Oddities, Linux Mint

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Made in Hurry

Made in Hurry

Ars Praefectus
4,553
Subscriptor
  • #1
    I seem to have some teething issues with Linux Mint on my laptop. An i5-12500H /20GB/512GB running the latest 5.15 kernel. The laptop is 5 months old and used to run Win11. Graphics is integrated Intel Iris XE i believe.

    I am kind of a perpetual newbie, so i am still trying to get used to it. (yeah, i need hand-holding).

    The install about a month ago was effortless, all hardware was up and running and performance was great, and i have updated as the notifications has come in. It is not doing any work that stresses the computer, it's Firefox, YouTube, messaging apps and such things.

    Recently i noticed a lot of freezes, the GUI seems to be working, but no apps are working, and i can't even view system monitor to understand what is going on. It drops the internet connection and i can only open a terminal that seems to be functioning, but not even the file manager is usable.

    I rebooted several times, and sometimes it comes up, sometimes it doesn't. The strange thing is that Firefox when it works again has lost all history and i need to re-login to my familiar suite of sites that i use daily, but passwords and such are still present. After this, it can be fine for days without any hiccups at all, so i have no idea what is going on here.

    Are there any disk utilities i can run easily? suggested applications or tools?
     
    G

    gregorerlich

    Ars Scholae Palatinae
    1,094
  • #4
    That's super weird. If you don't turn up an obvious cause/course of action in the logs/dmesg. I would reinstall the OS and see if the problem recurs. If it's software, that may fix it.

    Can also try installing some different OSs and see if they also display the problem (e.g. put Windows back on, see if there are issues, maybe Fedora or another somewhat dissimilar distro). If you still get the error in other operating systems, then you likely have a hardware fault.

    Bit of a nuclear option, maybe, but should be fairly definitive.
     
    • Like
    Reactions: m0nckywrench
    M

    m0nckywrench

    Ars Tribunus Angusticlavius
    6,852
  • #5
    You can also boot other distros live and boot a Windows To Go live install too. I keep a variety of OS on USB and old small SSD (used with bootable USB adapters) for troubleshooting, recovery and portable use anywhere. They're worth making and using for the education.

    Ventoy makes testing multiple OS quick and convenient.
     
    • Like
    Reactions: gregorerlich
    O

    Oddabe19

    Ars Praefectus
    4,861
  • #7
    I would test a newer kernel. That's the first thing that sprung to mind when you said newer hardware and kernel 5.15. Maybe something like Xanmod, which has extra modifications (or TKG or anything really that's newer).

    Might not get great battery, but at least you can test if it's stable. If not, and DMESG isn't showing much of anything, I would think hardware issue, especially since you state that it can last through a reboot. Overheating maybe?

    EDIT: I forgot that Mint was going to start using an HWE optional kernel for newer hardware. Don't know where that stands, or if it's an option, but maybe try that.
     
    Last edited:
    Made in Hurry

    Made in Hurry

    Ars Praefectus
    4,553
    Subscriptor
  • #8
    Well, i am still confused as i have no idea what happened.

    When it came up back normally again, i changed the kernel to 6.5.0-41 and it has not happened again so far, but i have not used it much either since i did the change.

    Does the 5.15x kernel series handle e-cores correctly? The computer is not pushed at all so it's basically almost idling under use.

    DMESG did not tell me anything obvious at least, but if it happens again i will just nuke and pave and try something else.
     
    O

    Oddabe19

    Ars Praefectus
    4,861
  • #11
    It kind of makes sense when you think about it.

    5.15 is an old kernel, older then your hardware. Drivers are baked into the kernel for the most part. If that kernel doesn't have drivers for newer hardware (or buggy drivers), it'll give random problems, or not work at all. Or even one little piece (laptops are notoriously finicky sometimes), it can cause random issues or crashes. Even if the processor is supported fully, there might be an instruction in the chipset that's not or a thousand other random things. As improvements are made, they might be added to that kernel (this is where you get minor versions, i.e. 5.15.24-4, or something), but may not fix everything. That was why I suggested Xanmod, because I knew it was an easy way to get the newest kernel (I wasn't sure if Mint had something newer in their Repos yet).

    Like putting Windows XP on a PC built in 2016. It might work, but there will be a bunch of little issues until you get all the right drivers. My suggestion is almost always, try a kernel from when or after when your hardware is built. It'll likely work. Unless it's an HP mic on x360 Elitebooks, they never work ;)
     
    • Like
    Reactions: Made in Hurry, CPX and gregorerlich
    You must log in or register to reply here.
    Jump to latest Follow Reply
    Jump to latest Follow Reply