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I left Windows and came to Ubuntu just to get a stable system.

However, since installing Ubuntu 12.04 I've had various problems that have caused the entire system to hang, for example an issue with Windows in VirtualBox, and just plugging in headphones.

I got an error message:

Kernel panic - not syncing; fatal exception in interrupt

Should I reinstall 12.04 or are these crashes to be expected?

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Stability depends on three things

  1. Your hardware (its quality and how well it is supported)
  2. The operating system (Ubuntu in this case)
  3. The user (that is you)

If you want to you can share the data about your hardware. My guess, however, is that your instability has (at least in part) to do with you as a user. Don't get me wrong, but if you say you experiment installing lots of stuff, you use a VM and more then you should be willing to learn how to use the system. Learn about commands like top, about keystrokes like Ctrl+Alt+F1. and Ctrl+Alt+F7., and learn how to keep your system clean.

I think you should check whether your hardware is compatible and reinstall.

Note: It is very common for new users to point-and-install as they did in windows, but Ubuntu is a powerful system which gives you great control. You should not just blindly point-and-install whatever you find (even though it is tempting).

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  • Thank you for the response, Yes I agree I have a long way to learn, My hardware is HP Pavilion g Series (I don't think it's very compatible) - can you guide me to tutorial or article about how to keep my system clean?
    – amr osama
    Jan 11, 2013 at 19:13
  • You can check compatibility on Ubuntu's website. I don't know of such a tutorial, for beginners I advice to write down everything you install and read (!) the install manual or at least some basic info about software before getting started.
    – don.joey
    Jan 12, 2013 at 8:02
  • @Private Installing VirtualBox and additional desktop environments doesn't cause kernel panics. (Well...maybe VirtualBox, if there is a serious bug.) This is unlikely to be primarily due to any wrong action by the user. Jan 12, 2013 at 8:33
  • @EliahKagan, I disagree. New users can definitely mess up their system. Kernel panic is only one of the OP's errors. It could be caused by many things, not just hardware failure. An improper install of the OS could be one of them.
    – don.joey
    Jan 12, 2013 at 10:51
  • @Private Installing GUI packages is not a plausible cause. Furthermore, if the kernel panic is not a hardware problem, it is almost always a bug. If you have a reasonable explanation for how the OP may have installed things wrong to produce a kernel panic, I recommend editing your answer to include it. Jan 12, 2013 at 10:58

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