I was having this same issue after plugging in my screen. Oddly enough this issue was resolved when I was trying to solve another issue about screen locking up when opening a new application.
Here is the solution that fixed both issues. https://support.displaylink.com/knowledgebase/articles/1843660-screen- freezes-after-opening-an-application-only -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Desktop Packages, which is subscribed to xorg in Ubuntu. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1278223 Title: Mouse Flickering after adding 3rd Monitor Status in xorg package in Ubuntu: Incomplete Bug description: *PLEASE READ FIRST BEFORE CONSIDERING MAKING A COMMENT* If you are having an issue and want it addressed, it is most helpful to file a new report. If you were led here by DisplayLink's website, you were led here in error as no useful debugging information has been provided by the original reporter, which is necessary to root cause, and solve the issue he reported. Posting comments about how you think you have the same problem isn't helpful here. My issues is, after adding a 3rd monitor to Ubuntu 14.04, the mouse flickers (or blinks) when the cursor is on monitors one or two, but not 3. Monitor 1: 1440 x 900 - Laptop's Native Monitor Monitor 2: 1920 x 1080 - Laptop's HDMI Port's External Monitor Monitor 3: 1024 x 768 - SIIG USB 2.0 to VGA Pro Monitor Here's the video card that feeds my laptop's native monitor, monitor 2 (hdmi). lspci | grep 'VGA\|Display' 00:02.0 VGA compatible controller: Intel Corporation Mobile 4 Series Chipset Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 07) 00:02.1 Display controller: Intel Corporation Mobile 4 Series Chipset Integrated Graphics Controller (rev 07) The 3rd Monitor is powered through a Display Link certified SIIG USB 2.0 to VGA Pro adapter (A2H1320X1374 - not sure what this number, but it is a sticker on back of the device): lsusb -tv /: Bus 01.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=ehci-pci/6p, 480M |__ Port 6: Dev 2, If 0, Class=Video, Driver=uvcvideo, 480M |__ Port 6: Dev 2, If 1, Class=Video, Driver=uvcvideo, 480M dmesg [ 1.688343] usb 2-1: New USB device found, idVendor=17e9, idProduct=02ee [ 1.688348] usb 2-1: New USB device strings: Mfr=1, Product=2, SerialNumber=3 [ 1.688351] usb 2-1: Product: VGA Display Adapter [ 1.688353] usb 2-1: Manufacturer: DisplayLink [ 1.688356] usb 2-1: SerialNumber: 119785 Additionally, unity-control-center crashes sometimes after I "Restore previous settings", after selecting a resolution too high. This freezed my laptop, requiring a hard reboot. ProblemType: Bug DistroRelease: Ubuntu 14.04 Package: unity-control-center 14.04.1-0ubuntu5 ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.13.0-8.27-generic 3.13.2 Uname: Linux 3.13.0-8-generic x86_64 NonfreeKernelModules: wl ApportVersion: 2.13.2-0ubuntu2 Architecture: amd64 CurrentDesktop: Unity Date: Sun Feb 9 18:43:13 2014 InstallationDate: Installed on 2014-02-02 (7 days ago) InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Alpha amd64 (20140202) SourcePackage: unity-control-center UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install) To manage notifications about this bug go to: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xorg/+bug/1278223/+subscriptions -- Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~desktop-packages Post to : desktop-packages@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~desktop-packages More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp