought though is it sounds like your hard disk is on its way out.

>After an automatic reboot, it got as far as a login prompt ... log file and it looks as though it's struggling to find fonts.
>  
>
If you're getting bad blocks on your disk then your system libraries or 
binaries could be trashed...you did split off a /home partition so you 
reinstall the OS without vaping your users work didn't you.... :)

>So my question is, how do I reconfigure the Xserver?  I've been trying all afternoon, so far with no luck.  I thought I was onto a winner when I tried to 'upgrade' the OS selecting all the X options, but still no luck.  The really odd thing is that this process managed to use the GUIs, having sucessfully used X!
>  
>
To config your X windows system, assuming you've not got a dying hard 
disk (in which case you're urinating into the wind:) use either:
XF86Setup - bit newer, I've not had the best experiences with it though.
xf86config  - ugly but usable, have your monitor docs on hand though.
Remember to take a copy of your XF86Config  file (should be under 
/etc/X11/ and may also have a 4 at the end) .  If you wish to be flash 
get RCS/CVS on the case.  Either method allow you to foll your changes 
back if required, RCS/CVS will just allow you to roll back multiple 
versions and save a little space on copying the file to X86Config.old.

> <>
> I'm about ready to throw in the towel and go home to drink tea in 
> front of the dead sky box (blues screens are so soothing!). 

You can do worse than look at with a clear head in the morning.
Good luck - use the force Dave!

Robert.