I installed a fresh Ubuntu 20.04 LTS on an Oracle VM (quite sure the problem will remain the same on a direct fresh install on hdd). During the installation, I choosed “french language” and “Belgian keyboard”. Later, the installer asked me to type my name and password and THERE the keyboard is in Qwerty with no support of the numeric pad (Qwerty 88)
I checked it with two different install to be sure of the bug.
After reboot, it returns back in Keyb BE as defined.
If your name doesn’t contain any letter as “z-q-a-w or m” nor a numeric AND neither does your password, you are fine. But if only your password does, you’re fried because you cannot detect the problem during the install and at the next restart : bam ! “your password is invalid”.
The work around is to type the password with the “Qwerty 88” design in your head, a design easy to find on internet.
I tested it again with a German Qwertzu keyboard. Same problem: the keyboard while you first define your name and password is also a Qwerty 88
Same reaction: after the first reboot, the keyboard design is German Qwertzu as it should be while you were defining your name and password during the install process.
AFAIK the installer guesses a suitable keyboard layout based on your chosen language and time zone location. That guess is just a proposal, and you should be able to set whichever layout you wish when you reach that step in the installation process. Maybe I’m missing something…
FYI: I’ve made way over 500 OS install in my life, including at least 50-100 Ubuntu
I specifically choose Belgian (or German) layout and test the choosen keyboard layout (there is a field to do so) and it is correct at this step. A few step LATER, the installer asked for “name” and “password” and, there, the layout is “Qwerty 88” whatever I’ve choose before. It goes back to Belgian (or German) after the 1st reboot. And I explained the catch with the password if you use an “a” (Belgian) or a “z” (German) or the numeric keypad (both) in it.
As far as I understand, the issue is with ubiquity not setting up the keyboard layout as soon as you select it during the installation. So that you can use it when you type your name, computer name, username and password a bit later on.
I do not know whether this was working before as my primary keyboard layout is English US or GB.
Be sure it worked on previous versions. Otherwise, there is a great risk of locking while you try to login as explained in my previous posts.
On the other hand, I partly agree with you it’s: was a recurrent problem on “so-so finished” versions/savour of Linux in older times. That’s the reason why I find the workaround on the spot: happened to me (and thousand and thousand of Linux users) before.
Today, on Ubuntu who wants to be my grand-mother’s Linux, it shouldn’t happen cause she won’t know how to solve it.
