This also happened on 2.6.32-un-def-alt5 (from 5.1) and that xorg-drv-intel-2.4.3-alt0.M41.1 (when working in rxvt-unicode-9.02-alt1). +++ This bug was initially created as a clone of Bug #23740 +++ The following problem can also be considered as a problem of the kernel: because even after restarting X, the screen stays blank. So, this means, the kernel doesn't provide a clean state for the new, independent X process. The kernel could take care of providing a clean graphics state for new Xs. +++ This bug was initially created as a clone of Bug #23739 +++ Created an attachment (id=4453) /var/log/Xorg.0.log.old when this happens xorg-drv-intel-2.4.3-alt0.M41.1 # uname -a Linux localhost.localdomain 2.6.30-std-def-alt15 #1 SMP Mon Dec 14 08:45:48 UTC 2009 i686 GNU/Linux # lspci | fgrep -i vga 00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Mobile 945GM/GMS, 943/940GML Express Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 03) # At random moments (often when opening a new page in chromium-browser-6.0.401.0-alt1.r47010), the screen is blanked (more precisely, filled with one color: black, or the blue color of the Chromium's window). One can successfully switch to a linux text console. But this state of the graphics screen stays "forever" until a reboot: restarting X doesn't help. This happens rather seldom; and is not deterministically reproducible.
Perhaps, it's fixed by this famous (http://www.linux.org.ru/news/kernel/5174456 ) commit: http://git.kernel.org/?p=linux/kernel/git/torvalds/linux-2.6.git;a=commitdiff;h=944001201ca0196bcdb088129e5866a9f379d08c ...