Re: Blank Screen, Gnome Config Problem?

["Jeff Boyce" <jboyce meridianenv com>]

I have tried the approach of renaming the .gconf and .gnome directories so 
that they would get recreated upon starting X the next time.  The result was 
the same blank desktop.  Another similar approach that was suggested was to 
create a new dummy user and copy the configuration files from that user. 
This caused more problems due to the references back to the dummy user, 
although I was able to rectify that.  So I am back to my original problem, 
which essentially boils down to how do I restore my gnome desktop to its 
original status?  I didn't have any customized workspace so I am not worried 
about losing anything like that.  Any more suggestions folks?
Jeff


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ryan McDougall" <NQG24419 nifty com>
To: "Jeff Boyce" <jboyce meridianenv com>
Cc: <gnome-list gnome org>
Sent: Friday, April 08, 2005 4:26 AM
Subject: Re: Blank Screen, Gnome Config Problem?


> This isn't great advice, but you could try blasting any .dotfile
> or .directory, especially .xinitrc. Make sure you back up any data
> first, but there really shouldn't be any. Actually you probably
> shouldn't even be using root in X, there's no need.
>
> Cheers,
> Ryan
>
> On Thu, 2005-07-04 at 14:10 -0700, Jeff Boyce wrote:
> > I am a relatively new, novice Linux user looking for assistance with a
> > problem that I am sure I created as a result of my inexperience.  I am
> > pretty good at diagnosing problems, but am not familiar with Linux enough 
> > to
> > know where to look.
> >
> > System:  Dell PE2600, RHEL3, configured as file server with Samba
> >
> > Problem:  A blank (i.e., black) desktop without any icons when starting X
> > manually as root user.  Can not open a file manager window.  Also a long
> > delay occurs (1-2 minutes) when logging out of X.
> >
> > Events Leading Up to Problem:  The only unique actions that occurred on 
> > the
> > system the previous day included the
> > installation of the NUT (network ups tools) software from source, and the
> > subsequent uninstallation of NUT.  I had never installed from source 
> > before
> > and the installation went fine without errors.  There was not a *make
> > uninstall* for the program so I followed some instructions to review the
> > *makefile* to see where all the files where installed and delete the
> > files/directories manually.  The following directories were removed
> > (actually moved to Trash).  The install and uninstall both occurred as 
> > the
> > root user.
> >
> > /opt/NUT/nut-2.0.1    (contained the unzipped source files)
> > /usr/local/ups/man
> > /usr/local/ups/share
> > /usr/local/ups/bin
> > /usr/local/ups/sbin
> >
> > Diagnostic tests/actions tried:  These problems do not occur when 
> > starting X
> > from a non-root user.  As suggested by someone I have checked the
> > permissions on the /root/.gconf directory (700) and they are the same as 
> > the
> > permissions on a normal users directory /home/jeffb/.gconf directory 
> > (700)
> > that has a normal desktop.  I am unable to see if there are any error
> > messages sent to screen when X starts (a recommendation on how to capture
> > this information would be appreciated), but when X finally shuts down the
> > list below includes some of the information on the screen.  The AUDIT
> > statement is also listed in the /var/log/Xfree86.0.log file.
> >
> > Session_Manager=local/bison:/tmp/.ICE-unix/2422
> > AUDIT: Thu Apr  7 09:00:58 2005: 2418 X: client 4 rejected from local 
> > host
> > Option given which is no longer supported in this version of 
> > Gnome-terminal;
> > you might want to create a profile with the desired setting, and use the
> > new --window-with-profile option
> > Unable to open desktop file applications:
> > ///Office/redhat-word-processor.desktop for panel launcher: Error reading
> > file 'applications:///office/redhat-word-processor.desktop' : file not 
> > found
> >    <snip>
> > Saving Session:
> > gnome-terminal --use-factory --window-with-profile-internal-ID=Default --show-member
> >  --role=gnome-terminal-14721 --1476088167-1090439518  --title
> > root bison:~ --working-directory /root --zoom 1
> > Waiting for X server to shut down
> >
> > I would appreciate any suggestions on what to look for, where to look, 
> > other
> > diagnostic steps, etc. that will assist me in returning my root user 
> > desktop
> > back to normal.  Could a solution be a simple as copying a set of
> > configuration files from a user that is working normally?  If so what 
> > files?
> > Thanks for any assistance.
> >
> > Jeff Boyce
> > www.meridianenv.com
> >
> >
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