screen resolution is small!

[drmoore1]

My screen is tiny. It only allows me to use 800x600. Since I am using virtualbox, I have heard that ubuntu not using the virtualbox driver for the screen could do this, but I am not sure how to fix it as this person was using it on a another linux host. Anyway here is my etc/x11/xorg.conf file:

Section "Files"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
	Identifier	"Generic Keyboard"
	Driver		"kbd"
	Option		"CoreKeyboard"
	Option		"XkbRules"	"xorg"
	Option		"XkbModel"	"pc105"
	Option		"XkbLayout"	"us"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
	Identifier	"Configured Mouse"
	Driver		"mouse"
	Option		"CorePointer"
	Option		"Device"		"/dev/input/mice"
	Option		"Protocol"		"ImPS/2"
	Option		"ZAxisMapping"		"4 5"
	Option		"Emulate3Buttons"	"true"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
	Identifier	"Synaptics Touchpad"
	Driver		"synaptics"
	Option		"SendCoreEvents"	"true"
	Option		"Device"		"/dev/psaux"
	Option		"Protocol"		"auto-dev"
	Option		"HorizEdgeScroll"	"0"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
	Driver		"wacom"
	Identifier	"stylus"
	Option		"Device"	"/dev/input/wacom"
	Option		"Type"		"stylus"
	Option		"ForceDevice"	"ISDV4"		# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
	Driver		"wacom"
	Identifier	"eraser"
	Option		"Device"	"/dev/input/wacom"
	Option		"Type"		"eraser"
	Option		"ForceDevice"	"ISDV4"		# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
	Driver		"wacom"
	Identifier	"cursor"
	Option		"Device"	"/dev/input/wacom"
	Option		"Type"		"cursor"
	Option		"ForceDevice"	"ISDV4"		# Tablet PC ONLY
EndSection

Section "Device"
	Identifier	"Generic Video Card"
	Driver		"vesa"
	BusID		"PCI:0:2:0"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
	Identifier	"Generic Monitor"
	Option		"DPMS"
EndSection

Section "Screen"
	Identifier	"Default Screen"
	Device		"Generic Video Card"
	Monitor		"Generic Monitor"
	DefaultDepth	24
	SubSection "Display"
		Modes		"800x600"
	EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
	Identifier	"Default Layout"
	Screen		"Default Screen"
	InputDevice	"Generic Keyboard"
	InputDevice	"Configured Mouse"

# Uncomment if you have a wacom tablet
#	InputDevice     "stylus"	"SendCoreEvents"
#	InputDevice     "cursor"	"SendCoreEvents"
#	InputDevice     "eraser"	"SendCoreEvents"
	InputDevice	"Synaptics Touchpad"
EndSection

[the dsc]

I don't even know what "virtual box" is, but I think I may have a possible solution for that (if whatever this box thing really has a higher resolution than that).

Ubuntu, as far as I can remember, has a "live" version, it may be in the install CD or in another CD that is just for that (at least there were 2 separeted CDs back in Ubuntu 5).

You may try to run some live version, Ubuntu itself as you have it, and it may well detect the correct maximum resolution.

Then you go on and look on the xorg.conf generated by the live version.

Perhaps you could copy it to the hard disk (or whatever a virtual box has) somewhere, and then compare the two versions. You'll probably need to take a look at how the "mount" command works (unless, unlike me, you know it by heart) and make some notes, because at least the live (k)ubuntus I know don't have "smart"/automatic mounting of the hard disks, unlike kurumin, which is derived from knoppix.

Look for the section "screen", and add the lines from the live version to xorg.conf of the "non-live" installation.

Before doing that, make a backup of the current xorg.conf just for sake of safety, so just in case the graphical mode (X) does not run anymore after that you can just restore the current one and run X with 800x600 and look for a solution with graphic browsers.


I'm a newbie myself, so I'd not recommend to do anything but add the "screen" section; perhaps if you replace the whole file something more unexpected could happen, I never know. What I said above is a pretty safe method.

[drmoore1]

Well virtualbox is the virtual pc that I am using. I don't use the cds to run it though that will be my next try before I give up on running ubuntu. For some reason it just does not work well on my laptop. I have the exact same set up on my computer at work but it works just fine. I have also tried running the reconfigure command and chose some options but once again it caused a failed to find a bootable medium.