gdm.service does not exist

English Install/Boot/Login
#1

Hey everyone,

Just upgraded from 43.3 to tumbleweed last night and I can no longer use GDM. No matter what method I use it reverts back to SDDM. Trying to do this in command line tells me this:

Failed to enable unit: Unit file gdm.service does not exist.

But I have gdm installed and I have removed it and installed again with same results. Thanks.

#2

Please always post the prompt, the command, the output and the next prompt copy/paste one more line above and one more line below, easy enough). Now we have only the output, but we do not know what you did.

#3 
systemctl enable gdm.service
Failed to enable unit: Unit file gdm.service does not exist.
#4 
systemctl enable gdm.service
Failed to enable unit: Unit file gdm.service does not exist.
#5

try and select gdm

sudo update-alternatives --config default-displaymanager
#6

That was one of the methods I tried before. I tried it again and it has gdm pre-selected from before, but SDDM still comes upat login, logout or reboot won’t change it either.

#7

Try adding gdm to your user ?

#8

I do not think the display manager runs under another user then root.

==============

Maybe try the update-alternatives method to set it first to sddm and then change back to gdm. It could be that sync is lost during your trials.

#9

The issue seems to be that there’s no gdm.service file for systemd to start the service, so I just need a way to recreate the contents of this file and where it should be placed.

#10

Hi
There is no gdm.service file in Tumbleweed, it’s all done via update-alternatives…


There are 3 choices for the alternative default-displaymanager (providing /usr/lib/X11/displaymanagers/default-displaymanager).

  Selection    Path                                  Priority   Status
------------------------------------------------------------
* 0            /usr/lib/X11/displaymanagers/gdm       25        auto mode
  1            /usr/lib/X11/displaymanagers/console   5         manual mode
  2            /usr/lib/X11/displaymanagers/gdm       25        manual mode
  3            /usr/lib/X11/displaymanagers/xdm       10        manual mode

As you can see, gdm is selected on my Tumbleweed system, then depending on whether using Xorg or Xwayland select your desktop session.

#11

Ok looks like it’s working. For some reason reboots where not working, but after shutting down the laptop and starting it up again, it now brings up GDM. Thanks for the suggestions.