Baxter robot's RSDK GUI not booting

ROS ROS General
1

Hi everyone,

I’m currently working with a Baxter robot system and ran into an issue after recovering access to the internal PC. I’d really appreciate any guidance from those who have dealt with similar setups.

Background

  • Platform: Baxter robot

  • Internal PC: Dell OptiPlex 7010

  • OS: Baxter RSDK system (Ubuntu-based), but also has a Gentoo layer

  • ROS: Indigo

The robot had been unused for several years. Initially:

  • BIOS was locked (password protected)

  • Could not access GRUB or boot from USB

  • SSH password was unknown

I managed to:

  • Reset BIOS password (via PSWD jumper)

  • Boot from a Live USB

  • Reset the ruser password via chroot

  • Successfully SSH into the robot

Current Status

  • SSH into Baxter works (ruser login OK)

  • Network connection is working (can ping and communicate)

  • System boots into a Gentoo console login

  • I can log into the Gentoo environment

  • I cannot access or see the RSDK (Ubuntu-based) GUI environment

  • ROS tools are accessible after sourcing environment (in some contexts)

Problem

The RSDK GUI does not start automatically on boot.

Instead of the normal Baxter interface, the system:

  • Boots into a Gentoo console

  • Requires manual login

  • Does not launch the Baxter runtime or GUI

  • Does not appear to transition into the RSDK (Ubuntu) environment

What I’ve tried

  • Logged in via SSH and locally

  • Verified system access through Gentoo console

  • Sourced ROS:

    source /opt/ros/indigo/setup.bash

  • Tried enabling the robot manually:

    rosrun baxter_tools enable_robot.py -e

  • Attempted:

    rostopic list

However:

  • It seems the Baxter runtime is not being launched

  • The system may not be switching from Gentoo → RSDK layer

  • Startup scripts/services may be broken or missing

Questions

  1. What is responsible for transitioning from the Gentoo layer into the RSDK (Ubuntu) environment?

  2. What service or script launches the Baxter GUI on boot?

  3. Is there a manual way to trigger the RSDK environment from the Gentoo console?

  4. Could this be a broken startup script, service, boot configuration, or a corrupted drive?

  5. Is there a known way to restore the original Baxter startup behaviour without reinstalling the system?

  6. If there are no way to restore it then is there an image of the system available? I tried checking in with Cothinks Robotics (The ones who took over the license and manufacturing from Rethinks Robotics.) with no response.

Additional Notes

  • I would prefer not to wipe the system, since the original Baxter image is difficult to obtain

  • Hardware appears to be functioning correctly

  • This seems like a boot/runtime configuration issue rather than a hardware failure

Goal

Restore normal behaviour where:

  • Baxter boots into the RSDK GUI

  • The robot runtime starts automatically

  • No manual login or intervention is required

Any help or pointers (especially from others maintaining older Baxter systems) would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.