[SOLVED] X220T issue with Mint 19.0 and 19.1

[phx19]

Hardware: Lenovo X220T, Core I5, 8GB Ram, 120 GB M.2 SSD, 1TB HDD
Current OSs: Win 7 64bit Pro (Original Lenovo), Linux Mint 18.3 Mate

hey all,
I have a problem with my X220T Labtop and Mint 19.x Mate or Cinnamon. Right now, I run a dual boot with Win 7 pro and Mint Mate 18.3 without any problems. Before this, also Mint 17 and 16 had no issues. Now I like to update my workstation to 19.1 Mate and to have the same versions and packages also on my laptop, I like to upgrade it too.However, every attempt to install any 19.x Mate/Cinnamon fails before entering the GUI. I discussed this already in the German forum https://www.linuxmintusers.de/index.php?topic=53393 with no working solution, so I give it a try here.

The following points have been done or discovered:

1. The USB device and installation files are fine, I successfully installed two other computers with it
2. The attempt to upgrade from 18.3 to 19.0 failed also. (Not bootable into gui after the process)
3. Bios was flashed to the latest version 1.45 of Jul 18. Did not resolve the problem.
4. I tried all 3 USB 2.0 ports in case of a defect USB device (even thou they make no trouble in normal operating)
5. I also downloaded the Cinnamon version after all attempts with Mate failed, but the same result
6. My 18.3 ran on 4.13.0-45, so I thought maybe the kernel is at fault, but upgrading 18.3 to 4.15.0-43 still works fine, so no kernel issue
7. Booting into Compatibility-Mode from USB works perfectly and the system is stable

According to viewtopic.php?t=198531, the difference between normal and compat. mode is:

Compatibility mode blacklists a wifi driver b43 because of some freezing problems, disables fast graphics mode switching, disables the advanced configuration and power interface and doesn't load the splash screen.

I've attached three screenshots of the output while booting from the USB stick, doesn't really help me as I'm not quite a Linux guy, but maybe someone here can read this.

So, I guess one of them is the culprit. I have seen several postings here where ppl have Mint 19.x running on an X220(T), so maybe someone knows where the problem lies or how to make it work?

[deepakdeshp]

Please check your iso.
https://linuxmint.com/verify.php
When you go from 18.x to 19 it is advised to make a fresh install, especially when the upgrade fails.

[phx19]

Please check your iso.

Like I wrote in no 1, the installation files are fine. Understanding this sentence means: it's checked. yes, all 3 versions.

When you go from 18.x to 19 it is advised to make a fresh install, especially when the upgrade fails.

Like I wrote in no. 2, this was just one attempt that failed ALSO. Main problem is that not even the USB boots into 19.x

[phx19]

The solution was to install in compatibility mode and after installation to boot into recovery mode, edit in

Code: Select all

/etc/default/grub

the line to look like this

Code: Select all

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet noapic"

which deactivates IRQ management according to Bootoptions Wiki