sudo apt-get purge lightdmĪfter this reboot, the login screen successfully showed, at the point in time where previously the one-line log message disappeared and the underline cursor appeared. Note that a wired internet connection is required for the apt-get install part wireless internet is apparently not set up yet at this stage in the boot process. Instead, this answer’s solution of removing and reinstalling lightdm was what brought me forward. That answer suggests running sudo service lightdm -full-restart, but the command only gave me an error.
Here’s what worked for me, on a Dell Precision M6800 laptop running Ubuntu 16.10:įirst, at the black screen with the cursor in the top-left (which wasn’t blinking in my case), I followed this answer and pressed Ctrl+ Alt+ F1 to show a terminal, and logged in with my username and password.
