Ubuntu - Trying to get the second video card/monitor displayed!

Alright, I got it installed. I just wiped it clean and went for the silver balls.

Im still having the problem I had before. I can't get the darned second monitor to work. I did research on how to get it to work. Im digging through ubunutu forum posts... Im about to create a user there

Here's the terminal output. As you can see, it's there- somewhere. It's the 285 GTX. EVGA don't you know.

cliffy@ubuntu:/etc/X11$ lspci | grep VGA
02:00.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation GF100 [GeForce GTX 480] (rev a3)
[B]04:00.0 VGA compatible controller: NVIDIA Corporation GT200b [GeForce GTX 285] (rev a1)[/B]

I tried to vi the X11 configuration file (Xwrapper.config], there was only one.. There isn't a "device" section, and I'm lost.

Im going through all the tutorials and the such, but i'd also like to get work done and the second screen helps >.>

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Comments

inscom.brigade

looks like you are using 2 different types of cards? Windows will not suport that, Linux will?

Novalith478

I don't have much experience using dual monitors at all, but a few things that I think might point you in the right direction.

1) I think you might be able to change the proper settings in the xorg.conf file. I don't know where that's located on Ubuntu. Probably /etc/X11/xorg.conf if I had to guess.

2) There is also the option of using the xrandr command to rig a dual monitor setup.

Again I don't have much experience with this. Hope this helped at least a little.

WafflesAndRootbeer

Two cards requires all sorts of nasty freaky stuff that can be a pain to deal with. Always better to keep it simple with one card that has two outputs. Otherwise, it won't really work.

MentholMoose

Try using the nvidia-settings program to configure this. I believe the package is "nvidia-settings" on Ubuntu. It probably only supports the actual NVIDIA drivers and not the open source ones.

Roguetadhg

incom.brigade: Windows does support two different video cards. I have two different video cards on W7 with this rig, as well as my sole work computer has 2 video cards (XP)

Novalth478: there isn't a xorg.conf file

ubuntu:/etc/X11$ dir
app-defaults         fonts      xinit   Xreset.d    Xsession.d
cursors             rgb.txt  xkb      Xresources  Xsession.options
default-display-manager  X      Xreset  Xsession    Xwrapper.config

xrandr:

ubuntu:/etc/X11$ xrandr
Screen 0: minimum 320 x 200, current 2560 x 1600, maximum 8192 x 8192
DVI-I-1 connected 2560x1600+0+0 (normal left inverted right x axis y axis) 641mm x 401mm
   2560x1600      60.0*+
   1920x1440      60.0  
   1920x1200      59.9  
   1600x1200      60.0  
   1280x1024      75.0     60.0  
   1280x800       59.8  
   1152x864       75.0  
   1024x768       75.1     60.0  
   800x600        75.0     60.3  
   640x480        75.0     60.0  
   720x400        70.1  
DVI-I-2 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)
HDMI-1 disconnected (normal left inverted right x axis y axis)

WaffleAndRootBeer: I'm into the nasty freaky stuff. I like to reserve my 480 for the 30" monitor, solely.
MetholMoose: It's not installed, but I did read something about that. I'll try to follow Novalith478 & MetholMoose's ideas.

Novalith478

I know for a fact there's got to be a xorg.conf file somewhere. Might be under /etc/X11/X, who knows. I use FreeBSD, so the procedure for setting this up is a little different for me. Either way, I found somethings that might work for you/shed light on the issue.

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/X/Config/Resolution

How To Setup Dual Monitors With XRandR

For Debian (close enough):

Setting up dual monitors system-wide with XRandR on Debian Lenny - Lone Wolves - Web, game, and open source development

Roguetadhg

Alright, Im trying to dig through GNS3 documentation as well as other docs. I can see why people don't recommend learning more than 1 thing at a time :P

paul78

You can use TwinView with NVIDIA cards or Xinerama. I use TwinView. You should be able to configure it manually in your /etc/xorg.conf file or use the nvidia-settings application.

If you don't have /etc/xorg.conf, that just means that your distro doesn't ship with one. It's still used by X and you can just create it. Some distros put it in /user/share/X11/xorg.conf.d but I prefer to use /etc since that's the traditional place for system customizations.

Sample xorg.conf file enclosed

Section "ServerLayout"
    Identifier     "Layout0"
    Screen      0  "Screen0" 0 0
    InputDevice    "Keyboard0" "CoreKeyboard"
    InputDevice    "Mouse0" "CorePointer"
    Option         "Xinerama" "0"
EndSection

Section "Files"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
    # generated from data in "/etc/conf.d/gpm"
    Identifier     "Mouse0"
    Driver         "mouse"
    Option         "Protocol"
    Option         "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
    Option         "Emulate3Buttons" "no"
    Option         "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
    # generated from default
    Identifier     "Keyboard0"
    Driver         "kbd"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
    # HorizSync source: edid, VertRefresh source: edid
    Identifier     "Monitor0"
    VendorName     "Unknown"
    ModelName      "Samsung SMB2330"
    HorizSync       30.0 - 81.0
    VertRefresh     56.0 - 75.0
    Option         "DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Device"
    Identifier     "Device0"
    Driver         "nvidia"
    VendorName     "NVIDIA Corporation"
    BoardName      "GeForce GTX 580"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
    Identifier     "Screen0"
    Device         "Device0"
    Monitor        "Monitor0"
    DefaultDepth    24
    Option         "TwinView" "1"
    Option         "TwinViewXineramaInfoOrder" "DFP-0"
    Option         "metamodes" "DFP-0: nvidia-auto-select +0+0, DFP-2: nvidia-auto-se
lect +1920+0"
    SubSection     "Display"
        Depth       24
    EndSubSection
EndSection

I suspect that Ubuntu probably uses the open-source Nouveau drivers in the Linux kernel. You probably may want to consider using the proprietary drivers from NVIDIA instead. You can find the latest here - Unix Drivers Portal Page

MentholMoose

Novalith478 wrote: »

I know for a fact there's got to be a xorg.conf file somewhere.

Having an xorg.conf isn't required and most Linux distributions ship without one. With no xorg.conf the configuration is auto-detected, so normally you only use it to override the defaults / auto-detected configuration.

Roguetadhg

Alright, well I did a locate for the file, and found xorg:

@ubuntu:/etc/X11$ locate xorg.conf
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/10-evdev.conf
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/11-evdev-quirks.conf
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/11-evdev-trackpoint.conf
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/50-synaptics.conf
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/50-vmmouse.conf
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/50-wacom.conf
/usr/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/51-synaptics-quirks.conf
/usr/share/man/man5/xorg.conf.5.gz
charris@ubuntu:/etc/X11$
charris@ubuntu:/etc/X11$ dir
app-defaults  default-display-manager  rgb.txt    xinit  xorg.conf  Xreset.d    Xsession      Xsession.options
cursors       fonts               X    xkb    Xreset      Xresources  Xsession.d  Xwrapper.config
charris@ubuntu:/etc/X11$

So I guess I created the file, when I pico'd it. :P

I got it to open with pico (I think using 'vi' is how I screwed up the last time I tried to enable dual monitors):

Section "Device"
        Identifier      "Default Device"
        Option  "NoLogo"        "True"
EndSection

Sorry guys, I'm starting out on this adventure from 0 (practically) to hitting the ground running. I'm learning commands as I try to get things up and running

Which I guess, is a good thing! I'm trying to get GNS3 to also work. It's stubbornly doesn't want to accept the router: "Can't connect to the hypervisor on 127.0.0.1 port 7200: [Errno 111] connection refused" I'll tackle the xorg first as my other monitor looks so sad sitting there without something on it!

paul78

Couple of quick things.

The file list application in Unix and Linux variants is 'ls'. The -a option will list all files including file that start with a '.'. The -l option will list files in long format. I usually recommend that you get into habit of using 'ls -al' to list files.

As a first step, take the xorg.conf that I posted earlier and create the file as /etc/xorg.conf. You will need to set the resolution appropriately. Enable xinerama - I am guessing that Ubuntu includes it - set it to 1 in the file. You are also probably using the nouveau Linux driver so change that as well.

You can also try the proprietary nvidia drivers which comes with its own config tool that will create a valid xorg.conf file for you.

Roguetadhg

Im working my way through installing Nvidia drivers, in the mean while:

1. Is there a shortcut to type in long file names? "NVIDIA-Linux-x86_64-304.43.run".

2. I can't find xinerama. I tried daash search - no go. I tried the software center and found a movie player. I doubt you mean the movie player is what I need to install. I did a search for xinerama, and found that this is what I would need to enable multiple screen/heads. But I'm lost as to 'where' to get the installation files.

First thing first - getting nvidia setup to run. Whenever firefox doesn't want to crash on nVidia's website!

paul78

1. Most distros use bash as the default shell application. You can just press the TAB key for file completion.

2. If you are using to use the Nvidia drivers, don't worry about about Xinerama. That is an extension library to X. Not an application. If you are having problems with Firefox, try using a text-based browser. I usually use links which I believe most distros support.

hiddenknight821

Assuming you are using the classic GNOME, did you try looking under System > Administration > Hardware Drivers? You should be able to enable the Nvidia driver if your video card is actually Nvidia-based or you can also use sudo apt-get install nvidia-173 command. After doing either one, you should see Nvidia X Server Settings under System > Administration.

And for GNS3, you should use the gksudo gns3 command each time you run the program. It is meant to run as root as it requires access to the physical interfaces if you want to connect your hardware to it. Although, this isn't why you're seeing the hypervisor error messages. I think you need to start over the topology and add the IOS to the GNS3 again. I should warn you that the GUI won't look lovely, and all of the settings are under the root's home directory (/root) by default, but you can change that, of course.

Roguetadhg

Okay, I won't bother with Xinerama. I've been trying to shutdown Xserver. It's freezing up when I perform 'sudo init 1'.
The other two options give me this output: Source: Ubuntu Linux shutdown the X server

immorcharris@ubuntu:/$ sudo /etc/init.d/gdm stop
sudo: /etc/init.d/gdm: command not found
immorcharris@ubuntu:/$ sudo /etc/init.d/kdm stop
sudo: /etc/init.d/kdm: command not found

I got GNS3 with dynamps together, so I'm probably just going to give it another go at it and redownload and try to reconfigure.

hiddenknight821

When you shutdown the X server, you are essentially asking to exit the GUI and enter into single-mode CLI. I thought the goal of this thread is to set up dual display, and that's not what you want to do.

Roguetadhg

1. That is, indeed the goal - setup multiple monitors

- Located the Xorg.conf file
- Learned about editing/creating files.
- Learned how to show the contents of a directory
- pasted the configuration

2. Paul advised that I wouldn't need to have xinerama if I installed nvidia drivers. As nVidia would actually create a working xorg.conf file.
- Fought Firefox and won.
- Download the correct drivers

3. Now im trying to install nvidia drivers to get multiple monitors.
- chmod +x (drivers) [Learned how to make files executable]
- sudo ./(drivers) [how to make files execute]

4. Nvidia, while trying to install the drivers, advised me I had to shutdown X server to install it.
- sudo init 1
- sudo /etc/init.d/gdm

So im sitting on trying to shutdown X, so I can goahead and sudo those drivers.

That's what has been happening so far.
Im keeping track of what I've done, and the mistakes I've made in this thread. So every misstep is a good step. I'm learning quickly that this is pretty awesome.

Im not too worried about things looking pretty :P If it does it's job, im more than happy with it.

paul78

Hmm.. I forgot that most distros boot and start X. I am not familiar with how most distros do that but I could look later in the evening. I probably would try to just login using via a linux tty (press alt-f1 or alt-f2, etc). And then locate the X process and kill it. But if your distro starts X most init, it will probably just respawn.

hiddenknight821

My mistake. I had no idea Nvidia would ask you to shut them down. I'm trying to work with you, so bare with me. I find it a bit strange that /etc/init.d/gdm isn't found on your machine. Can you at least tell me which version of Ubuntu you're using? I'm running Ubuntu in 10.04 in VM to help you troubleshoot this.

In my case, I got different outputs when I try to shutdown GNOME Desktop Manager, but I was told to use another command to stop it. It turned out it's already stopped. So, not sure what else is running the X Server. I will keep looking for answers.

Roguetadhg

What command were you told to use?

running 12.04 LTS

I think. It may have updated, is there a definite way to check?

Edit: I found the details in the GUI. Is there a CLI version?

Here's what's in init.d:

total 188
drwxr-xr-x   2 root root  4096 Aug 27 19:23 .
drwxr-xr-x 139 root root 12288 Aug 29 10:15 ..
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Dec  8  2011 acpid -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   652 Jan  4  2010 acpi-support
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr  4 00:12 alsa-restore -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr  4 00:12 alsa-store -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Aug 27 16:06 anacron -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  4596 Apr 12 07:17 apparmor
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 27 04:07 apport -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Oct 25  2011 atd -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Dec 17  2011 avahi-daemon -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Nov 25  2011 binfmt-support -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 21 17:05 bluetooth -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2444 Jul 14  2011 bootlogd
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2125 Aug 29  2011 brltty
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 19 12:18 console-setup -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jun 19 16:26 cron -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Aug 20 10:06 cups -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Feb 22  2012 dbus -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rw-r--r--   1 root root    24 Oct 12  2011 .depend.boot
-rw-r--r--   1 root root    24 Oct 12  2011 .depend.start
-rw-r--r--   1 root root    10 Oct 12  2011 .depend.stop
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 30 13:22 dmesg -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1242 Dec 13  2011 dns-clean
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jun 29 19:02 failsafe-x -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 14 10:02 friendly-recovery -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1105 Oct  1  2011 grub-common
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1329 Jul 14  2011 halt
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Aug 27 16:06 hostname -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 30 00:49 hwclock -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 30 00:49 hwclock-save -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Feb  4  2012 irqbalance -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1893 Oct  9  2011 kerneloops
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1293 Jul 14  2011 killprocs
-rw-r--r--   1 root root     0 Oct 12  2011 .legacy-bootordering
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 19 12:43 lightdm -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 24 08:42 modemmanager -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Nov 20  2011 module-init-tools -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2797 May 23  2011 networking
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr  4 21:22 network-interface -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr  4 21:22 network-interface-container -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr  4 21:22 network-interface-security -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 May 25 00:01 network-manager -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   882 Jul 14  2011 ondemand
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 13 11:35 plymouth -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 13 11:35 plymouth-log -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 13 11:35 plymouth-splash -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 13 11:35 plymouth-stop -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 13 11:35 plymouth-upstart-bridge -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   561 Feb  4  2011 pppd-dns
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Dec 12  2011 procps -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2180 May 31 19:39 pulseaudio
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  8635 Jul 26 14:23 rc
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   801 Jul 14  2011 rc.local
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   117 Jul 26 14:23 rcS
-rw-r--r--   1 root root  2427 Jul 26 14:23 README
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   639 Jul 14  2011 reboot
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 21 17:26 resolvconf -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 22 17:01 rfkill-restore -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 22 17:01 rfkill-store -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  4395 Nov  8  2011 rsync
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Mar 30 13:22 rsyslog -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2344 Sep 21  2011 saned
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  4321 Jul 26 14:23 sendsigs
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 19 12:18 setvtrgb -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   590 Jul 14  2011 single
-rw-r--r--   1 root root  4304 Jul 26 14:23 skeleton
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2107 Jun  5  2011 speech-dispatcher
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   567 Jul 14  2011 stop-bootlogd
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1143 Jul 14  2011 stop-bootlogd-single
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root   700 May 23  2011 sudo
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 19 11:56 udev -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 19 11:56 udev-fallback-graphics -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 19 11:56 udev-finish -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 19 11:56 udevmonitor -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Jul 19 11:56 udevtrigger -> /lib/init/upstart-job
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr  5 14:16 ufw -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2800 Jul 14  2011 umountfs
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2211 Jul 14  2011 umountnfs.sh
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2926 Jul 26 14:23 umountroot
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1039 Nov  9  2011 unattended-upgrades
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1985 Jul 14  2011 urandom
lrwxrwxrwx   1 root root    21 Apr 18 08:20 whoopsie -> /lib/init/upstart-job
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  1342 Jun  8 09:14 winbind
-rwxr-xr-x   1 root root  2666 Mar 22 13:35 x11-common
charris@ubuntu:/etc/init.d$

hiddenknight821

Just did some digging, and I found out there has been some changes made to the Ubuntu in 11.10 and after. You read the answers for the older version. You need to use lightdm instead of gdm. I would suspect it's because of the Unity. Try sudo service lightdm stop. If that doesn't work, then you need to use Upstart job command, sudo initctl stop lightdm.

Another solution you can try after attempting all of the above first. Try ps -A | grep xinit, which paul78 suggested. I hope you get an output. If yes, then use that number you see and plug it in this command, sudo kill <number>.

UPDATE: I hope you're not attempting this on the same machine where you access the web browser to surf here.

Use startx to bring back the GUI (this will essentially start up the X server).

Roguetadhg

It's all or nothing, Hiddenknight821.

If it screws up and becomes unbootable - I just nuke and pave. :P

Where did you find out that there were changes?

hiddenknight821

I googled up this exact string, "ubuntu stop x server" and the first thing on the top is this Ask Ubuntu community link.

Roguetadhg

Oh. Har. I just searched "shutdown x server" :P

paul78

I had a long day and didnt have a chance to install ubuntu to look. Were you able to get that driver loaded?

Roguetadhg

Today has been a rough day at work. No real time to sit down and focus.

I'm going to try tomorrow, I'm hoping a good sleep will help clear my head.

MentholMoose

I noticed you mentioned downloading the driver installer from NVIDIA, and it sounds like you are trying to run it. This is the Windows way of doing things and almost never needs to be done on a modern desktop-focused Linux distribution. Linux distributions have package repositories that include almost all the software and drivers you need, packaged specifically for the version of the distribution you are using. The package manager installs software from these repositories, checks dependencies among packages (adding/removing/updating packages as necessary), and keeps track of every file installed from every package to prevent conflicts. Sometimes those repositories need to be enabled or added to your Linux installation, but you shouldn't usually need to download and run something not from a repository.

I believe this article should help with installing, enabling, and configuring the official (closed-source) NVIDIA drivers on Ubuntu:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/BinaryDriverHowto/Nvidia

Roguetadhg

:: Updated ::

I went ahead and reinstalled Ubuntu 10, and upgraded it to 12.

Dual screens aren't an issue in the slightest bit.

Since GNS3 didn't want to work for me, and work is settling down, I'm giving it another go.