I have an old dual-core desktop with a Nvidia GT430 graphics card (using open source driver) that I use to play movies and music. Monitor is a 50" LCD connected with HDMI. After several minutes, the screen goes blank and audio goes silent even though I have the MATE screensaver set to never turn on. I found nothing in nvidia-settings that would suggest the graphics card has its own screensaver, and I am at a loss to explain it.
Clues:
- MATE screensaver is set to never come on (unchecked activate screensaver). The problem persists even if I set it to activate in 2 hours. Also, the MATE screensaver is not set to blank screen, which is what I see.
- The screen and sound instantly return when the mouse is moved. However, the issue occurs even if there is movement on the screen like a movie playing or web page with animations.
- Audio through the onboard headphone jack keeps playing even when the sound and audio through the graphics card shuts off. The computer is still running, just not the graphics card.
- MATE's power settings are set to never go to sleep.
- The monitor never does this by itself unless connected to this particular computer. Also, mouse movement awakens everything, so I doubt it's the monitor. I tried another monitor and had the same issue.
My thoughts
-bad HDMI cable?
-overheating?
-PCI-e being shut off for some reason?
-haven't found the right driver?
Specs:
Ubuntu Mate 18.04.2 LTS 32 bit
Kernel Linux 4.18.0-18-generic i686
Intel Dual Core E2160, 2GB RAM
Nvidia GT430 air cooled with 1GB DDR3 and HDMI out.
Yes, a POS antique, but dammit it's paid for, it was free in the first place, and it gets the job done nicely!
Note:
I am a NOOB. Please provide detailed instructions if I need to pull logs, etc. Thanks to anyone who can help!