X200 keeps crashing
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My Thinkpad x200 is having some problems-
-My wifi crashes daily and can only be restored by a reboot. I suspect this is a hardware issue because networking goes completely dead. I have a replacement card on order, but it will take a few days to get here.
-My system is crashing, sometimes 2-3 times per day. This began with the upgrade to T12, but is happening more often now. T11 never crashed. I think I finally caught a crash on syslog on 8-15-26 at 23:18. Can anyone help interpret? Thanks!
| Anhang | Größe |
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| Screenshot at 2026-08-16 00-02-06.png | 33.59 KB |
| syslog crash.txt | 89.38 KB |
wonder if that was a specific update that caused that or immediately after you upgraded to Trisquel 12.
Hello Zoma- I put off the upgrade until six months ago. I should have stuck with T11.
The intermittent crashes started soon after the upgrade. I expected some T12 teething problems, but it keeps happening. I don't remember a particular bad update. Against my better judgement, I did the upgrade by pushing the "upgrade" button instead of doing a clean install. It worked fine. But maybe that caused all these problems.
I have tested the HDD. No problems. I see some memory conflicts in the log, but these are apparently minor, longstanding Linux issues.
Crashes sometimes occur on Youtube vids, but also on an a huge Google doc file I was trying to edit yesterday. Maybe overheating? But processor temps usually are fine.
I recently had to delete my abrowser profile and create a new one. That solved some abrowser issues, but the crashes have occurred on other apps.
Maybe I should try a reinstall, but that carries its own risks/time cost.
If you had a faster computer like X230 thinkpad (using canoeboot ofc) I would have recommended something, but I just remembered you don't have usb 3.0 so nvm.
This being said, Trisquel installs pretty darn fast on fresh installs so you don't need what I had written
Also Trisquel 11 probably is still supported.
Until you figure out whats wrong, stay with trisquel 11.
Btw, if its the kernel, use jxself.org's kernel instead.
Zoma- thanks! But I think trying to revert to T11 could be a nightmare. Sure it is still supported, but for less than a year. (I think June 2027 is the EOL.) I had no crashes today, so maybe the machine has settled down. I really want to diagnose the cause of the crashes instead just reinstalling.
Would be good to know what it does when it 'crashes.' Like does it just shut down or is mouse and keyboard frozen?
Is backing up your /home directory to an exterior drive or thumb drive and doing a fresh install out of the question?
Otherwise I wish I had an answer but I did look at your log file and noticed the following.
First thing in your log file was errors related to Udev, D-Bus, backintime
On my PC with Trisquel 12 the command 'systemctl status dbus' results with:
● dbus.service - D-Bus System Message Bus
Loaded: loaded (/usr/lib/systemd/system/dbus.service; static)
Active: active (running) since Mon 2026-08-17 17:48:04 PDT; 41min ago
TriggeredBy: ● dbus.socket
Docs: man:dbus-daemon(1)
Main PID: 1015 (dbus-daemon)
Tasks: 1 (limit: 76979)
Memory: 3.6M (peak: 4.6M)
CPU: 322ms
CGroup: /system.slice/dbus.service
└─1015 @dbus-daemon --system --address=systemd: --nofork --nopidfile --systemd-activation --syslog-only
You might run 'systemctl status dbus' in a terminal and see what you get.
Also, 'systemctl list-sockets' shows a socket
/run/dbus/system_bus_socket
And
'systemctl -l | grep udev' reveals:
systemd-udev-trigger.service loaded active exited Coldplug All udev Devices
systemd-udevd.service loaded active running Rule-based Manager for Device Events and Files
systemd-udevd-control.socket loaded active running udev Control Socket
systemd-udevd-kernel.socket loaded active running udev Kernel Socket
Your log finishes up with multiple errors regarding something called isdv-4-serial-inputattach
Do you have touchscreen or trying to hookup a Wacom Tablet?
I noticed ofono.service in your log. I always disable that since I don't use my PC for telephony. Maybe you do.
All I hook up to is Ethernet and a printer via USB (managed by CUPS) so I can shut down avahi.daemon. I also don't use bluetooth for anything so that goes quiet as well.
Best of luck troubleshooting.
I used Hyperbola up until 2026 when a lot of the packages were mega out of date.
So I don't think you have as much to risk.
Just saying.
But yeah it can be a pain if you wait too long to upgrade.
Thanks Geshmy!
I couldn't upload a message with terminal outputs, so I created an odt file.
Thanks for your help!
The machine has two failure modes-
1. Networking dies and is fine on reboot. Seems to happen under heavy load, but not always. I have ordered another ath9k card to see if it works better. Cost was only $7-8 with free shipping/returns.
2. The system suddenly dies when watching videos. It also shut down once this weekend while editing a huge Google Doc. Only some videos are affected. Others seem fine. Suspect a thermal issue, but could be a video codec. This happens on abrowser and Chome. A thermal issue would explain the commonality of the abrowser/Chrome problem.
But here is the temp after a 15 minute video- it's not bad.
X200:~$ sensors -f
thinkpad-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
fan1: 3600 RPM
fan2: 3600 RPM
CPU: +134.6°F
GPU: +109.4°F
temp3: N/A
temp4: +132.8°F
temp5: +77.0°F
temp6: N/A
temp7: +77.0°F
temp8: N/A
BAT0-acpi-0
Adapter: ACPI interface
in0: 12.50 V
coretemp-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
Core 0: +127.4°F (crit = +221.0°F)
Core 1: +125.6°F (crit = +221.0°F)
acpitz-acpi-0
Adapter: ACPI interface
temp1: +134.6°F
temp2: +109.4°F
| Anhang | Größe |
|---|---|
| X200 troubleshooting.odt | 53.39 KB |
***I may have found something.***
Viewing the nypost.com website with abrowser just caused a thermal shutdown. The site is heavily laden with videos and junk. (I run UBO and block all scripts and ads.) When I scrolled down the page, I heard the fan speed increase to high. CPU temp climbed rapidly to 194F and the system froze/crashed before I could react.
As context, the CPU temp runs about 140-150F on a long Youtube video with abrowser. The fan copes easily.
To test other browsers, I then ran Chrome browser and viewed nypost.com. CPUs ran 163-174 (221F is critical), but no thermal problems occurred.
Falkon browser refused to even load nypost.com and returns a generic error message. Other sites like Youtube load fine.
Any comments/suggestions welcome.
Update- Three hrs later, the NYPOST.com site has been updated and no longer causes a thermal problem. It now runs cool. But how can I prevent future recurrences?
Use uBlock Origin plus either NoScript or uMatrix. That combination will by default disable the types of third-party scripts that are probably bogging you down.
Well, I turned on thermald. Maybe that will help.
Sudo thermald
Thermald did not help.
Thanks Andyprough and tonino. I tried switching from UBO to UBOL, which is much lighter. It blocked ads, especially on Youtube, and stopped the thermal runaway on Dailymail.com. It also blocks scripts, depending on the user setting. Basically a slider blocks scripts if pushed to the right.
As far as I am concerned, the abusive level of ads renders the web unusable without a good ad blocker. I'd rather poke pine cones into my eyes than watch video ads.
But I still cannot fathom what is going on with the X200. The browser basically allows certain rogue scripts to quickly overheat and crash the system. I would like to trace the scripts with UBO's logging feature, but I'd need a more powerful machine to do so. Still working on other solutions.
I would still recommend running either noscript or umatrix alongside UBOL to get better control over malicious or runaway scripts (of which there are many online). Or you could set UBOL to disable 3rd party scripts. Or the LibreJS extension will do a lot of the same work for you.
Latest- I have installed CPUFreq, something I have not used in years and never on my X200.
sudo apt-get install indicator-cpufreq
CPUFreq shows up on the indicator panel menu. Right click the black space at the bottom of the desktop. Click Add to Panel. CPUFreq will land to the left of the icons for wifi, battery, audio and clock. I used the CPUFreq menu to reduce my CPU speed to 66%. I think this will fix my overheating issues.
I am a member!
Just grapping straws here. Does your CPU still use the original thermal paste? My x200 had massive thermal issues, but after dissambly, dust removal and repasting, the thing rad a lot cooler.
Markmus-my thermal paste was done about five years ago when the machine was Librebooted.
Thank for all the suggestion. I am prepping to reinstall Trisquel and possibly re-paste the cpu.
First, I am testing the battery by running on the AC adapter only without the battery installed. The battery tests fine and has 70% life, but it is a Chinese product. I have run like this for 18 hrs with no crash and have another Chinese battery on order. My ultimate solution would be to build my own battery out of known-good 18650 cells, but that is a fair amount of work. I bought a cheap Chinese welder to install solder tabs on the battery cells, and I don't know if it will work. I have been putting off the project for months...
Second, I plan to open the machine for cleaning and possible re-pasting. Re-pasting requires thorough disassembly to access the fan/heat sink. This is fairly straightforward, but I may damage a ribbon cable or something.
Lastly, I have a question for Libreboot laptop owners. Can I install Trisquel from a USB stick, or do I need to use an external CD drive? I don't remember if a USB can be used to install the OS on an X200. Thanks.
****Update****
My X200 just crashed at idle. I had no battery installed and it did not overheat. Any ideas?
Is the mobo dying?
FYI, the system just passed memtest86+ 100%.