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Sick HTPC

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  Sick HTPC pinnerite <pinnerite@gmail.com> - 2026-04-14 21:08 +0100
    Re: Sick HTPC Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> - 2026-04-15 06:43 -0400
      Re: Sick HTPC pinnerite <pinnerite@gmail.com> - 2026-04-16 20:14 +0100
        Re: Sick HTPC Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> - 2026-04-16 17:08 -0400
          Re: Sick HTPC pinnerite <pinnerite@gmail.com> - 2026-04-18 22:02 +0100
            Re: Sick HTPC pinnerite <pinnerite@gmail.com> - 2026-04-19 21:44 +0100
              Re: Sick HTPC Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> - 2026-04-19 17:03 -0400
        Re: Sick HTPC Mike Easter <MikeE@ster.invalid> - 2026-04-16 22:58 -0700

#47119 — Sick HTPC

(Sorry if you find this vverbose).

I have an HTPC running on  Linux Mint 21.3

It shares a Widescreen TV (as a monitor) with broadcast and streamed TV.

Whenever I switch back from TV to HDMI1 (that the HTPC uses), the sound
icon on the panel will have disappeared usually fixed with a reboot.

Yesterday on a reboot it hung. Nothing would overcome this.

I have two kernels installed: 5.15.0_173 generic and 174.

From the grub menu I can get into repair mode with either kernel.
From there I can continue to "normal boot" but the resultant display is
both wider and deeper than the screen and hides the panel.

By opening Nemo I can "open as root" and then open a root terminal.
Nemo however doesn't show either "File" nor can I see "Start", nor the
use [X] at top right for closing any application I might be able to
open.

It would be nice to able to boot up normally if only to create a
back up Mythtv's database and recordings before deconstructing this
machine and rebuilding it with modern components, originally planned
for later this year. 

I would welcome some ideas.

Kind regards,

Alan

-- 
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-84-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda

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#47122

On Tue, 4/14/2026 4:08 PM, pinnerite wrote:
> (Sorry if you find this vverbose).
> 
> I have an HTPC running on  Linux Mint 21.3
> 
> It shares a Widescreen TV (as a monitor) with broadcast and streamed TV.
> 
> Whenever I switch back from TV to HDMI1 (that the HTPC uses), the sound
> icon on the panel will have disappeared usually fixed with a reboot.
> 
> Yesterday on a reboot it hung. Nothing would overcome this.
> 
> I have two kernels installed: 5.15.0_173 generic and 174.
> 
> From the grub menu I can get into repair mode with either kernel.
> From there I can continue to "normal boot" but the resultant display is
> both wider and deeper than the screen and hides the panel.
> 
> By opening Nemo I can "open as root" and then open a root terminal.
> Nemo however doesn't show either "File" nor can I see "Start", nor the
> use [X] at top right for closing any application I might be able to
> open.
> 
> It would be nice to able to boot up normally if only to create a
> back up Mythtv's database and recordings before deconstructing this
> machine and rebuilding it with modern components, originally planned
> for later this year. 
> 
> I would welcome some ideas.
> 
> Kind regards,
> 
> Alan
> 

   "resume   resume normal boot"  <=== presumably what you selected, as seen here as an option

https://unblog.ch/en/how-to-get-linux-mint-recovery-mode/

It sounds like a display manager is not running, so the nemo windows
is not "decorated". Nemo may be using the XYWH of a previous session,
while the desktop is running at 640x480 or 800x600 sort of thing.

When you don't have a display manager, you cannot bring a terminal
to the front if it is behind the other window (nemo).

It's possible the DKMS for your video card has expired (kernel version
too new). This is just a wild guess on my part. It's the only
thing I can think of, when it is likely the HTPC is running Xorg X11
server.

If the dialog boxes are too big, you can hold down the "alt" key and use
the mouse to move the item as desired. One of my VMs was also busted when
I went to use it, and to escape from the box I was in, required using
the "alt" key trick.

Depending on your video card, a newer video card may work. My 1080
still has drivers, but they won't last forever. And the newer video cards
aren't exactly "cheap". It's probably $400 here for a piece of crap.
The iGPU can be used, and it might be a bit newer than the
plugin video card. Only newer equipment has made iGPUs more
plentiful. My 11 year old Test Machine, doesn't have an iGPU,
but it does have 42 PCIe lanes.

   Paul

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#47124

On Wed, 15 Apr 2026 06:43:46 -0400
Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:

> On Tue, 4/14/2026 4:08 PM, pinnerite wrote:
> > (Sorry if you find this vverbose).
> > 
> > I have an HTPC running on  Linux Mint 21.3
> > 
> > It shares a Widescreen TV (as a monitor) with broadcast and streamed TV.
> > 
> > Whenever I switch back from TV to HDMI1 (that the HTPC uses), the sound
> > icon on the panel will have disappeared usually fixed with a reboot.
> > 
> > Yesterday on a reboot it hung. Nothing would overcome this.
> > 
> > I have two kernels installed: 5.15.0_173 generic and 174.
> > 
> > From the grub menu I can get into repair mode with either kernel.
> > From there I can continue to "normal boot" but the resultant display is
> > both wider and deeper than the screen and hides the panel.
> > 
> > By opening Nemo I can "open as root" and then open a root terminal.
> > Nemo however doesn't show either "File" nor can I see "Start", nor the
> > use [X] at top right for closing any application I might be able to
> > open.
> > 
> > It would be nice to able to boot up normally if only to create a
> > back up Mythtv's database and recordings before deconstructing this
> > machine and rebuilding it with modern components, originally planned
> > for later this year. 
> > 
> > I would welcome some ideas.
> > 
> > Kind regards,
> > 
> > Alan
> > 
> 
>    "resume   resume normal boot"  <=== presumably what you selected, as seen here as an option
> 
> https://unblog.ch/en/how-to-get-linux-mint-recovery-mode/
> 
> It sounds like a display manager is not running, so the nemo windows
> is not "decorated". Nemo may be using the XYWH of a previous session,
> while the desktop is running at 640x480 or 800x600 sort of thing.
> 
> When you don't have a display manager, you cannot bring a terminal
> to the front if it is behind the other window (nemo).
> 
> It's possible the DKMS for your video card has expired (kernel version
> too new). This is just a wild guess on my part. It's the only
> thing I can think of, when it is likely the HTPC is running Xorg X11
> server.
> 
> If the dialog boxes are too big, you can hold down the "alt" key and use
> the mouse to move the item as desired. One of my VMs was also busted when
> I went to use it, and to escape from the box I was in, required using
> the "alt" key trick.
> 
> Depending on your video card, a newer video card may work. My 1080
> still has drivers, but they won't last forever. And the newer video cards
> aren't exactly "cheap". It's probably $400 here for a piece of crap.
> The iGPU can be used, and it might be a bit newer than the
> plugin video card. Only newer equipment has made iGPUs more
> plentiful. My 11 year old Test Machine, doesn't have an iGPU,
> but it does have 42 PCIe lanes.
> 
>    Paul

Thanks Paul but I am using the onboard Intel graphics.
I decided to disconnect the HDMI lead andplug a spare monitor that I
bought for doing rebuilds. Altough I can only get into Cinnamon from
Repair Mode, I do now get a full screen. Tomorrow I plan to take a
backup of Mythconverg and will try and copy the resultant file and the
recordings to a 1TB plug-in NVme ready for the rebuild I will bring
forward. 

I have the processor but I will probably have to nick my wife's
running-away money to finance the rest. 

Regards,
Alan

-- 
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-84-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda

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#47125

On Thu, 4/16/2026 3:14 PM, pinnerite wrote:
> On Wed, 15 Apr 2026 06:43:46 -0400
> Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:
> 
>> On Tue, 4/14/2026 4:08 PM, pinnerite wrote:
>>> (Sorry if you find this vverbose).
>>>
>>> I have an HTPC running on  Linux Mint 21.3
>>>
>>> It shares a Widescreen TV (as a monitor) with broadcast and streamed TV.
>>>
>>> Whenever I switch back from TV to HDMI1 (that the HTPC uses), the sound
>>> icon on the panel will have disappeared usually fixed with a reboot.
>>>
>>> Yesterday on a reboot it hung. Nothing would overcome this.
>>>
>>> I have two kernels installed: 5.15.0_173 generic and 174.
>>>
>>> From the grub menu I can get into repair mode with either kernel.
>>> From there I can continue to "normal boot" but the resultant display is
>>> both wider and deeper than the screen and hides the panel.
>>>
>>> By opening Nemo I can "open as root" and then open a root terminal.
>>> Nemo however doesn't show either "File" nor can I see "Start", nor the
>>> use [X] at top right for closing any application I might be able to
>>> open.
>>>
>>> It would be nice to able to boot up normally if only to create a
>>> back up Mythtv's database and recordings before deconstructing this
>>> machine and rebuilding it with modern components, originally planned
>>> for later this year. 
>>>
>>> I would welcome some ideas.
>>>
>>> Kind regards,
>>>
>>> Alan
>>>
>>
>>    "resume   resume normal boot"  <=== presumably what you selected, as seen here as an option
>>
>> https://unblog.ch/en/how-to-get-linux-mint-recovery-mode/
>>
>> It sounds like a display manager is not running, so the nemo windows
>> is not "decorated". Nemo may be using the XYWH of a previous session,
>> while the desktop is running at 640x480 or 800x600 sort of thing.
>>
>> When you don't have a display manager, you cannot bring a terminal
>> to the front if it is behind the other window (nemo).
>>
>> It's possible the DKMS for your video card has expired (kernel version
>> too new). This is just a wild guess on my part. It's the only
>> thing I can think of, when it is likely the HTPC is running Xorg X11
>> server.
>>
>> If the dialog boxes are too big, you can hold down the "alt" key and use
>> the mouse to move the item as desired. One of my VMs was also busted when
>> I went to use it, and to escape from the box I was in, required using
>> the "alt" key trick.
>>
>> Depending on your video card, a newer video card may work. My 1080
>> still has drivers, but they won't last forever. And the newer video cards
>> aren't exactly "cheap". It's probably $400 here for a piece of crap.
>> The iGPU can be used, and it might be a bit newer than the
>> plugin video card. Only newer equipment has made iGPUs more
>> plentiful. My 11 year old Test Machine, doesn't have an iGPU,
>> but it does have 42 PCIe lanes.
>>
>>    Paul
> 
> Thanks Paul but I am using the onboard Intel graphics.
> I decided to disconnect the HDMI lead andplug a spare monitor that I
> bought for doing rebuilds. Altough I can only get into Cinnamon from
> Repair Mode, I do now get a full screen. Tomorrow I plan to take a
> backup of Mythconverg and will try and copy the resultant file and the
> recordings to a 1TB plug-in NVme ready for the rebuild I will bring
> forward. 
> 
> I have the processor but I will probably have to nick my wife's
> running-away money to finance the rest. 
> 
> Regards,
> Alan
> 

Do you have any "similar" hardware you could use for test ?
To test that the storage devices are OK. I just figured that
some update session, pushed it over the edge.

You could try one of the older kernels in Recovery Mode in
the GRUB menu and see if that works.

   Paul

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#47127

On Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:08:00 -0400
Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:

> On Thu, 4/16/2026 3:14 PM, pinnerite wrote:
> > On Wed, 15 Apr 2026 06:43:46 -0400
> > Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:
> > 
> >> On Tue, 4/14/2026 4:08 PM, pinnerite wrote:
> >>> (Sorry if you find this vverbose).
> >>>
> >>> I have an HTPC running on  Linux Mint 21.3
> >>>
> >>> It shares a Widescreen TV (as a monitor) with broadcast and streamed TV.
> >>>
> >>> Whenever I switch back from TV to HDMI1 (that the HTPC uses), the sound
> >>> icon on the panel will have disappeared usually fixed with a reboot.
> >>>
> >>> Yesterday on a reboot it hung. Nothing would overcome this.
> >>>
> >>> I have two kernels installed: 5.15.0_173 generic and 174.
> >>>
> >>> From the grub menu I can get into repair mode with either kernel.
> >>> From there I can continue to "normal boot" but the resultant display is
> >>> both wider and deeper than the screen and hides the panel.
> >>>
> >>> By opening Nemo I can "open as root" and then open a root terminal.
> >>> Nemo however doesn't show either "File" nor can I see "Start", nor the
> >>> use [X] at top right for closing any application I might be able to
> >>> open.
> >>>
> >>> It would be nice to able to boot up normally if only to create a
> >>> back up Mythtv's database and recordings before deconstructing this
> >>> machine and rebuilding it with modern components, originally planned
> >>> for later this year. 
> >>>
> >>> I would welcome some ideas.
> >>>
> >>> Kind regards,
> >>>
> >>> Alan
> >>>
> >>
> >>    "resume   resume normal boot"  <=== presumably what you selected, as seen here as an option
> >>
> >> https://unblog.ch/en/how-to-get-linux-mint-recovery-mode/
> >>
> >> It sounds like a display manager is not running, so the nemo windows
> >> is not "decorated". Nemo may be using the XYWH of a previous session,
> >> while the desktop is running at 640x480 or 800x600 sort of thing.
> >>
> >> When you don't have a display manager, you cannot bring a terminal
> >> to the front if it is behind the other window (nemo).
> >>
> >> It's possible the DKMS for your video card has expired (kernel version
> >> too new). This is just a wild guess on my part. It's the only
> >> thing I can think of, when it is likely the HTPC is running Xorg X11
> >> server.
> >>
> >> If the dialog boxes are too big, you can hold down the "alt" key and use
> >> the mouse to move the item as desired. One of my VMs was also busted when
> >> I went to use it, and to escape from the box I was in, required using
> >> the "alt" key trick.
> >>
> >> Depending on your video card, a newer video card may work. My 1080
> >> still has drivers, but they won't last forever. And the newer video cards
> >> aren't exactly "cheap". It's probably $400 here for a piece of crap.
> >> The iGPU can be used, and it might be a bit newer than the
> >> plugin video card. Only newer equipment has made iGPUs more
> >> plentiful. My 11 year old Test Machine, doesn't have an iGPU,
> >> but it does have 42 PCIe lanes.
> >>
> >>    Paul
> > 
> > Thanks Paul but I am using the onboard Intel graphics.
> > I decided to disconnect the HDMI lead andplug a spare monitor that I
> > bought for doing rebuilds. Altough I can only get into Cinnamon from
> > Repair Mode, I do now get a full screen. Tomorrow I plan to take a
> > backup of Mythconverg and will try and copy the resultant file and the
> > recordings to a 1TB plug-in NVme ready for the rebuild I will bring
> > forward. 
> > 
> > I have the processor but I will probably have to nick my wife's
> > running-away money to finance the rest. 
> > 
> > Regards,
> > Alan
> > 
> 
> Do you have any "similar" hardware you could use for test ?
> To test that the storage devices are OK. I just figured that
> some update session, pushed it over the edge.
> 
> You could try one of the older kernels in Recovery Mode in
> the GRUB menu and see if that works.
> 
>    Paul
> 
I got it going and it is stable right now.
I have taken a backup to an external plugpin SSD!
I have another question arising (seperate thread).

By chance a new kernel was downloaded yesterday.
That seems to have fixed it. 5.15.0-176 generic.
ChatGPT turned its nose up at 174.

Thanks for the suggestions.
Alan

-- 
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-84-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda

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#47138

On Sat, 18 Apr 2026 22:02:33 +0100
pinnerite <pinnerite@gmail.com> wrote:

> On Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:08:00 -0400
> Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:
> 
> > On Thu, 4/16/2026 3:14 PM, pinnerite wrote:
> > > On Wed, 15 Apr 2026 06:43:46 -0400
> > > Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> wrote:
> > > 
> > >> On Tue, 4/14/2026 4:08 PM, pinnerite wrote:
> > >>> (Sorry if you find this vverbose).
> > >>>
> > >>> I have an HTPC running on  Linux Mint 21.3
> > >>>
> > >>> It shares a Widescreen TV (as a monitor) with broadcast and streamed TV.
> > >>>
> > >>> Whenever I switch back from TV to HDMI1 (that the HTPC uses), the sound
> > >>> icon on the panel will have disappeared usually fixed with a reboot.
> > >>>
> > >>> Yesterday on a reboot it hung. Nothing would overcome this.
> > >>>
> > >>> I have two kernels installed: 5.15.0_173 generic and 174.
> > >>>
> > >>> From the grub menu I can get into repair mode with either kernel.
> > >>> From there I can continue to "normal boot" but the resultant display is
> > >>> both wider and deeper than the screen and hides the panel.
> > >>>
> > >>> By opening Nemo I can "open as root" and then open a root terminal.
> > >>> Nemo however doesn't show either "File" nor can I see "Start", nor the
> > >>> use [X] at top right for closing any application I might be able to
> > >>> open.
> > >>>
> > >>> It would be nice to able to boot up normally if only to create a
> > >>> back up Mythtv's database and recordings before deconstructing this
> > >>> machine and rebuilding it with modern components, originally planned
> > >>> for later this year. 
> > >>>
> > >>> I would welcome some ideas.
> > >>>
> > >>> Kind regards,
> > >>>
> > >>> Alan
> > >>>
> > >>
> > >>    "resume   resume normal boot"  <=== presumably what you selected, as seen here as an option
> > >>
> > >> https://unblog.ch/en/how-to-get-linux-mint-recovery-mode/
> > >>
> > >> It sounds like a display manager is not running, so the nemo windows
> > >> is not "decorated". Nemo may be using the XYWH of a previous session,
> > >> while the desktop is running at 640x480 or 800x600 sort of thing.
> > >>
> > >> When you don't have a display manager, you cannot bring a terminal
> > >> to the front if it is behind the other window (nemo).
> > >>
> > >> It's possible the DKMS for your video card has expired (kernel version
> > >> too new). This is just a wild guess on my part. It's the only
> > >> thing I can think of, when it is likely the HTPC is running Xorg X11
> > >> server.
> > >>
> > >> If the dialog boxes are too big, you can hold down the "alt" key and use
> > >> the mouse to move the item as desired. One of my VMs was also busted when
> > >> I went to use it, and to escape from the box I was in, required using
> > >> the "alt" key trick.
> > >>
> > >> Depending on your video card, a newer video card may work. My 1080
> > >> still has drivers, but they won't last forever. And the newer video cards
> > >> aren't exactly "cheap". It's probably $400 here for a piece of crap.
> > >> The iGPU can be used, and it might be a bit newer than the
> > >> plugin video card. Only newer equipment has made iGPUs more
> > >> plentiful. My 11 year old Test Machine, doesn't have an iGPU,
> > >> but it does have 42 PCIe lanes.
> > >>
> > >>    Paul
> > > 
> > > Thanks Paul but I am using the onboard Intel graphics.
> > > I decided to disconnect the HDMI lead andplug a spare monitor that I
> > > bought for doing rebuilds. Altough I can only get into Cinnamon from
> > > Repair Mode, I do now get a full screen. Tomorrow I plan to take a
> > > backup of Mythconverg and will try and copy the resultant file and the
> > > recordings to a 1TB plug-in NVme ready for the rebuild I will bring
> > > forward. 
> > > 
> > > I have the processor but I will probably have to nick my wife's
> > > running-away money to finance the rest. 
> > > 
> > > Regards,
> > > Alan
> > > 
> > 
> > Do you have any "similar" hardware you could use for test ?
> > To test that the storage devices are OK. I just figured that
> > some update session, pushed it over the edge.
> > 
> > You could try one of the older kernels in Recovery Mode in
> > the GRUB menu and see if that works.
> > 
> >    Paul
> > 
> I got it going and it is stable right now.

It is isn't. Despite the new kernel, the mouse cursor suddenly went
slow and the MythTV couldfn't get live TV. A reboot fixed it. For a
while. This has been going on for a fe years. I could nevedr pin down
the cause. But is now pretty old so a rebuild is imminent.

> I have taken a backup to an external plugpin SSD!
> I have another question arising (seperate thread).
> 
> By chance a new kernel was downloaded yesterday.
> That seems to have fixed it. 5.15.0-176 generic.
> ChatGPT turned its nose up at 174.
> 
> Thanks for the suggestions.
> Alan
> 

-- 
Linux Mint 22.1 kernel version 6.8.0-84-generic Cinnamon 6.4.8
AMD Ryzen 7 7700, Radeon RX 6600, 32GB DDR5, 2TB SSD, 2TB Barracuda

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#47139

On Sun, 4/19/2026 4:44 PM, pinnerite wrote:

> 
> It is isn't. Despite the new kernel, the mouse cursor suddenly went
> slow and the MythTV couldfn't get live TV. A reboot fixed it. For a
> while. This has been going on for a fe years. I could nevedr pin down
> the cause. But is now pretty old so a rebuild is imminent.

Did you take a look at "top" ?

There was one Promise brand chip, years ago, that could jam the
interrupt line and any running OS would then rely on its interrupt
limiter behavior, to have an CPU left to respond to any other activity
on the machine. Not many hardware devices have had defects like that.
Not all the Promise chips for that part number had the defect,
so there might have been a timing element to the behavior.

I don't know what tool would give a picture of interrupt activity.
On Windows, using Process Explorer, there is a line labeled
"Hardware Interrupts and DPCs", where a DPC is a Delay Procedure Call
which is the Ring 3 portion of interrupt handling, while Ring 0
is the Hardware Interrupt component. Minimal time is spent in the
Hardware Interrupt, whereas the DPC execution time might be 10x longer
as it is doing the actual service response (adding elements to a ring buffer
or similar). You would have to look for the similar elements on
Linux and what tool can read that portion out.

There aren't too many cases in hardware, where the actual clock rate
of the CPU was defective. There might have been a couple Dell laptops
where that was going on. I would think something interrupt related
(like an issue with the video card interrupts) is a more likely
kind of scenario. Oh, yeah, the Dell one was called "ThrottleGate"
because the clock would slow down, but it would not speed up
later. The document prepared by the person suffering from the
problem, was removed from the Internet, which is why you might
have trouble finding the details of that.

   Paul

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#47126

pinnerite wrote:
> I will probably have to nick my wife's
> running-away money

Ha.

-- 
Mike Easter

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