I'm under Kubuntu 10.04 and I upgraded kde from 4.4 to 4.5. via apt-get.
After KDM login, I got a black screen with the mouse cursor visible and active. I have no idea how to fix this.

I tried this :

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sudo apt-get install -f
sudo dpkg --configure -a
sudo reboot

but with no effect.



Can anyone provide some guidance ?

Sounds like Plasma doesn't start successfully. Can you bring up KRunner (Alt+F2 by default) and run applications? Try to run Konsole and then, from the terminal, run

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plasma-desktop

Hans wrote:Can you bring up KRunner (Alt+F2 by default) and run applications?

I can't, KRunner doesn't open

Hm that's weird. Can you reproduce this with a new user?

Hans wrote:Can you reproduce this with a new user?

Sorry but what you are suggesting is not clear to me. What I'm suppose to "reproduce" as a newuser ?

If you create a new user, it will start with default configurations. Therefore I wonder if you see the same thing with a new user - that would imply that something is wrong with your system. If everything works fine for the new user, it's likely some configuration error.

It's possible/likely that plasma-desktop didn't get reinstalled. Press Ctrl+Alt+F1 to get to tty1 (console). Type:

sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install plasma-desktop

When it's finished, press Ctl+Alt+F7 to return to the desktop.

Hans wrote:If you create a new user, it will start with default configurations. Therefore I wonder if you see the same thing with a new user - that would imply that something is wrong with your system. If everything works fine for the new user, it's likely some configuration error.

I created a new user account and login as this new user but the problem remains the same : black screen.


Concerning plasma-desktop, it seems yet installed on the system.

Another option could be that you have compositing enabled but it refuses to work properly.

Try editing .kde/share/config/kwinrc in a console without kde running, and look for the section with "[Compositing]"
If you find something like

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Enabled=true


change to false and try to start kde.

neverendingo wrote:and look for the section with "[Compositing]"
If you find something like

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Enabled=true


change to false and try to start kde.

Under the Compositing section I only have a single field :

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OpenGLIsUnsafe=false

You can try to add the line

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Enabled=false

and see if it works.

I have the same problem after upgradeing to KDE 4.5.4, will test in a few minutes does the

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[Compositing]
CheckIsSafe=true
OpenGLIsUnsafe=false
Enabled=false

will fix the problem, right now I have only:

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[Compositing]
CheckIsSafe=true
OpenGLIsUnsafe=false

Yes, it fixed the problem, thank you!

I experienced a similar condition after an upgrade (no packages were removed): blank / black plasma desktop but working cursor when using a "KDE plasma workspace" session. Most other search results were K/Ubuntu package or nvidia driver related, not helpful for my integrated ATI Radeon 4200. Your suggestion did the trick after several months of avoiding the issue by using a "KDE Openbox" session.

I'll just have to wait a while for whatever is affecting compositing to work again.

Thank you.

I have the same problem with plasma. I have PCLinuxOS.

This doesn't happen all the time but I do face it occasionally. I have to hit the power button once for the system to shutdown/restart. It works fine thereafter. I don't think any crazy app has been running at those times of "blank/black screen with working cursor" issue.

I have PCLinuxOS working out of the box for me, I didn't do any install/reinstall of KDE plasma. I remember having similar issue with plasma when I apt installed KDE on Linux Mint 12.

Is it a bug?