I have a Lenovo T430 on which I've been running Ubuntu on since 2016. Recently I've experienced an increasing number of apparently random crashes where everything freezes indefinitely and nothing short a hard reboot has any effect.
The problem started when I was running Ubuntu 16.04 and persisted (or got slightly worse) after a fresh install of 20.04. I have replaced my RAM and hard drive with no improvement. (I've run BIOS, hard drive and RAM tests which showed no problem.)
Sometimes it runs fine for several days, however at other times it crashes multiple times in a row.
It happens very randomly, sometimes even when my computer is not in use, but most often with Firefox + YouTube and other video or JavaScript heavy applications. If audio is playing when it freezes, it continues playing the last half second over and over.
The only time it happens totally reliably is when trying to play a H.264 video in VLC. Other codecs play mostly fine. (I tried enabling VLC debug logging but nothing showed up for the task of playing the videos that crashed it.)
The only time that it reliably doesn't occur is when started in recovery mode. (Then playing the same video in VLC is no problem.) Ubuntu 20.04 also runs fine when booting from a USB drive.
I've spent hours looking at various logs without finding anything that seemed relevant.
- CPU: Intel® CPU @ 2.60GHz × 4
- BIOS version: G1ET17WW (0.17)
- GPU: Intel HD Graphics 4000 (IVB GT2)
- RAM: 11.6 GB
- GNOME Version: 3.36.8
- Windowing system: x11
- Kernel: 5.8.0-44-generic
Here is various information that I've seen requested on other similar questions.
Results of swapon --show
:
NAME TYPE SIZE USED PRIO
/swapfile file 2G 0B -2
Results of blkid
:
/dev/sda2: LABEL="system" UUID="69efbbf3-98d7-4173-b6c7-e72136f35001" TYPE="ext4" PARTLABEL="system" PARTUUID="4aad3c63-c551-40ef-9d2f-ad79166be270"
/dev/loop0: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop1: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop2: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop3: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop4: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop5: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop6: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop7: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/sda1: LABEL="swap" UUID="b2a9ac94-dd4a-465b-8889-3e7ccb9af0af" TYPE="swap" PARTLABEL="swap" PARTUUID="9cb305f2-1f73-4bb7-8da6-42a6124c8ee7"
/dev/sda3: LABEL_FATBOOT="EFI" LABEL="EFI" UUID="089D-C851" TYPE="vfat" PARTLABEL="efi" PARTUUID="180dac3f-322e-4023-a3c0-9bc4ed90a32b"
/dev/sdb: LABEL="fs-data" UUID="0199caea-12da-401a-bdf4-6b1cc96677d4" TYPE="ext4"
/dev/loop8: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop9: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop10: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop11: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop12: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop13: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop14: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop15: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop16: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop17: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop18: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop19: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop20: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop21: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop22: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop23: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop24: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop25: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop26: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop27: TYPE="squashfs"
/dev/loop28: TYPE="squashfs"
Results of lshw -c video
:
*-display
description: VGA compatible controller
product: 3rd Gen Core processor Graphics Controller
vendor: Intel Corporation
physical id: 2
bus info: pci@0000:00:02.0
version: 05
width: 64 bits
clock: 33MHz
capabilities: msi pm vga_controller bus_master cap_list rom
configuration: driver=i915 latency=0
resources: irq:32 memory:f0000000-f03fffff memory:e0000000-efffffff ioport:5000(size=64) memory:c0000-dffff
Results of fstab
:
# /etc/fstab: static file system information.
#
# Use 'blkid' to print the universally unique identifier for a
# device; this may be used with UUID= as a more robust way to name devices
# that works even if disks are added and removed. See fstab(5).
#
# <file system> <mount point> <type> <options> <dump> <pass>
# / was on /dev/sda2 during installation
UUID=69efbbf3-98d7-4173-b6c7-e72136f35001 / ext4 errors=remount-ro 0 1
# /boot/efi was on /dev/sda1 during installation
UUID=089D-C851 /boot/efi vfat umask=0077 0 1
/swapfile none swap sw 0 0
UUID=0199caea-12da-401a-bdf4-6b1cc96677d4 /media/fm/fs-data auto nosuid,nodev,nofail,x-gvfs-show 0 0
Update 1:
video section from lsmod (once 'size' and 'used by' values are removed the result is identical between recovery mode, USB boot and normal boot)
uvcvideo
video thinkpad_acpi,i915
videobuf2_common videobuf2_v4l2,uvcvideo
videobuf2_memops videobuf2_vmalloc
videobuf2_v4l2 uvcvideo
videobuf2_vmalloc uvcvideo
videodev videobuf2_v4l2,uvcvideo,videobuf2_common
Update 2:
The problem does not occur after swapping my hard-drive into a different ThinkPad. This leads me to believe that it is a BIOS or hardware problem and not strictly caused by the kernel.
Update 3 with further details:
(These details are from using the same HDD/Ubuntu install in a different ThinkPad, while the original one is in therapy at the shop after a crash in the middle of an attempted BIOS update.)
The swapfile setup and kernel are the same, but the problem is mostly gone (though it still hangs occasionally) so I think issue is primarily hardware/BIOS related.
Results of swapon -s
:
Filename Type Size Used Priority
/swapfile file 2097148 0 -2
Results of free -h
:
total used free shared buff/cache available
Mem: 7.6Gi 3.1Gi 1.7Gi 810Mi 2.9Gi 3.5Gi
Swap: 2.0Gi 0B 2.0Gi
Results of fdisk -l
:
Disk /dev/loop0: 162.48 MiB, 170360832 bytes, 332736 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop1: 161.4 MiB, 168857600 bytes, 329800 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop2: 138.77 MiB, 145489920 bytes, 284160 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop3: 99.21 MiB, 104026112 bytes, 203176 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop4: 55.39 MiB, 58073088 bytes, 113424 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop5: 175.101 MiB, 184532992 bytes, 360416 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop6: 161.42 MiB, 169254912 bytes, 330576 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop7: 55.48 MiB, 58159104 bytes, 113592 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/sda: 931.53 GiB, 1000204886016 bytes, 1953525168 sectors
Disk model: Samsung SSD 860
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disklabel type: gpt
Disk identifier: 43B5902C-6EA9-4EB8-86AD-B643C582109B
Device Start End Sectors Size Type
/dev/sda1 1048576 49233919 48185344 23G Linux swap
/dev/sda2 49233920 1953523711 1904289792 908G Linux filesystem
/dev/sda3 2048 1048575 1046528 511M Microsoft basic data
Partition table entries are not in disk order.
Disk /dev/sdb: 1.84 TiB, 2000398934016 bytes, 3907029168 sectors
Disk model: ST2000LM015-2E81
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 4096 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 4096 bytes / 4096 bytes
Disk /dev/loop8: 98.36 MiB, 103129088 bytes, 201424 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop9: 175.38 MiB, 183885824 bytes, 359152 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop10: 175.37 MiB, 183881728 bytes, 359144 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop11: 162.89 MiB, 170778624 bytes, 333552 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop12: 64.79 MiB, 67915776 bytes, 132648 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop13: 164.65 MiB, 172634112 bytes, 337176 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop14: 51.2 MiB, 53501952 bytes, 104496 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop15: 217.92 MiB, 228478976 bytes, 446248 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop16: 64.36 MiB, 67477504 bytes, 131792 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop17: 64.6 MiB, 67170304 bytes, 131192 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop18: 32.28 MiB, 33845248 bytes, 66104 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop19: 218.102 MiB, 229629952 bytes, 448496 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop20: 31.9 MiB, 32595968 bytes, 63664 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop21: 64.34 MiB, 67461120 bytes, 131760 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop22: 164.65 MiB, 172630016 bytes, 337168 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop23: 137.17 MiB, 143831040 bytes, 280920 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop24: 20.45 MiB, 21434368 bytes, 41864 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop25: 190.73 MiB, 199974912 bytes, 390576 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop26: 175.101 MiB, 184532992 bytes, 360416 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop27: 51.4 MiB, 53522432 bytes, 104536 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk /dev/loop28: 20.5 MiB, 21487616 bytes, 41968 sectors
Units: sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
free -h
andswapon -s
andsudo fdisk -l
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