X not starting [SOLVED]

[Dr Pepper]

So my brother got a new computer and he wanted me to install Debian onto it and the install worked out well but when
it was done and it was time to reboot into Debian, the login screen did not appear (It was just a black screen with a blinking cursor)
so I log into tty1 and I type in "startx" it hangs for a bit then it gives me an error something along the lines of "Unable to run of framebuffer mode"
now I've been looking around the internet for an answer but I have found nothing to help though I'm 99% sure it's my brother's AMD GPU which is
causing the problem.

I don't have any log files with me right now though I can get some if wanted, sorry if this post seems a bit rushed

[sickpig]

http://forums.debian.net/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=142974

[Dr Pepper]

Sorry for the late reply, I tried what you posted and it still came up with the error, also if this help my brother uses a Radeon RX 5700 XT

[sickpig]

Radeon RX 5700 XT

seems to be released months after the current stable freeze so it wont work with Debian stable. Your best bet would be to try debian based MX linux with AHS - advanced hardware support.

[Head_on_a_Stick]

Radeon RX 5700 XT

The kernel (metapackage) & firmware-amd-graphics from the buster-backports repository should support that. See https://backports.debian.org/Instructions/ and my kernel [FAQ] in the HowTo section for details or just use the ISO image linked in my signature.

Entering "site:forums.debian.net radeon 5700xt" into a search engine would have saved you a lot of time...

[Dr Pepper]

The kernel (metapackage) & firmware-amd-graphics from the buster-backports repository should support that

That worked, thank you very much

[Head_on_a_Stick]

It would be useful if you could prepend [SOLVED] to the thread title and also add "Radeon 5700XT" to help others who might be searching for a solution.

[Dr Pepper]

Oh darn, I forgot

[stevepusser]

The 5700XT really really needs a newer Mesa, so I think your friend isn't going to be able to use the buster-backports method.

Plus it's the MX "AHS" edition, not "AHC". I did go to Allan Hancock Junior College for a couple years, so that's what "AHC" means to me.

[Head_on_a_Stick]

The 5700XT really really needs a newer Mesa

I don't mean to cast aspersions on your undoubted expertise but it would be fantastic if the OP could confirm this independently by posting the output of

Code: Select all

glxinfo -B

[sickpig]

Plus it's the MX "AHS" edition, not "AHC".

Thanks, I corrected the typo in the earlier post.

[Dr Pepper]

it would be fantastic if the OP could confirm this independently

One problem, since it is my brother's computer he got annoyed at some performance related issues so he reinstalled Bindows 10 soon after encountering them...

[stevepusser]

Was it video performance, or something else, or will we be left to forever wonder why?

[Dr Pepper]

Was it video performance, or something else

It was video performance, video games would be very slow, etc.

[sickpig]

It was video performance, video games would be very slow, etc.

You might want to remove the solved from the subject considering its not.

[stevepusser]

Was it video performance, or something else

It was video performance, video games would be very slow, etc.

And that's why I bet it needed a newer Mesa--it was probably doing software rendering instead of taking advantage of the card. He could always try Debian testing or MX Linux if he wants a Debian type distro that will work with it (yes I know Bullseye's not a distro yet).

[Dr Pepper]

He could always try Debian testing or MX Linux

I might try that if I could convince him to let me borrow the computer for a few hours

[stevepusser]

The MX ISO is a Live session by default, so you can test it without installing it. You'll need either the MX 19.2 AHS edition or the KDE edition.

"inxi -Gxx" in the terminal there should provide a report on the graphics and driver situation. It should be using the amdgpu driver and have direct rendering working.