obscure login problems, cant log on

[pythagras]

Heres what I posted to mandrake linux's support incident thingy:
"I am having serious problems and a prompt answer is needed:

Linux goes to the login streen, I type my personal login and it seems to go back to the login screen asking for login again.
Same thing happens with logging on as 'root' and when I go to try to do anything in the linux configuration area (when you restart, you can choose to go to a linux config area) it just tells me "wrong password" as if something is already inserting a password for me. What is going on? Is something trying to guess my password, is there a trojan on my computer?

Any help would be VERY MUCH APRECIATED!!
Thank you!!
Doug Turnbull
pythagoras@vt.edu"

This is basicly what happens:
login: <loginname>
<blank line for a split second>
<for a split second here is "Invalid Login">
goes back to:
login:

of course all the traditional mandrake/linux stuff is present

It does this no matter what Im trying to log in as. Nothing really happened that I noticed in my last linux session. I do run an ssh server so that I can do stuff in the lab, maybe that got compromised? Is it just a bug? Is it a trojan?

Help me so I dont fail out of my Operating Systems class!!
Doug

[slapNUT]

I think it might be the keyboard or the keyboard config. Does the keyboard work in another OS?

Try linux single at the lilo boot prompt and see if keyboard is ok there.

[pythagras]

That was also my first thought. I have a logitech cordless keyboard (as a dvorak). But I can type in the login fine, maybe the enter key is just 'held down' longer than it actually is. But yeah the KB works fine in win2k.

Im running GRUB, not lilo, anything I can do there?

[mdwatts]

This will sometimes happen when X is respawning too fast which indicates a problem with the X configuration.

Is this a new install and was you video card detected during the install? Is this the gui logon screen or console?

[pythagras]

well its the traditional login screen. Im not running x on startup.

Heres my info
Mandrake 8.1 w/GRUb to boot. The prompt is the traditional login prompt, not x's lagin. The keyboard is lagitech cordless, and it is set up as a dvorak.

Other seemingly pointless stats
PIII 550 Mhz
1 45 gig IBM 75GXP
1 13 gig Western Digital
USB mouse
ATI All in Wonder 128
Soundblaster 128 PCI

Anyway I can probably ssh into my machine from the computer lab. What would i want to check while doing that?

Oh and btw
One of the reasons I thought it might be a hack thing (lord knows why anyone would want to do that to my dinky computer) is that when I enter the linux config thing through the failsafe mode I get a bunch of stuff saying that the ownership of several devices has been changed from root, and asks if I want to change it back to "root.lp" or something. Suspicous I say...

[ 18 March 2002: Message edited by: pythagras ]

[ 18 March 2002: Message edited by: pythagras ]

[slapNUT]

Did you try linux single, if so were you able to use the keyboard?

If you cant use that then boot off the Mandrake Install CD#1 and at the prompt press <F1> then type rescue. After booting into rescue mode then chroot /mnt then try reinstalling console-tools. That is where your keymap files come from.

[pythagras]

I just reinstalled, my '/home' directory was on a seperate partition, so I kept all my settings and data intact.