Pop! os does not restart properly after freezing

jsbjsb001 · 12-19-2020, 06:51 AM

I'm a tad confused by your reply, so if you could answer the following questions, that would be helpful...

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeinzBeur

...
I attached the screen after pressing "e" in GRUB. Maybe you can find some info there.
I added `nomodeset` in the line and pressed ctrl + X.
The screen gets back to the one in the previous screenshot (platform device creation failed: -16 + other things) and quickly after this line is appended to the screen:

Code:

[    4.321480] systemd[1]: Failed to start Remount Root and Kernal File Systems.

Did you add nomodeset at the end of the line beginning with "linux" leaving a space in between "vt_handoff" at the end of that same line and "nomodeset" ?

What do you mean by "the screen gets back to the one in the previous screenshot" ? Did your system boot up once you pressed CTRL+X (without the plus sign)?
Have you seen the error systemd is giving you before now?

Quote:

Then I get to a next screen where there is only a lower dash blinking, and after 1 min maybe this appears:

Code:

[    66.686119] hdaudio hdaudioCOD2: Unable to bind the codec]

Not sure if this is linked to the problem.Probably not (https://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2437409). In any case nothing happened in the next 5 mins, so I just rebooted the computer on the pop os dongle to get around the issue (as described in earlier posts).

Yes, it might be related to having nomodeset as a kernel parameter, although and like I said above, by putting it in to the kernel's command-line in the way I suggested does not make it a permanent change.

Quote:

Does that trigger any guess?

All it shows is that you pressed "e" at the GRUB screen, so while that's the GRUB I was referring to above, it doesn't show that you actually added nomodeset as a kernel parameter.

Assuming adding nomodeset didn't change anything and you're still having the same problem, it might be an unrelated piece of hardware in your system that is causing the freezing.

Are you running Pop OS from a hard/SSD drive, or something else (such as a USB stick)?

If you have Pop OS installed on a hard/SSD drive, can you post the output of the following command in CODE tags:

Code:

smartctl -a /dev/sdX

Replace the "sdX" part with the actual device node of the drive you have Pop OS installed on. If you're not sure you can run the command below and take note of the value under the heading "UUID" that's on the same line as the forward slash (/) under the heading "MOUNTPOINT", and compare the same UUID with the one in your screenshot above where it say's "root=" on the line starting with "linux".

Code:

lsblk -f

MeinzBeur · 12-19-2020, 08:13 AM

Oups, sorry not to be clear. So here:
* Yes, exactly,".....$vt_handoff nomodeset"
* Not sure if the system boots after ctrl + x. It "moves on" in any case and I reach the screen like the screenshot I posted on post #13. So yes, I have seen that error message before. However, normally it is stuck there. Now (with nomodeset) the following line get appended few seconds later:

Code:

[    4.321480] systemd[1]: Failed to start Remount Root and Kernal File Systems.

This line I never saw it before.

Quote:

All it shows is that you pressed "e" at the GRUB screen, so while that's the GRUB I was referring to above, it doesn't show that you actually added nomodeset as a kernel parameter.

Assuming adding nomodeset didn't change anything and you're still having the same problem, it might be an unrelated piece of hardware in your system that is causing the freezing.

I did add nomodeset, and it did change some things (as described above), but it does still not boot properly.

I do run pop os installed on my hard drive.

I had to install smartmontools. I then found the same value in the UUID column as after "root=" on the screenshot. And it tells me the node is sda1.
So:

Code:

sudo smartctl -a /dev/sda1
smartctl 7.1 2019-12-30 r5022 [x86_64-linux-5.8.0-7630-generic] (local build)
Copyright (C) 2002-19, Bruce Allen, Christian Franke, www.smartmontools.org

=== START OF INFORMATION SECTION ===
Device Model:     LITEON CV1-8B512
Serial Number:    KN5120L005541006A3HC
LU WWN Device Id: 0 000000 000000000
Firmware Version: G891201
User Capacity:    512,110,190,592 bytes [512 GB]
Sector Size:      512 bytes logical/physical
Rotation Rate:    Solid State Device
Device is:        Not in smartctl database [for details use: -P showall]
ATA Version is:   ACS-2 (minor revision not indicated)
SATA Version is:  SATA 3.1, 6.0 Gb/s (current: 6.0 Gb/s)
Local Time is:    Sat Dec 19 15:07:08 2020 CET
SMART support is: Available - device has SMART capability.
SMART support is: Enabled

=== START OF READ SMART DATA SECTION ===
SMART overall-health self-assessment test result: PASSED

General SMART Values:
Offline data collection status:  (0x00)	Offline data collection activity
					was never started.
					Auto Offline Data Collection: Disabled.
Self-test execution status:      (   0)	The previous self-test routine completed
					without error or no self-test has ever 
					been run.
Total time to complete Offline 
data collection: 		(    0) seconds.
Offline data collection
capabilities: 			 (0x11) SMART execute Offline immediate.
					No Auto Offline data collection support.
					Suspend Offline collection upon new
					command.
					No Offline surface scan supported.
					Self-test supported.
					No Conveyance Self-test supported.
					No Selective Self-test supported.
SMART capabilities:            (0x0003)	Saves SMART data before entering
					power-saving mode.
					Supports SMART auto save timer.
Error logging capability:        (0x01)	Error logging supported.
					General Purpose Logging supported.
Short self-test routine 
recommended polling time: 	 (   1) minutes.
Extended self-test routine
recommended polling time: 	 (  10) minutes.
SCT capabilities: 	       (0x003d)	SCT Status supported.
					SCT Error Recovery Control supported.
					SCT Feature Control supported.
					SCT Data Table supported.

SMART Attributes Data Structure revision number: 1
Vendor Specific SMART Attributes with Thresholds:
ID# ATTRIBUTE_NAME          FLAG     VALUE WORST THRESH TYPE      UPDATED  WHEN_FAILED RAW_VALUE
  1 Raw_Read_Error_Rate     0x002f   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
  5 Reallocated_Sector_Ct   0x0032   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       0
  9 Power_On_Hours          0x0002   100   100   000    Old_age   Always       -       2006
 12 Power_Cycle_Count       0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       3173
177 Wear_Leveling_Count     0x0000   100   100   000    Old_age   Offline      -       54165
178 Used_Rsvd_Blk_Cnt_Chip  0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
181 Program_Fail_Cnt_Total  0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
182 Erase_Fail_Count_Total  0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
187 Reported_Uncorrect      0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
188 Command_Timeout         0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       26
189 Unknown_SSD_Attribute   0x0000   100   100   000    Old_age   Offline      -       65
191 Unknown_SSD_Attribute   0x0000   100   100   000    Old_age   Offline      -       7
192 Power-Off_Retract_Count 0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       20
196 Reallocated_Event_Count 0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
198 Offline_Uncorrectable   0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
199 UDMA_CRC_Error_Count    0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       0
232 Available_Reservd_Space 0x0003   100   100   010    Pre-fail  Always       -       100
241 Total_LBAs_Written      0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       273141
242 Total_LBAs_Read         0x0003   100   100   000    Pre-fail  Always       -       438207

SMART Error Log Version: 1
No Errors Logged

SMART Self-test log structure revision number 1
No self-tests have been logged.  [To run self-tests, use: smartctl -t]

Selective Self-tests/Logging not supported

jsbjsb001 · 12-19-2020, 09:02 AM

I'm still confused about what you're saying here, since you seem to be saying on one hand it didn't boot, and on the other you seem to be saying it did.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeinzBeur

Oups, sorry not to be clear. So here:
* Yes, exactly,".....$vt_handoff nomodeset"
* Not sure if the system boots after ctrl + x. It "moves on" in any case and I reach the screen like the screenshot I posted on post #13. So yes, I have seen that error message before. However, normally it is stuck there. Now (with nomodeset) the following line get appended few seconds later:

When you press CTRL+X, does your machine display the login screen where you enter your username and password to login on to your system, where upon entering your username and/or password you see the desktop where you can start programs, yes or no?

What exactly do you mean by "normally it is stuck there"?

Describe exactly what happens in detail after you press CTRL+X after entering nomodeset.

Quote:

I did add nomodeset, and it did change some things (as described above), but it does still not boot properly.
...

Could you be more clear.

I didn't see anything concerning in the smartctl output.

MeinzBeur · 12-19-2020, 01:36 PM

argggg, sorry. Seems like in my head boot meant two things. After checking the definition I can now say that no, it did not boot. I never reach the login screen.
Hum, well, not sure how much more detail I can give. After ctrl + x:
Get to the screen as attached picture in post #13
This line get appended on the screen:

Code:

[    4.321480] systemd[1]: Failed to start Remount Root and Kernal File Systems.

Then move on to black screen with a blinking lower dash on the top left, then this line appear:

Code:

[    66.686119] hdaudio hdaudioCOD2: Unable to bind the codec]

And then nothing happens anymore (at least within 5 min, then I gave up and rebooted my computer on the pop os dongle).

By "normally it is stuck there", I mean that after a freeze, if I restart the computer (without going in grub and entering nomodeset), it stays stuck on the screenshot of post #13 or on a black screen. That is before I even arrive to the login page.

The only one way so far to fix the issue is to boot on the dongle, then switch off normally, remove dongle, start computer. Then it works.

I hope I am clearer this time. Thanks for the help

jsbjsb001 · 12-20-2020, 06:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeinzBeur

argggg, sorry. Seems like in my head boot meant two things. After checking the definition I can now say that no, it did not boot. I never reach the login screen.
Hum, well, not sure how much more detail I can give. After ctrl + x:
Get to the screen as attached picture in post #13
This line get appended on the screen:

Code:

[    4.321480] systemd[1]: Failed to start Remount Root and Kernal File Systems.

Then move on to black screen with a blinking lower dash on the top left, then this line appear:

Code:

[    66.686119] hdaudio hdaudioCOD2: Unable to bind the codec]

And then nothing happens anymore (at least within 5 min, then I gave up and rebooted my computer on the pop os dongle).

Yes, that is somewhat clearer, thanks for that.

But there is still a few things that aren't quite making sense here, as what I've quoted above seems to imply that on one hand you are talking about a system installed on an SSD/hard drive (I assume Pop! OS) and a system running from a USB stick or similar. It also seems to suggest that you cannot boot the system installed on your SSD/hard drive at all, but you are able to start the system (which I assume is still Pop! OS) on your USB stick or similar. Am I correct about that? If not, please clearly describe your setup the best you can.

In any case, even if you added nomodeset as a permanent change to your kernel parameters, that should not have any bearing on mounting filesystems, particularly if you added nomodeset as I said (that would not make any permanent change). And I'm somewhat doubtful that adding nomodeset would cause the second error quoted above either.

In case you're confusing a "hard drive" with a USB stick/dongle, they are *not* one of the same thing. Yes, you can buy an external USB hard drive (I've got one myself) that uses the USB interface to physically connect to your machine, but a USB stick and a USB hard drive are still *not* the same thing - albeit they both use the same interface.

Quote:

By "normally it is stuck there", I mean that after a freeze, if I restart the computer (without going in grub and entering nomodeset), it stays stuck on the screenshot of post #13 or on a black screen. That is before I even arrive to the login page.

The only one way so far to fix the issue is to boot on the dongle, then switch off normally, remove dongle, start computer. Then it works.

I hope I am clearer this time. Thanks for the help

As above, are we talking about two installations of Pop! OS here, with one on your machine's hard drive and another on a USB stick or similar, or are we only talking about one installation of Pop! OS (or another Linux distribution entirely)?

I think we need to clear this up before I can really offer any more suggestions, as I can't really suggest much else without being clear on your situation and it doesn't get you any closer to solving your problem(s) either.

MeinzBeur · 12-20-2020, 06:57 AM

Ok, here are the clarifications:
Pop os is installed on my computer (hardrive/SSD). That is the way I use it all the time.
In order to install it, I used a dongle/USB stick (downloaded the installation iso from the webpage and mounted it on the USB stick).

So now, when I use my computer and it freezes, I can only press the Power button to switch it off. After that, it does not boot anymore (as described in the earlier posts).

However, if I insert the pop os installation USB stick and switch on the computer, it will boot on the USB stick, without problem. The installation procedure of pop os starts (which is the purpose of the dongle), but instead of installing it I just click on power off.

Then I remove the stick from the computer, and I can boot the computer on the SSD based pop os installation without problem.

Is that fine?

jsbjsb001 · 12-20-2020, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeinzBeur

Ok, here are the clarifications:
Pop os is installed on my computer (hardrive/SSD). That is the way I use it all the time.
In order to install it, I used a dongle/USB stick (downloaded the installation iso from the webpage and mounted it on the USB stick).

So now, when I use my computer and it freezes, I can only press the Power button to switch it off. After that, it does not boot anymore (as described in the earlier posts).

However, if I insert the pop os installation USB stick and switch on the computer, it will boot on the USB stick, without problem. The installation procedure of pop os starts (which is the purpose of the dongle), but instead of installing it I just click on power off.

Then I remove the stick from the computer, and I can boot the computer on the SSD based pop os installation without problem.

Is that fine?

So does the installation of Pop! OS on your SSD drive boot or not, yes or no?
If it does, do you get the error messages you described before every time you start that same installation, or just sometimes?
Are you getting the freezing on that same installation?
Is there any improvement by adding nomodeset as a kernel parameter on that same installation?
Are you saying that when you boot from your USB stick, the system installed on your machine's SSD drive then works and does not fail to boot?

Please just answer yes or no to each of those questions. And let's just focus on your Pop! OS installation installed on your SSD drive without the USB stick being involved or mentioned in any way after you've answered the questions above.

MeinzBeur · 12-20-2020, 08:39 AM

Sorry but I cannot just answer yes/no. It depends!

Quote:

So does the installation of Pop! OS on your SSD drive boot or not, yes or no?

It depends. In general yes. I am using my computer all the time. But after a freezing issue it won't boot again before I boot once on the USB stick as described in post #21.

Quote:

If it does, do you get the error messages you described before every time you start that same installation, or just sometimes?

When it boots properly, I do not see any error messages.

Quote:

Are you getting the freezing on that same installation?

Yes. That is the one I am speaking about.

Quote:

Is there any improvement by adding nomodeset as a kernel parameter on that same installation?

Well, depends what you call an improvement. The post #19 describes what happens. Not sure if it is an improvement though. It does not boot.

Quote:

Are you saying that when you boot from your USB stick, the system installed on your machine's SSD drive then works and does not fail to boot?

Yes!

MeinzBeur · 12-20-2020, 08:47 AM

I just figured out something!
I tried to switch off the computer in the bad way: Pressing long enough on the ON/OFF button (even though my computer had not frozen). Result: I cannot boot behind either. That would suggest that the freezing has nothing to do with the issue. Instead I cannot boot if the computer was not switched off properly previously. Maybe some process that does not get terminated properly?

That could also explain why using the dongle once (and therefore switching off the computer properly) fixes the problem.

jsbjsb001 · 12-21-2020, 06:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeinzBeur

Sorry but I cannot just answer yes/no. It depends!

I'm honestly not trying to be rude, harsh or whatever, but when what you're saying isn't clear it's hard to offer any useful suggestions. I do realize that it's hard when I can't physically see exactly what you're doing and what's happening on your system, that's the limitation of forums like this, in that, you can only go on what you read here, the same as I can only go on what you say - it's not your fault, anymore than it's anyone else's fault, it is what it is.

Quote:

It depends. In general yes. I am using my computer all the time. But after a freezing issue it won't boot again before I boot once on the USB stick as described in post #21.

I'm honestly not sure what you mean by "I am using my computer all the time" in the context of my question. I also don't honestly understand how just by virtue of just booting from your USB stick, that "solves" anything. In that, I could boot from a USB stick on my machine and whatever problems may exist on the install on my internal drive, will still exist if I boot back in to that installation, and therefore, nothing would have changed. So either you must be doing something when running the install on your USB stick/dongle that's effecting the install on your SSD drive, or I'm missing something here. As I just don't see how by simply booting a system from a USB stick, "just fixes" a completely different installation.

Quote:

...
Well, depends what you call an improvement. The post #19 describes what happens. Not sure if it is an improvement though. It does not boot.

I meant, do you still have problems when booting with the nomodeset kernel parameter in place? The answer is either, yes, or it's, no.

Quote:

Yes!

Again, I'm struggling to see the link, unless you are doing something else you're not mentioning, like running some sort of "repair program" on the install on your SSD drive or similar.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeinzBeur

I just figured out something!
I tried to switch off the computer in the bad way: Pressing long enough on the ON/OFF button (even though my computer had not frozen). Result: I cannot boot behind either. That would suggest that the freezing has nothing to do with the issue. Instead I cannot boot if the computer was not switched off properly previously. Maybe some process that does not get terminated properly?

That could also explain why using the dongle once (and therefore switching off the computer properly) fixes the problem.

You've lost me, I'm sorry.

However, I did notice something when reviewing your kernel log that you posted earlier on, and I did notice something about filesystem errors (sorry I seem to have missed it before), which could very well be the reason for the freezing (and why I asked you before to run smartctl). Boot your system from your USB stick, open up a terminal window, and as the root user, run the following command to perform a filesystem check and fix it if need be;

Code:

fsck -y /dev/sda1

Note: It's important that the filesystem is NOT mounted when you run fsck, as it can damage the filesystem if it is mounted while still running fsck on it.

Assuming that repairing your filesystem doesn't solve the freezing issues, and you're saying that when adding nomodeset as a kernel parameter, and assuming you are actually adding it and it's actually booting with that parameter, you're still having the same freezing issues regardless, you can try adding the following as a kernel parameter in the same way I said before;

Code:

nomodeset i915.modeset=0 nvidia-drm.modeset=0

But this time, and assuming you can login to your system, please verify that you have actually added the above parameters by running the following command;

Code:

dmesg | grep vmlinuz

You should see a line that looks very similar (if not the same as) to this:

Code:

pop-os kernel: [    0.000000] Command line: BOOT_IMAGE=/boot/vmlinuz-5.8.0-7630-generic root=UUID=af0d9c54-7dcd-46cb-b52b-1d40d21a9b81 ro quiet splash nomodeset i915.modeset=0 nvidia-drm.modeset=0

If you see what I've highlighted in bold font, then you have booted the system with the kernel parameters I was talking about before, if you don't see what's in bold above, you haven't added them properly.

MeinzBeur · 12-21-2020, 08:04 AM

I know I know, and I am not angry (also another problem with such forums... one cannot see the emotions in the text). I am super glad that you are spending time trying to help me

My only problem is that I am not sure how to formulate things in a different way so that you can understand. I ll try again, and then I ll answer your questions.

Pop os is installed on my computer. It works well most of the time (no booting issue), but sometimes it freezes, usually during a visually demanding effort in a video game. My only solution then is to press the ON/OFF button to switch the computer off. Problem then: When I switch ON the computer again, it does not boot anymore. I never reach the login screen. Sometimes it stays stuck on a black screen, sometimes with the "platform device creation failed: -16" message that we spoke about in earlier posts.

My trick to get it to boot again, is to boot once on a pop os dongle, not do anything, but switch off properly the computer (click menu, power off/log out, power off). When the computer is off, I remove the dongle and switch on the computer again. It then boots without problem. Believe it or not (as I can see in your previous message), that is what happens...

So now, to come to the part where "I lost you" (previous post). I thought: what if the freezing is not the issue? Rather, the computer would not boot because I switched it OFF by pressing on the ON/OFF button instead of the "normal way" (click menu, power off/log out, power off). Therefore, I tried to switch off the computer like that (ON/OFF button) while using it (no freezing involved). Result: I faced the same issue. It does not boot. Conclusion: the freezing is not the issue, but rather the violent switching off using the ON/OFF button.

Interpretation: Could it be that some processes that did not get terminated properly when I switch the computer off using the ON/OFF button prevent the booting afterwards? Maybe that is what the dongle helps with: I do not do anything with it (no installation) but by allowing me to switch off properly the computer it terminates properly whatever was preventing the booting. Does that make sense?

Ok, so now to your questions:

* So one of the things is that you don't think that I am "doing nothing" while I am using the dongle. Well, I am, really. I boot on the dongle, and as soon as I get to the screen where I can click on power off, I do it. That is it. Does my description (few lines above) could potentially explain how the dongle "fixes" my SSD installation?

* I ll run fsck and see what comes out.

* I still cannot boot when I add nomodeset in the grub. Description in post #19. That means there is no way for me to know if it solves my freezing issue or not. Or do you want me to add nomodeset in the grub when my computer works normally and I do not have any booting issue?

jsbjsb001 · 12-21-2020, 08:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MeinzBeur

...
So now, to come to the part where "I lost you" (previous post). I thought: what if the freezing is not the issue? Rather, the computer would not boot because I switched it OFF by pressing on the ON/OFF button instead of the "normal way" (click menu, power off/log out, power off). Therefore, I tried to switch off the computer like that (ON/OFF button) while using it (no freezing involved). Result: I faced the same issue. It does not boot. Conclusion: the freezing is not the issue, but rather the violent switching off using the ON/OFF button.

I would not think a hard reset or shutdown would cause the system to fail to boot. It would likely cause orphaned inodes and a filesystem check to therefore be performed if the filesystem becomes "dirty" as a result.

Quote:

Interpretation: Could it be that some processes that did not get terminated properly when I switch the computer off using the ON/OFF button prevent the booting afterwards? Maybe that is what the dongle helps with: I do not do anything with it (no installation) but by allowing me to switch off properly the computer it terminates properly whatever was preventing the booting. Does that make sense?

I think at this point we should see if fsck turns up anything and go from there.

Quote:

Ok, so now to your questions:

* So one of the things is that you don't think that I am "doing nothing" while I am using the dongle. Well, I am, really. I boot on the dongle, and as soon as I get to the screen where I can click on power off, I do it. That is it. Does my description (few lines above) could potentially explain how the dongle "fixes" my SSD installation?

No, not if you are doing nothing other than clicking the power off button.

Quote:

* I ll run fsck and see what comes out.

Please do that.

However I forgot to mention before that you may want to run lsblk -f to make sure you target the right device node that corresponds with your system's root partition for the system on your internal SSD drive.

You can post the output from lsblk -f if you're not sure, and we'll figure it out.

Quote:

* I still cannot boot when I add nomodeset in the grub. Description in post #19. That means there is no way for me to know if it solves my freezing issue or not. Or do you want me to add nomodeset in the grub when my computer works normally and I do not have any booting issue?

Yes, but let's see what fsck turns up first before you do that. And once fsck has finished checking the root filesystem of your system installed on your SSD drive, check to see if the freezing issues are still there.

If the freezing is still happening after that, then try the kernel parameters in my previous post, but don't do anything else other than check if you can boot the system, and if you can boot it, if the parameters have been applied, and if they have been, if the freezing is still happening.

MeinzBeur · 12-21-2020, 10:37 AM

OK. HEre is the output of fsck. Rather long I would say. I ll try playing later today to see if I can get it to crash.

jsbjsb001 · 12-21-2020, 10:26 PM

Yes, quite a few orphaned inodes there. Start the system normally first (without adding any kernel parameters), and see if you still have the freezing issues. Then report back the results.

JSB · 12-22-2020, 03:12 PM

MeinzBeur, orphaned inodes often indicate that you had an unclean shutdown in the past, or maybe even that there is a hardware problem.
Usually these are fixed during early boot. Is this the case for you?