I can no longer log into my desktop account. When I try I am just returned to the login screen again. I created a test user and can login in fine with that so it’s an account specific problem. Just to check I deleted the .kde4 for my account and I can then log in so definitely something wrong with the .kde4 somewhere.
I then restored the .kde folder from a backup taken yesterday evening (at a point everything was working fine). Now when I try log in I get a xmessage saying “kstartupconfig4 does not exit or fails. Error code 4. Check”.
I did a search and kstartupconfig4 does exist in /usr/bin and /proc/6569/fd
I am thinking that perhaps when I restored the .kde4 folder that the permissions may have changed. How can I copy the .kde4 folder from the backup drive and preserve the permissions? I tried it through Dolphin in Super user mode.
Any suggestions as to what else I can try to get my account working again. If I can help it don’t want to have to start all over with reconfiguring it.
I am not sure what caused this to happen. I was messing around with Conky and created a script to auto start it that I added to the Autostart in the Desktop Settings. The script ran fine when manually launching it so I don’t see that being the problem.
I also updated Virtualbox to the latest kernel but I don’t think that would be the cause - would it?
Can you login at level 3? You can copy the folder from the command line. Alternatively boot a live cd and login as root, mount your /home partition and copy the folder that way.
Not sure what you’re really asking. I don’t really log into KDE as root. I do everything through su in the cli or the su versions of apps like Dolphin in su mode, etc.
But to answer your question, I’ve probably logged into KDE as root about 4-5 times but that was some time ago now when I was still learning and experimenting with 11.1.
How do you know the permissions are wrong, or would you be blindly stabbing?
To me the only thing you have confirmed is your backup and restore routine is not working, which could be a faulty backup as much as permissions, or even backing up a broken config…
OK, from my test user account I can do Ctrl Alt F2 to get to the command prompt (is that like run level 3?). From there I can log in with my normal username no problem.
Where do I go from there? I’ll try copying the .kde4 folder from the backup again. If that doesn’t work is it worth starting up yast and doing an unconditional update for KDE4?
You lost me there. This is the first time I’ve had this problem.
How do you know the permissions are wrong, or would you be blindly stabbing?
Yep, stabbing in the dark. I just seem to remember reading that copying files can change permissions or something. Basically I’m guessing.
To me the only thing you have confirmed is your backup and restore routine is not working, which could be a faulty backup as much as permissions, or even backing up a broken config…
Well my restores worked when I tested them. I don’t think it’s a broken backed up config file because I’m using a backup that was taken at a time I know the system was working fine, i.e. I’ve since rebooted and logged in to the system without problem.
You fixed it by removing .kde i.e setting it back to defaults…
…Just to check I deleted the .kde4 for my account and I can then log in so definitely something wrong with the .kde4 somewhere…
So do the same…
Clearly you don’t know it was working at the time you took the backup… or lets word it another way how do you know? It’s not like the backup is from a week ago.
… then restored the .kde folder from a backup taken yesterday evening…
Now were this a backup from say a week ago at least it would narrow it down to restore problem at the moment it is just hearsay. A few hours before you noticed the problem is no way to troubleshoot, there is too many variables. i.e had it been rebooted etc… etc…
If it’s permissions it’ll be easy to see just have a look if .kde is owned by root then we’re starting with something.
Edit
You’ve done something different then, if you maintain you tested it… Otherwise why wouldn’t it work now?
At the moment we have contradictions
I know how to restore and it is a working backup
with
I can’t restore with the backup…
Ok, I’ve resolved this. I tried FeatherMonkey’s suggestion and used an earlier backup (31/8) which worked. I then tried jumping back to the day before I had trouble just out of interest to see where the problem started and found that all of them worked apart from the last snapshot of that day (I take hourly snapshots).
So all working now. I still find it strange that the last backup didn’t work as the system was working find at the time the backup was taken and I have rebooted and logged on and off a number of times after that snapshot so one would think it should work. I can only guess that something must have got corrupted in the snapshot.
>
>How do I login in at level 3?
>
>I did a
>Code:
>--------------------
> chown -R username:group /home/username/.kde4
>--------------------
> but that didn’t help.
And i was going to suggest the chown thing.
Depending on where yo are at any moment you may try:
A) at the grub menu blow away any parameters and just place “3” there;
B) as a normal user try CTRL-ALT-F3, this should get you to a console,
login, go su and type “init 3”, this should kill X and drop most
graphical logins
C) as any user you could try CTRL-ALT-Backspace (this is supposed to
kill X) It might log you out instead.
There are likely many other ways, i just listed a few i have used to
good result.