Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

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MikZ
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Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by MikZ »

G'day people,

Since upgrading from Mint 13 to 17 (in place, defying recommendations to reinstall from scratch—I just didn't want to redo all my customisations), Cinnamon has been starting in Software Rendering Mode. This seems to be chewing up a lot of CPU that I'd rather use for other things, and of course, I want wobbly windows to work properly too. :wink: I've read a lot of posts about Software Rendering Mode, but they all have some detail that varies from my situation, and it's not clear to me what I'm looking for.

A possibly important fact is that :!: my MDM display manager fails on boot :!:, and I get around this by running it with -recover. I've tried a few things to get it to start more gracefully, but it's something I can live with... unless it's the root cause of this Software Rendering Mode. Could these issues be related? (The only other issue I have is sound not working, but that's less important to me at the moment.)

My hardware is a Lenovo T430s laptop.

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$ inxi -xxx -G
Graphics:  Card: Intel 3rd Gen Core processor Graphics Controller
           bus-ID: 00:02.0 chip-ID: 8086:0166
           Display Server: X.Org 1.15.1 drivers: intel (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
           Resolution: 1600x900@60.0hz
           GLX Renderer: Gallium 0.4 on llvmpipe (LLVM 3.4, 256 bits)
           GLX Version: 2.1 Mesa 10.1.3 Direct Rendering: Yes
More inxi details are here. Obviously, I'm happy to post anything that's relevant.

There are no errors or failures in /var/log/Xorg.0.log, and the only warnings are a few about missing fonts, and these:

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[   115.385] Initializing built-in extension DRI2
[   115.385] (WW) "glamoregl" will not be loaded unless you've specified it to be loaded elsewhere.
[   115.385] (II) "glx" will be loaded by default.
[   115.385] (WW) "xmir" is not to be loaded by default. Skipping.
[   115.385] (II) LoadModule: "glx"

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[   115.405] (++) using VT number 8
[   115.413] (II) intel(0): SNA compiled: xserver-xorg-video-intel 2:2.99.910-0u
buntu1.1 (Maarten Lankhorst <maarten.lankhorst@ubuntu.com>)
[   115.414] (WW) Falling back to old probe method for modesetting
[   115.414] (WW) Falling back to old probe method for fbdev
[   115.414] (II) Loading sub module "fbdevhw"
[   115.414] (II) LoadModule: "fbdevhw"
[   115.414] (II) Loading /usr/lib/xorg/modules/libfbdevhw.so
[   115.415] (II) Module fbdevhw: vendor="X.Org Foundation"
[   115.415]    compiled for 1.15.1, module version = 0.0.2
[   115.415]    ABI class: X.Org Video Driver, version 15.0
[   115.415] (WW) Falling back to old probe method for vesa
[   115.416] (--) intel(0): Integrated Graphics Chipset: Intel(R) HD Graphics 4000
[   115.416] (--) intel(0): CPU: x86-64, sse2, sse3, ssse3, sse4.1, sse4.2, avx
What should I try next?

Thanks,
MikZ.
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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JeremyB
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by JeremyB »

HD graphics 4000 should work fine with Cinnamon, but this is a symptom, GLX Renderer: Gallium 0.4 on llvmpipe (LLVM 3.4, 256 bits)

I wonder if using the intel repo might help

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echo "deb https://download.01.org/gfx/ubuntu/14.04/main trusty main #Intel Graphics drivers" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/intellinuxgraphics.list

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wget --no-check-certificate https://download.01.org/gfx/RPM-GPG-KEY-ilg -O - | sudo apt-key add -

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wget --no-check-certificate https://download.01.org/gfx/RPM-GPG-KEY-ilg-2 -O - | sudo apt-key add -

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sudo apt-get update
The see what updates are available through mint update manager
MikZ
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by MikZ »

JeremyB wrote:The see what updates are available through mint update manager
Well the status says 'Your system is up-to-date', and logging out and back in again showed the software rendering message again.

To ensure that the commands you suggested did what you expected:

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$ echo "deb https://download.01.org/gfx/ubuntu/14.04/main trusty main #Intel Graphics drivers" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/intellinuxgraphics.list
That file now contains that line, as I would expect.

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$ wget --no-check-certificate https://download.01.org/gfx/RPM-GPG-KEY-ilg -O - | sudo apt-key add -
--2014-10-18 12:15:16--  https://download.01.org/gfx/RPM-GPG-KEY-ilg
Resolving download.01.org (download.01.org)... 118.214.203.111
Connecting to download.01.org (download.01.org)|118.214.203.111|:443... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 1753 (1.7K) [text/plain]
Saving to: 'STDOUT’

100%[==============================================================================>] 1,753       --.-K/s   in 0s      

2014-10-18 12:15:18 (316 MB/s) - written to stdout [1753/1753]

OK

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$ wget --no-check-certificate https://download.01.org/gfx/RPM-GPG-KEY-ilg-2 -O - | sudo apt-key add -
--2014-10-18 12:15:26--  https://download.01.org/gfx/RPM-GPG-KEY-ilg-2
Resolving download.01.org (download.01.org)... 118.214.203.111
Connecting to download.01.org (download.01.org)|118.214.203.111|:443... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 3958 (3.9K) [text/plain]
Saving to: 'STDOUT’

100%[==============================================================================>] 3,958       --.-K/s   in 0s      

2014-10-18 12:15:26 (1.13 GB/s) - written to stdout [3958/3958]

OK
Well, the wgets worked. I don't know what to look for in sudo apt-key list, though—there aren't any recent dates in it, for what that's worth.

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$ sudo apt-get update
That output a fair bit, including a few hits. It ended with:

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Fetched 33.9 kB in 1min 10s (479 B/s)
W: Failed to fetch http://linux.dropbox.com/ubuntu/dists/qiana/main/binary-amd64/Packages  404  Not Found

W: Failed to fetch http://linux.dropbox.com/ubuntu/dists/qiana/main/binary-i386/Packages  404  Not Found

E: Some index files failed to download. They have been ignored, or old ones used instead.
Is that what you would expect? What should I try next?

Thanks!
MikZ
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by MikZ »

Actually, right after I posted that, the Update Manager told me there was new stuff. But I updated, logged out, and logged back in, and still see the message. So no joy yet... anything else to try?
JeremyB
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by JeremyB »

MikZ wrote:Actually, right after I posted that, the Update Manager told me there was new stuff. But I updated, logged out, and logged back in, and still see the message. So no joy yet... anything else to try?
These messages?

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Fetched 33.9 kB in 1min 10s (479 B/s)
W: Failed to fetch http://linux.dropbox.com/ubuntu/dists/qiana/main/binary-amd64/Packages  404  Not Found

W: Failed to fetch http://linux.dropbox.com/ubuntu/dists/qiana/main/binary-i386/Packages  404  Not Found

E: Some index files failed to download. They have been ignored, or old ones used instead.
I would look through the software sources program to find http://linux.dropbox.com and it might be found in 'additional repositories' and it does not appear to be valid. It can be disabled by removing the x near the http://linux.dropbox.com

It probably requires a restart for the new intel drivers to work
MikZ
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by MikZ »

JeremyB wrote:It probably requires a restart for the new intel drivers to work
If so, they haven't helped. I just rebooted, and I'm still getting the message. :( Anything else I can check to make sure they're there?

Thanks for your help. Hopefully we'll hear an idea that leads to the solution, or I find one from further forum ferreting.
JeremyB
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by JeremyB »

Can you try the LM17 Live version(USB/DVD) of Cinnamon and Mate just to see if you have the same errors?
MikZ
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by MikZ »

The live CD (well, USB stick, really) has none of the problems I'm experiencing when I boot normally, so the problems are almost certainly in my configuration somewhere.

I've copied the /etc directory from the live CD and diff'ed it against mine. There are a lot of differences, and I've checked out some of the ones that I thought might be related. I'm trying to be prudent when changing mine to match the live CD's, web searching what the files are for, etc. But where I haven't found answers, I've let them be, in case I break the window manager or something altogether, and get stuck. It's been a few weeks since I tried this, so maybe it's time I try again... with less fear of breaking eggs.

If there are any files under /etc that you think I should pay particular attention to, or config files in other places, please do tell. The same problem happens when I create a new user and log in as that, though, so I don't think it's anything set up in my home directory.

Thanks!
JeremyB
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by JeremyB »

It might be worth looking at the /var/log/Xorg.0.log files from the Live and installed OS to see if there is much difference

Was there any differences in /etc/X11/ ? Possibly a .conf file in the installed version that isn't there in the Live

There are some files in /usr/share/X11 that might be worth looking at
MikZ
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by MikZ »

Mostly note-taking here, but I've rebooted back off the live USB, and I'm noticing differences in the inxi -xxx -G output:

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Graphics:  Card: Intel 3rd Gen Core processor Graphics Controller
	bus-ID: 00:02.0
	X.Org: 1.15.1 drivers: intel (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
	Resolution: 1600x900@60.0hz 
	GLX Renderer: Mesa DRI Intel Ivybridge Mobile
	GLX Version: 3.0 Mesa 10.1.0 Direct Rendering: Yes
Unfortunately, bbcode doesn't allow me to augment the code (sooooo many disadvantages to bbcode!), but the differences are:
  • bus-ID:
    • 'chip-ID: 8086:0166' in my broken
    • absent from the live USB
  • GLX Renderer:
    • 'Gallium 0.4 on llvmpipe (LLVM 3.4, 256 bits)' on my broken setup
    • 'Mesa DRI Intel Ivybridge Mobile' on the live USB
  • GLX Version:
    • '2.1 Mesa 10.1.3' on my broken setup
    • '3.0 Mesa 10.1.0' on the live USB
More live USB note-taking, inspired by this and this:

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$ find /usr/lib -iname "libGL.so*" -exec ls -l {} \;
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 14 Apr 14  2014 /usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1 -> libGL.so.1.2.0
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 387596 Apr 14  2014 /usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1.2.0
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 14 Apr 14  2014 /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1 -> libGL.so.1.2.0
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 409840 Apr 14  2014 /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1.2.0

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$ glxinfo | grep OpenGL
OpenGL vendor string: Intel Open Source Technology Center
OpenGL renderer string: Mesa DRI Intel(R) Ivybridge Mobile 
OpenGL core profile version string: 3.3 (Core Profile) Mesa 10.1.0
OpenGL core profile shading language version string: 3.30
OpenGL core profile context flags: (none)
OpenGL core profile profile mask: core profile
OpenGL core profile extensions:
OpenGL version string: 3.0 Mesa 10.1.0
OpenGL shading language version string: 1.30
OpenGL context flags: (none)
OpenGL extensions:
MikZ
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by MikZ »

More note-taking, inspired by this post:

When booted into my problematic configuration, find /usr/lib -iname "libGL.so*" -exec ls -l {} \; gets quite different results from the live USB, which I posted above:

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lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 10 Jan 19  2014 /usr/lib/nvidia-304/libGL.so -> libGL.so.1
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1076560 Jan 19  2014 /usr/lib/nvidia-304/libGL.so.304.117
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 16 Jan 19  2014 /usr/lib/nvidia-304/libGL.so.1 -> libGL.so.304.117
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 273160 Jan  8  2014 /usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/primus/libGL.so.1
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 387596 May 15 19:42 /usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1.2.0
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 14 May 15 19:42 /usr/lib/i386-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1 -> libGL.so.1.2.0
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 270584 Jan  8  2014 /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/primus/libGL.so.1
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 413968 May 15 19:41 /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1.2.0
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 14 May 15 19:41 /usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/mesa/libGL.so.1 -> libGL.so.1.2.0
I followed the post's advice, which was to remove the excess files and re-install nvidia-331. When I rebooted, I found those files were back.

I thought that, maybe, nvidia-331 isn't right, so I typed sudo apt-get remove nvidia-331, and replaced them with simply sudo apt-get install nvidia-current, which was already there. But the problem persisted another reboot, and the extra files are still there.

It seems to me that if there are extra files in /usr/lib in my problematic installation, compared to the working live USB, something's installed that shouldn't be. But maybe I'm barking up the wrong tree. Thoughts?

I've found other posts that deal specifically with what my hardware is supposed to have, namely:
  • Intel HD Graphics 4000
  • NVIDIA NVS 5400M
I'll explore those leads next time I have more time to muck around with this.
WojtekTM

Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by WojtekTM »

Do you use Infinality?
If your answer is "yes" then here lays the problem.
I had the same effects on Lenovo T410 after installing Infinality.
In this case copy content of /etc/profile.d/infinality-settings.sh into your .bashrc and delete original file. It solved my issue.
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tonywhelan
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Re: Software Rendering Mode after upgrading to Mint 17

Post by tonywhelan »

I don't know if/how you fixed the problem, but when I upgraded from LM17 to 17.1 I had problems with mdm failing to start, and when I logged in via terminal and used startx to run the gUI I was in software rendering mode.

The following fixed the problem with mdm not starting:

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sudo update-rc.d -f mdm remove
sudo update-rc.d mdm defaults
reboot.
Don't recall where I got that tip but it worked.

After that, mdm ran and when I logged in I no longer had any 'software rendering' error plus it told me that one of the applets failed to load.

So I wonder if out-of-date/incompatible applets could cause the OP's problem.
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