[nmglug] No GUI desktop=added info

[okeefe at cybermesa.com]

On Fri, March 16, 2018 11:10 pm, s at mnoble.net wrote:
> On Fri, Mar 16, 2018 okeefe at cybermesa.com wrote:
>> > Here's the log file error:
>> > #(EE) open /dev/fb0: permission denied#
>> > after finding correct syntax for the log file ;)
> Not sure how far from the real issue we are here, as X's use of the
> framebuffer is I believe optional,  but the perms issues should be
> easily fixable. A DM would run as some user with the correct
> permissions, but since you're running startx as yourself any permission
> issues are applying to your user.
> My framebuffer 0 device is owned by group video:
> sam at computer$ ls -l /dev/fb0
> crw-rw---- 1 root video 29, 0 Mar 16 12:00 /dev/fb0
>
> If yours is similar maybe you need to be added to that group:
> ubuntu at ubuntu$sudo usermod -a -G video ubuntu
Thanks Sam. I'm increasingly flumoxed. Are you available for paid work?
Seriously because....
I added me to group as above. I must have already been in that group since
I always had a GUI. Anyway I added me again.
Since somehow I had the guest running graphically in an xfce4-session
(never happened before the update that has borked my machine. I always
logged in from a gnome login screen) but when I switched to tty1 I would
have a fresh login prompt with no user. I added superuser for ubuntuguest
so I removed all xfce4 in hopes that I'd get another WM, the prior gdm
login screen, but now the machine tries to boot the guest again but w/o
XFCE4 I get a fallback prompt but nothing happens.

>
>> > Interestingly this last reboot booted straight into the guest
>> > and lightdm (where that wm (sic) came from is beyond me!). Can't
>> > login to any wm as me though.
> Hmm, there's so many possibilities of how the DMs are being shipped. I
> hope you're getting good advice from Ubuntites on their forum. Seems
> like whatever they're doing to enable easy guest access is getting in
> our way here.
The Ubuntoids have not responded at all.
>
>> >> $sudo /etc/init.d/somedm stop
> is useful here.
> You could try:
> $sudo /etc/init.d/lightdm stop	#Or restart would be interesting.
Stopped lightdm (successfully) then rebooting gives me a Kubuntu splash on
a black screen-nothing else and then a totally black screen. Switching to
tty1 gives me a login prompt. Login as me, ubuntu. Switch to graphical is
black screen. back to tty1 and $startx which fails.
>
> Also note that Display Managers (gdm, kdm, lightdm, slim, xdm) are not
> window managers, they're pretty much just there to launch X and give you
> a login window. And they are not always (or even typically) tied to the
> window manager/desktop environment that they 'come with'
Right, knew that but I do not get a login screen at all. Will try
reinstalling XFCE4 to see if the same behavior as before reoccurs.
>
> I guess we skipped the part where you tell us if your using startx
> intentially, or if it's something you started doing becouse your DM is
> broken?
Broken DM
>
>> Sorry for dribbling this in but I ran #who# and for the first time found
>> that ubuntuguest has a DISPLAY value of (:0) EHO NO VALUE FOR ME,
>> "Ubuntu". I had just run #export DISPLAY="0.0# logged in as me in the
>> command line. However if I ctr+alt+f7 I am back in the ubuntuguest GUI.
>> On
>
> Yeah that sounds normal. It is probably possible for you to run your GUI
> apps in guest's X session but that won't be a solution excepting some
> scenario where (against Ted's correct advice) you've given up on fixing
> the underlying issue and are trying to e.g. run Thunderbird that one
> last time to do an export.
I want to fix the underlying issue for critical reasons (being on my back
for the next 4 months starting next Thursday after surgery. Want my normal
environment back for both entertainment and work.
> It'd go something like:
> Open terminal emulator in guest session
> ubuntuguest at ubuntu$xhost + 	#Lots of more granular ways to do this with
> xauth/Xauthority but xhost + should just disable all that.
> ubuntuguest at ubuntu$su ubuntu	#su - ubuntu would spawn a login shell, but
> this way you'll keep the DISPLAY=:0 from ubuntuguest's env.
> ubuntu at ubuntu$xclock		#xclock or xlogo from x11-apps are my goto for a
> test like this. Most real stuff will want other environment stuff from the
> session, dbus and the like.
Right, I wasn't able to run anything "complex" except those you mention
tho could run Libreoffice (?).
So I just installed xubuntu-desktop and here're the results.......
Kubuntu throbbing on black screen. It disappears then.....nothing. Go to
tty1 and have login prompt. Login as ubuntu (me) then $lightdm. XFCE
desktop appears with ubuntuguest as user. Right back to where I was. So
tty1 login as ubuntu then starting lightdm opens XFCE for ubuntuguest
(should I remove ubuntuguest as a user then try?). So without a login
screen and the option to choose the user in a graphical mode and then to
boot that session I'm totally stuck. BTW I've googled this until I'm blue
in the face.
So can you, Sam, or anyone help me professionally?
Thanks,
Brian

>
> --
> sam
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