Rotate terminal orientation on headless no GUI desktop server

#linux #debian #terminal

I have a headless Debian server that I recently ran a monitor. I prefer to have the monitor rotate 90 degrees so it is in a portrait view. This makes for easier reading of many short lines with more vertical space. Here's how to do it.

Rotation values:

0 = normal
1 = 90° clockwise
2 = upside down
3 = 90° counterclockwise

## test. this should instantly rotate the image
echo 3 | sudo tee /sys/class/graphics/fbcon/rotate

## make it persistant
sudo nano /etc/default/grub

GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="fbcon=rotate:3"

sudo update-grub
sudo reboot

You'll still see the normal horizontal rotation until you get to the login screen