Ubuntu – GUI works but the console’s (CTRL-ALT-F1-F6) “don’t”

OK, I found a fix for myself, and I am leaving it here in case other people with the same problem find this. First run sudo apt-get install v86d Then run cat /sys/bus/platform/drivers/uvesafb/uvesafb.0/vbe_modes, and remember the highest of the modes it outputs. (If this doesn't output anything you may need to restart your computer after installing v86d, I can't quite remember). Then run gksudo gedit /etc/default/grub, and make the grub_cmdline_linux_default look like this: GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="quiet splash nomodeset video=uvesafb:mode_option=1024x768-32,mtrr=3,scroll=ywrap", also check if this file contains the GRUB_GFXPAYLOAD_LINUX=something or other line. If it does, then remove it. But replace 1024x768-32 with the highest listed resolution from the second step. Then run gksudo gedit /etc/initramfs-tools/modules, and add this to the bottom: uvesafb mode_option=1024x768-32 mtrr=3 scroll=ywrap Once again replacing 1024x768-32 with the mode you found. Then run gksudo gedit /etc/grub.d/10_linux, and find the part which looks like this:

function gfxmode {
    set gfxpayload="${1}"
    if [ "${1}" = "keep" ]; then
        set vt_handoff=7
    else
        set vt_handoff=
    fi
}

and make it look like this:

function gfxmode {
    set gfxpayload="${1}"
    if [ "${1}" = "keep" ]; then
        set vt_handoff=
    else
        set vt_handoff=
    fi
}

Then run sudo update-grub; sudo update-initramfs -u. Reboot and the problem will be fixed :)

The most common cause of this error is simply typing your password wrong. The keymap in the console is often subtly different from the one in X.

Make sure you're typing the correct password by first typing it in the login field where you can see if it's being written as expected.

Another thing that will cause this exact same error message is if your login shell is not listed in /etc/shells. Find which shell you're using by searching for your username in /etc/passwd:

grep "dave" /etc/passwd

(replacing dave with your username) you should see something like this:

dave:x:1000:1000::/home/dave:/bin/zsh

The last field (/bin/zsh) is your shell. Let's search for it in /etc/shells:

grep "/bin/zsh" /etc/shells

We should see something like this:

/bin/zsh
/usr/bin/zsh

But if you don't, that's what the problem is. Try re-installing zsh (or whatever shell is missing from /etc/shells), and if that doesn't work, add it manually:

echo `/bin/zsh` | sudo tee /etc/shells

(we use tee because > redirection doesn't work with sudo)