Solving Funky Problems on Arch Linux with Linux LTS Kernel

I have many installations of Arch. I also have installations of Parabola, which is a strict Free Software Operating System which does not have any closed source bits that normal kernel has. It is just linux, minus all the binary blob nonsense stuff. Arch usually has "linux" installed, and Parabola has "linux-libre". I love to use Parabola on my Librebooted Thinkpad T60. Completely Free system from BIOS to OS. But I faced some issues, and Linux LTS solved those for me.


So, the problem started with an update on Arch. I had a PS/2 keyboard. (Don't hate! It is better than the USB ones!) The keyboard was showing repeated keystrokes when woke up from a screen lock, even if I just pressed it once. I suffered for months without a clue. I tried decreasing sticky key time and other config changes with no luck.

Then I tried the mighty Linux LTS:

sudo pacman -Sy linux-lts
sudo pacman -Rs linux # optional
sudo grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

And my problem was gone!

I noticed that on my budgie desktop setup I had some icons on the tray overlapping with some other icons (heaven knows which ones) and making some weird icons as a result. That solved too! Amazing to see a kernel fix a display issue on a remotely connected desktop panel.

One day I updated Parabola on my Thinkpad T60 only to find myself in a black screen with a kernel error on reboot. Goodness!

I had an Arch install on a USB pendrive lying around. I put it in, boot from it, ran arch-chroot to log into Parabola, then ran:

sudo pacman -Sy linux-libre-lts
sudo pacman -Rs linux-libre # optional
sudo grub-mkconfig -o /boot/grub/grub.cfg

In this case, the error was kernel related, so I had to run:

sudo mkinitcpio -p linux-libre

Logged out, booted into Parabola. It was showing the new linux-libre-lts GRUB entry. I pressed enter on the entry super-anxiously, and bam! My Parabola install was saved!

Arch is known to break things once in a while, but it is fun to use. Sue me! The package collection is way too attractive for me. And yaourt/AUR is surely something to fall in love with. I found almost no software to be not there. It installs anything like nobody's business, even compiles for me automatically when needed.

Thanks to Linux LTS - the semi-unstable always-uptodate-monster Arch/Parabola can be much safer and more stable to use.