xrandr : Failed to get size of gamma for output default

I have a 'fix' for the bug which may work, but doesn't fix the underlying cause. If the proprietary drivers can be installed, or simply a different video driver, this may read the gamma and allow for re-sizing the display. I found a Live DVD (Linux Mint 14 Cinnamon) which caused the same problem of not reading the gamma, but when I installed nvidia-current under the Live session, I was able to get a gamma reading and re-size the display to add 1280x1024@60Hz.

I found a fix for the 'failed to get size of gamma for output default' which was causing the problems keeping the higher resolutions from being used.

In using xrandr according to the https://wiki.ubuntu.com/X/Config/Resolution guide to add higher resolutions and xrandr returns the gamma error, I was able to fix the problem by adding --gamma 1:1:1 to the xrandr --output line, as follows:
xrandr --output default --gamma 1:1:1 --mode 1280x1024
where xrandr returns the output name as default, and the modename is from a newly defined, higher resolution mode.

I got this to work properly with my Etronix 1701B 1280x1024 pixel 17" LCD monitor from an Ubuntu 13.04 virtual machine which was reporting the gamma problem and display name 'default', with a Bodhi 2.0 virtual machine and a Bodhi 2.0 Live CD, all three exhibiting the 'default' display and 'failed to get size of gamma for output default'.

The display does not immediately resize, but the new mode can be chosen from the arandr GUI. After selection, when the dialog box pops up, I select to keep that selection. On the next log out or restart, the default is at 1280x1024 as selected before, even at the login screen and at the desktop.

Note: several modes greater than the previous 1024x768 maximum were also allowed, including modes which actually exceded the maximum of my monitor.

I think this bug report can be closed, with proper documentation.

I tried by installing nvidia-current and the bug was fixed. Thanks for the quick fix.

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

also affects 14.04 amd64
Intel G31/G33

Also affects 14.04 i686 3.13.0-24-generic #46-Ubuntu

sudo lshw -c video includes:
  *-display:0 UNCLAIMED
       description: VGA compatible controller
       product: 4 Series Chipset Integrated Graphics Controller
       vendor: Intel Corporation

xrandr: Failed to get size of gamma for output default
Screen 0: minimum 800 x 600, current 800 x 600, maximum 800 x 600
default connected 800x600+0+0 0mm x 0mm
   800x600 75.0*

I don't know if it is relevant here, but I got the same response from xrandr (about gamma), and also struggled with wrong resolutions. For me, the cause was the 'nomodeset' kernel parameter, this (i.e. disabling kernel modesetting) caused the i915 graphics driver to fail, and the vesa driver to be used instead. Perhaps you can check in /var/log/Xorg.0.log that the correct driver is being used? The log also contains the kernel command linke - although you may have to use 'nomodeset' to get nvidia to work (that was the reason it was in mine - when I removed the graphics card, I forgot to revert the grub options).

I am not having the error under the present kernel 14.04 and open source
driver. I have had the error while using nvidia-current and previous
kernels and once using the nvidia open source driver and Xubuntu 13.10.
 Also had the reported problem with Bodhi (based on 12.04 at the time.) I
updated to Xubuntu 14.04 pre-alpha and have not had any problems to report
with this version. The last trial I made with Ubuntu 14.04, same setup, my
graphics froze, diagonal random graphics, requiring a hard reboot to
recover, but I have had similar problems with Ubuntu Unity since Unity was
introduced, running on my desktop.

My Acer Aspire One ZG5 netbook with Intel graphics has never had this
problem, nor the freezing with Unity desktop.

On Sat, Apr 26, 2014 at 4:25 PM, Ketil Malde <email address hidden> wrote:

> I don't know if it is relevant here, but I got the same response from
> xrandr (about gamma), and also struggled with wrong resolutions. For me,
> the cause was the 'nomodeset' kernel parameter, this (i.e. disabling
> kernel modesetting) caused the i915 graphics driver to fail, and the
> vesa driver to be used instead. Perhaps you can check in
> /var/log/Xorg.0.log that the correct driver is being used? The log also
> contains the kernel command linke - although you may have to use
> 'nomodeset' to get nvidia to work (that was the reason it was in mine -
> when I removed the graphics card, I forgot to revert the grub options).
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to the bug
> report.
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1078695
>
> Title:
> xrandr : Failed to get size of gamma for output default
>
> Status in “x11-utils” package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> I have been tracking in the Ubuntu & Linux Mint forums when people have
> problems with the resolution of their screens not being able to be set to
> the native resolution of their displays. Normally, that can be fixed by
> either xrandr or xorg.conf settings, but occasionally when xrandr is typed
> on a line by itself to check the configuration of the X display, the return
> is [code]$ xrandr
> xrandr : failed to get size of gamma for output default
> Screen 0: blah blah
> default : more blah blah[/code]When this has occurred, the output
> maximum resolution can NOT be changed, and I haven't found any way to fix
> the problem.
>
> [background] My particular rig is a custom built with a BIOStar N68S3B
> motherboard, AMD Athlon II x3 processor, 8G RAM, nVidia GeForce 7025
> display adapter on the motherboard, Etronix 1701B display. I have
> fought getting my maximum resolution (1280x1024) on this monitor since
> 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon, and used a custom xorg.conf file until it stopped
> working, around 9.10, and have used xrandr since. (I stopped using
> Ubuntu as my primary OS of choice when Unity came out, because my rig
> did not support Compiz or graphics acceleration. Xubuntu, Linux Mint
> Debian Edition, or Debian are my primaries now.) The EDID on this
> monitor is not read correctly/has never been read correctly, and I
> have always been stuck with the default resolution on Live media,
> except occasio...

For the record, and for anyone who might be googling:

I just ran across the same problem on Debian Wheezy Netinst running on a KVM virtual machine. The issue was that KVM's default emulated video hardware is Cirrus, which is very old and limited in functionality. I changed it on virt-manager to QXL (VM configuration, "Video" item, choose "QXL" on the drop-down list), installed the QXL X driver, and now I can use any resolution I want.

Trying to solve #874694 (only getting 640x480 maximum resolution instead of 1024x768), I see also an Amilo L6820 with Intel 82845G/GL/GE Chipset. This blocks my attempts to force the screen resolution at xrandr level.

Have you tried the *vga=###* where ### is one of the valid VGA values,
using this on the GRUB linux kernel line? This has worked for me on some
recent kernels/x-servers where xrandr can't force the screen resolution. I
have used this with *nouveau.noaccel=1* and sometimes *acpi=off* in problem
situations to force the resolution where hardware acceleration enabled just
causes the graphics processor to freeze, causing a reboot necessary. This
does NOT work on GNOME, KDE, Unity, Cinnamon, etc., but does work for Mate
and Xfce without Compiz enabled.

Hope this helps.

Carl Snyder

On Thu, Sep 3, 2015 at 4:45 PM, BJB <email address hidden> wrote:

> Trying to solve #874694 (only getting 640x480 maximum resolution instead
> of 1024x768), I see also an Amilo L6820 with Intel 82845G/GL/GE Chipset.
> This blocks my attempts to force the screen resolution at xrandr level.
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to the bug
> report.
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1078695
>
> Title:
> xrandr : Failed to get size of gamma for output default
>
> Status in x11-utils package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> I have been tracking in the Ubuntu & Linux Mint forums when people have
> problems with the resolution of their screens not being able to be set to
> the native resolution of their displays. Normally, that can be fixed by
> either xrandr or xorg.conf settings, but occasionally when xrandr is typed
> on a line by itself to check the configuration of the X display, the return
> is [code]$ xrandr
> xrandr : failed to get size of gamma for output default
> Screen 0: blah blah
> default : more blah blah[/code]When this has occurred, the output
> maximum resolution can NOT be changed, and I haven't found any way to fix
> the problem.
>
> [background] My particular rig is a custom built with a BIOStar N68S3B
> motherboard, AMD Athlon II x3 processor, 8G RAM, nVidia GeForce 7025
> display adapter on the motherboard, Etronix 1701B display. I have
> fought getting my maximum resolution (1280x1024) on this monitor since
> 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon, and used a custom xorg.conf file until it stopped
> working, around 9.10, and have used xrandr since. (I stopped using
> Ubuntu as my primary OS of choice when Unity came out, because my rig
> did not support Compiz or graphics acceleration. Xubuntu, Linux Mint
> Debian Edition, or Debian are my primaries now.) The EDID on this
> monitor is not read correctly/has never been read correctly, and I
> have always been stuck with the default resolution on Live media,
> except occasionally on Puppy or Elive, through two different main
> machines. My first Linux install was on an eMachines T5212 with an
> nVidia GeForce 6200 128M graphics memory, 2G RAM.[/Background]
>
> I noticed that on a Bodhi 2.0 Live media that the xrandr did not work
> because x11-xserver-utils package was not installed. I was checking
> out the Live media, because my Bodhi 2.0 virtual machine exhibits the
> same problems reported by laptop users, that is, the Failed to get
> size of gamma for output default and unable to use xrandr to add a
> higher...

Upgraded from 18.04 LTS with no additional drivers to 20.04 LTS
updated until 1-Oct-2020.

This bug seems to prevent correct results from e.g. mkusb
Googled for various solutions, none of which worked.

No HW changes since previous versions, back to (IIRC) 12.04
none of which showed this problem