After days of uptime, nothing launches in GUI?

[Tech49]

Something I’ve noticed a few times now: if I leave my system on for a few days, at some point I’ll log in and all my windows/apps are closed, and nothing will open when I click on it - no terminal, no web browser, I can’t even logout or restart the system. It’s like the GUI quits working as far as executing anything clicked on. It’s there visually, but nothing happens. I have to manually force a restart (power cycle).

So, since I can’t open any app or even a terminal window, how can I best troubleshoot this issue when it happens? Keep in mind I’m a relatively new Linux user so I’m not an expert in CLI stuff at this time, so I may need more detail in any instructions given.

garuda-inxi output:

System:
Kernel: 6.7.0-zen3-1-zen arch: x86_64 bits: 64 compiler: gcc v: 13.2.1
clocksource: tsc available: hpet,acpi_pm
parameters: BOOT_IMAGE=/@/boot/vmlinuz-linux-zen
root=UUID=77c09ea1-ce29-42c3-bca2-2d425312a722 rw rootflags=subvol=@
quiet quiet rd.udev.log_priority=3 vt.global_cursor_default=0 loglevel=3
ibt=off
Desktop: KDE Plasma v: 5.27.10 tk: Qt v: 5.15.12 wm: kwin_x11 vt: 2
dm: SDDM Distro: Garuda Linux base: Arch Linux
Machine:
Type: Desktop System: Micro-Star product: MS-7D53 v: 1.0
serial: <superuser required>
Mobo: Micro-Star model: MPG X570S EDGE MAX WIFI (MS-7D53) v: 1.0
serial: <superuser required> UEFI: American Megatrends LLC. v: 1.70
date: 07/03/2023
Battery:
Device-1: hidpp_battery_0 model: Logitech G700s serial: <filter>
charge: 5% (should be ignored) rechargeable: yes status: discharging
CPU:
Info: model: AMD Ryzen 7 5800X bits: 64 type: MT MCP arch: Zen 3+ gen: 4
level: v3 note: check built: 2022 process: TSMC n6 (7nm) family: 0x19 (25)
model-id: 0x21 (33) stepping: 2 microcode: 0xA20120A
Topology: cpus: 1x cores: 8 tpc: 2 threads: 16 smt: enabled cache:
L1: 512 KiB desc: d-8x32 KiB; i-8x32 KiB L2: 4 MiB desc: 8x512 KiB
L3: 32 MiB desc: 1x32 MiB
Speed (MHz): avg: 3717 high: 3895 min/max: 2200/4850 boost: enabled
scaling: driver: acpi-cpufreq governor: performance cores: 1: 3605 2: 3639
3: 3800 4: 3800 5: 3800 6: 3895 7: 3600 8: 3635 9: 3800 10: 3800 11: 3800
12: 3636 13: 3599 14: 3800 15: 3669 16: 3600 bogomips: 121609
Flags: avx avx2 ht lm nx pae sse sse2 sse3 sse4_1 sse4_2 sse4a ssse3 svm
Vulnerabilities: <filter>
Graphics:
Device-1: NVIDIA GA104 [GeForce RTX 3070 Ti] vendor: eVga.com.
driver: nvidia v: 545.29.06 alternate: nouveau,nvidia_drm non-free: 545.xx+
status: current (as of 2023-10; EOL~2026-12-xx) arch: Ampere code: GAxxx
process: TSMC n7 (7nm) built: 2020-2023 pcie: gen: 1 speed: 2.5 GT/s
lanes: 16 link-max: gen: 4 speed: 16 GT/s ports: active: none
off: DP-1,HDMI-A-1 empty: DP-2,DP-3 bus-ID: 2d:00.0 chip-ID: 10de:2482
class-ID: 0300
Device-2: Logitech C920 HD Pro Webcam driver: snd-usb-audio,uvcvideo
type: USB rev: 2.0 speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1 mode: 2.0 bus-ID: 1-6.3:8
chip-ID: 046d:0892 class-ID: 0102 serial: <filter>
Display: x11 server: X.Org v: 21.1.11 with: Xwayland v: 23.2.4
compositor: kwin_x11 driver: X: loaded: nvidia unloaded: modesetting,nouveau
alternate: fbdev,nv,vesa gpu: nvidia,nvidia-nvswitch display-ID: :0
screens: 1
Screen-1: 0 s-res: 5360x1440 s-dpi: 109 s-size: 1249x342mm (49.17x13.46")
s-diag: 1295mm (50.98")
Monitor-1: DP-1 mapped: DP-0 note: disabled pos: primary,left
model: LG (GoldStar) ULTRAWIDE serial: <filter> built: 2018 res: 3440x1440
hz: 60 dpi: 109 gamma: 1.2 size: 800x335mm (31.5x13.19")
diag: 867mm (34.1") modes: max: 3440x1440 min: 640x480
Monitor-2: HDMI-A-1 mapped: HDMI-0 note: disabled pos: right
model: Asus VH238 serial: <filter> built: 2015 res: 1920x1080 hz: 60 dpi: 96
gamma: 1.2 size: 509x286mm (20.04x11.26") diag: 584mm (23") ratio: 16:9
modes: max: 1920x1080 min: 640x480
API: EGL v: 1.5 hw: drv: nvidia platforms: device: 0 drv: nvidia device: 2
drv: swrast gbm: drv: nvidia surfaceless: drv: nvidia x11: drv: nvidia
inactive: wayland,device-1
API: OpenGL v: 4.6.0 compat-v: 4.5 vendor: nvidia mesa v: 545.29.06
glx-v: 1.4 direct-render: yes renderer: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070 Ti/PCIe/SSE2
memory: 7.81 GiB
API: Vulkan v: 1.3.276 layers: 14 device: 0 type: discrete-gpu name: NVIDIA
GeForce RTX 3070 Ti driver: nvidia v: 545.29.06 device-ID: 10de:2482
surfaces: xcb,xlib device: 1 type: cpu name: llvmpipe (LLVM 16.0.6 256
bits) driver: mesa llvmpipe v: 23.3.4-arch1.2 (LLVM 16.0.6)
device-ID: 10005:0000 surfaces: xcb,xlib
Audio:
Device-1: NVIDIA GA104 High Definition Audio vendor: eVga.com.
driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel pcie: gen: 4 speed: 16 GT/s lanes: 16
bus-ID: 2d:00.1 chip-ID: 10de:228b class-ID: 0403
Device-2: AMD Starship/Matisse HD Audio vendor: Micro-Star MSI
driver: snd_hda_intel v: kernel pcie: gen: 4 speed: 16 GT/s lanes: 16
bus-ID: 2f:00.4 chip-ID: 1022:1487 class-ID: 0403
Device-3: Micro Star USB Audio driver: hid-generic,snd-usb-audio,usbhid
type: USB rev: 2.0 speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1 mode: 2.0 bus-ID: 1-2:3
chip-ID: 0db0:151f class-ID: 0300
Device-4: Logitech C920 HD Pro Webcam driver: snd-usb-audio,uvcvideo
type: USB rev: 2.0 speed: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1 mode: 2.0 bus-ID: 1-6.3:8
chip-ID: 046d:0892 class-ID: 0102 serial: <filter>
API: ALSA v: k6.7.0-zen3-1-zen status: kernel-api with: aoss
type: oss-emulator tools: N/A
Server-1: PipeWire v: 1.0.1 status: active with: 1: pipewire-pulse
status: active 2: wireplumber status: active 3: pipewire-alsa type: plugin
4: pw-jack type: plugin tools: pactl,pw-cat,pw-cli,wpctl
Network:
Device-1: Realtek RTL8125 2.5GbE vendor: Micro-Star MSI driver: r8169
v: kernel pcie: gen: 2 speed: 5 GT/s lanes: 1 port: f000 bus-ID: 27:00.0
chip-ID: 10ec:8125 class-ID: 0200
IF: enp39s0 state: up speed: 1000 Mbps duplex: full mac: <filter>
Device-2: Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX210/AX211/AX411 160MHz driver: iwlwifi v: kernel
pcie: gen: 2 speed: 5 GT/s lanes: 1 bus-ID: 28:00.0 chip-ID: 8086:2725
class-ID: 0280
IF: wlo1 state: down mac: <filter>
Bluetooth:
Device-1: Intel AX210 Bluetooth driver: btusb v: 0.8 type: USB rev: 2.0
speed: 12 Mb/s lanes: 1 mode: 1.1 bus-ID: 1-4:5 chip-ID: 8087:0032
class-ID: e001
Report: btmgmt ID: hci0 rfk-id: 0 state: up address: <filter> bt-v: 5.3
lmp-v: 12 status: discoverable: no pairing: no class-ID: 6c0104
Drives:
Local Storage: total: 35.52 TiB used: 665.9 GiB (1.8%)
SMART Message: Unable to run smartctl. Root privileges required.
ID-1: /dev/nvme0n1 maj-min: 259:0 vendor: Apacer model: APSFG-2T-CSUS
size: 1.86 TiB block-size: physical: 512 B logical: 512 B speed: 63.2 Gb/s
lanes: 4 tech: SSD serial: <filter> fw-rev: 3.2.F.83 temp: 36.9 C
scheme: GPT
ID-2: /dev/sda maj-min: 8:0 vendor: Toshiba model: HDWG480 size: 7.28 TiB
block-size: physical: 4096 B logical: 512 B speed: 6.0 Gb/s tech: HDD
rpm: 7200 serial: <filter> fw-rev: 0601 scheme: GPT
ID-3: /dev/sdb maj-min: 8:16 vendor: Seagate model: ST20000NM007D-3DJ103
size: 18.19 TiB block-size: physical: 4096 B logical: 512 B speed: 6.0 Gb/s
tech: HDD rpm: 7200 serial: <filter> fw-rev: SN01 scheme: GPT
ID-4: /dev/sdc maj-min: 8:32 vendor: Toshiba model: MD04ACA500
size: 4.55 TiB block-size: physical: 4096 B logical: 512 B speed: 6.0 Gb/s
tech: HDD rpm: 7200 serial: <filter> fw-rev: FP2A scheme: GPT
ID-5: /dev/sdd maj-min: 8:48 vendor: Toshiba model: MD04ACA400
size: 3.64 TiB block-size: physical: 4096 B logical: 512 B type: USB
rev: 2.1 spd: 480 Mb/s lanes: 1 mode: 2.0 tech: HDD rpm: 7200
serial: <filter> fw-rev: 5438 scheme: GPT
Partition:
ID-1: / raw-size: 1.86 TiB size: 1.86 TiB (100.00%) used: 665.9 GiB (34.9%)
fs: btrfs dev: /dev/nvme0n1p2 maj-min: 259:2
ID-2: /boot/efi raw-size: 300 MiB size: 299.4 MiB (99.80%)
used: 584 KiB (0.2%) fs: vfat dev: /dev/nvme0n1p1 maj-min: 259:1
ID-3: /home raw-size: 1.86 TiB size: 1.86 TiB (100.00%)
used: 665.9 GiB (34.9%) fs: btrfs dev: /dev/nvme0n1p2 maj-min: 259:2
ID-4: /var/log raw-size: 1.86 TiB size: 1.86 TiB (100.00%)
used: 665.9 GiB (34.9%) fs: btrfs dev: /dev/nvme0n1p2 maj-min: 259:2
ID-5: /var/tmp raw-size: 1.86 TiB size: 1.86 TiB (100.00%)
used: 665.9 GiB (34.9%) fs: btrfs dev: /dev/nvme0n1p2 maj-min: 259:2
Swap:
Kernel: swappiness: 133 (default 60) cache-pressure: 100 (default) zswap: no
ID-1: swap-1 type: zram size: 31.26 GiB used: 3.2 MiB (0.0%) priority: 100
comp: zstd avail: lzo,lzo-rle,lz4,lz4hc,842 max-streams: 16 dev: /dev/zram0
Sensors:
System Temperatures: cpu: 40.0 C mobo: N/A gpu: nvidia temp: 43 C
Fan Speeds (rpm): N/A gpu: nvidia fan: 0%
Info:
Processes: 423 Uptime: 1h 12m wakeups: 0 Memory: total: 32 GiB
available: 31.26 GiB used: 5.97 GiB (19.1%) Init: systemd v: 255
default: graphical tool: systemctl Compilers: gcc: 13.2.1 alt: 12
clang: 16.0.6 Packages: pm: pacman pkgs: 2201 libs: 593
tools: octopi,pamac,paru Shell: fish v: 3.7.0 default: Bash v: 5.2.26
running-in: konsole inxi: 3.3.31
Garuda (2.6.22-1):
System install date:     2023-09-23
Last full system update: 2024-01-30 ↻
Is partially upgraded:   No
Relevant software:       snapper NetworkManager dracut nvidia-dkms
Windows dual boot:       No/Undetected
Failed units:

[SGS]

Start reading about TTY, system logs.
And reboot after update, its KDE.

[Locutus]

I have this same issue if the system isn’t used for several hours. It will either freeze up but still be able to move the mouse or it will freeze up minutes after starting to use it with the mouse still moveable. I thought it was due to December’s power outage, but as of the last couple of days I’m thinking some update is the issue. I say that cause another issue I had that I thought was because of the power outage ended up being an update for that program that’s been addressed since.

[SGS]

Does TTY work?
The reisub thing?

[Locutus]

@SGS

The reisub thing?

???

[billy.spiva]

I’ve been experiencing the same issue, though not nearly as severe as the OP describes.

Currently, I just reboot when it starts happening.

[SGS]

Magic SysRq key

Nice one by tbg

Handy scripts you'd like to share

Enable and execute the Magic Sysrq key combo via a bash alias for a graceful shutdown during a system hang. Run this command to create an /etc/sysctl.d/99-sysctl.conf file: echo kernel.sysrq=1 | sudo tee -a /etc/sysctl.d/99-sysctl.conf Then run the following command to reload the sysctl config files without rebooting the computer: su -c "sysctl --system" Create a script to simulate pressing the magic sysrq key combination required to shutdown the computer gracefully during a system hang. C…

SysRQ r s u o accomplishes a graceful shutdown without using the more usual

r e i s u b magic sysrq key combination.

[Bro]

There has been a lot of chatter in the Arch Forums the past few days regarding certain AMD Ryzen-series and related problems waking from sleep/hibernation and related issues.

I would investigate further.

Not being an Arch user, you are not allowed to post there, but nothing stops you reading.

[Locutus]

I’ll say damn nice one by @tbg

[Tech49]

@Bro @SGS Thanks for the info, will do.

[tbg]

Try restarting plasmashell at regular intervals. If restarting plasmashell on a daily basis prevents these lockups, then you could use a cronjob or a service to do this automatically for you. Certainly not a fix, but it may tide you over until you find a proper solution.

If I don’t reboot for like a week or more, sometimes I’ll get a lag when watching movies. If I restart plasma, I can usually watch a movie just fine for a while. However, this only works for so long. Eventually I will need to reboot, because this workaround will lose its effectiveness. Strangely, this only affects playing videos. Everything else works just fine when this occurs.

Just a thought that might help you.