Since the updates of about the last week or so, my laptop freezes a few minutes into the session, if, and only if
I am working on a wifi connection (no problem if connected by ethernet)
I connect the wifi from a user account (no problem if I first open a root session and connect from there)
I am on networkmanager 0.9.10.0-3.14.1, libQt5… 5.5.1-235.1, kernel 3.16.7-29 (what else is needed to sort this out?)
It looks to me as if there must be some privilege problem for the user account, surprisingly, as this worked without problems only a few weeks ago
I’d like to add that, usually when one asks any questions about network manager, then some guru quickly expresses his horror about the silly user who uses this tool - but that person probably never travels where, in my experience, nm is the only solution…
Does it help if you setup the connection as “system connection”? (enable “Allow other users to connect…” in the connection settings)
I seem to remember a bug report about plasma-nm taking up 100% CPU time (or similar) and probably freezing Plasma, but I cannot find it at the moment.
I am on networkmanager 0.9.10.0-3.14.1, libQt5… 5.5.1-235.1, kernel 3.16.7-29 (what else is needed to sort this out?)
What plasma-nm5 version?
Probably the one from KDE:Frameworks5, right?
It looks to me as if there must be some privilege problem for the user account, surprisingly, as this worked without problems only a few weeks ago
Did you install the latest polkit update? There was a problem with the previous one.
Although I don’t think that should make the desktop freeze…
I’d like to add that, usually when one asks any questions about network manager, then some guru quickly expresses his horror about the silly user who uses this tool - but that person probably never travels where, in my experience, nm is the only solution…
Actually I quite like NetworkManager, especially for wireless and VPN connections…
what is true is that for new wifi’s (for example the one I am on right now, have never been in this room before) the “allow users to connect” is not activated. Can that be made a default setting? And was it maybe default before? But it any case, I am not switching users, the user who first configured the network (me) is also the one experiencing the freeze, and this has happened in different networks these last weeks.
I sometimes noted a high fan activity indeed, but not immediately…
5.4.3-79.2
yes!
Have done global “zypper dup” updates, so that should be the latest.
Yes, the default is to create a “user connection”. The advantage of that is that the user doesn’t need to enter the root password to configure it.
Can that be made a default setting?
I don’t think so.
And was it maybe default before?
No.
One point of NetworkManager is that users should not have to enter the root password to configure a wireless connection.
There were vocal complaints about this in the past…
But it any case, I am not switching users, the user who first configured the network (me) is also the one experiencing the freeze, and this has happened in different networks these last weeks.
Yes, but a system connection is established by NetworkManager during boot already, not by plasma-nm.
Have you tried it? Does it help?
It might be a workaround.
Have done global “zypper dup” updates, so that should be the latest.
Another thought:
Try using nm-applet (part of the package NetworkManager-gnome) as a test instead of plasma-nm. Does it happen with that too?
That would indicate that it’s a general problem in NetworkManger, not plasma-nm.
So I have set “user may connect” in the connection, and that does indeed seem to solve the problem. Thank you very much!
I can now work again normally, and I understand why someone thinks this is an advantage. For me, this still appears to be weird, because, apparently, as a user, I am allowed to create a new connection, but I am not allowed to re-use one I created earlier. That is not only counter-intuitive, I think it is bound to create problems also for others.
At the very least, rather than freezing the system, it should tell the user that he is not allowed to re-use his old connection.
Anyway, thanks again for the help
(and yes, my polkit was the same)
I would not really know how to make this test. Is there any value for anyone if I do it?
No.
You, as a user, are not allowed to create a system connection (you need the root password for that).
But you are allowed to re-use any connection you created earlier, why should you not?
The default is that only the user that created a connection can reconfigure or use it.
With that setting you make the connection available to all users on the system, including root.
At the very least, rather than freezing the system, it should tell the user that he is not allowed to re-use his old connection.
Heh?
A user is allowed to re-use his old connection, that’s the whole point of NetworkManager.
You just experienced some bug somewhere it seems.
I would not really know how to make this test. Is there any value for anyone if I do it?
Disable plasma-nm in the “System Tray Settings” (right-click on the up-arrow in the system tray), then run nm-applet (a new icon should appear in the system tray) and use it instead of plasma-nm to setup a connection.
Does it freeze as well then?
If the “workaround” with using a system connection is ok for you, you don’t have to try that.
But if you want to file a bug report for getting your problem fixed, you should first try to narrow down the problem. As mentioned it might be a problem in NetworkManager itself, or the plasma-nm applet, or maybe even somewhere else…
I never saw something like that here, but normally I’m using a “system connection”. I did try creating a user connection a few times too though, without having such a problem as you describe.
…as my system now works again as expected, I wanted just to close this thread by thanking you.
But I have to say that, during years of use of network manager, the situation has always been the following: I am logged in as a user, I arrive in a new wifi, I use the nm applet to configure it, am asked for my wallet password (that of the user, not involving any root password) and then the network just works. So no root account involved at any stage.
The problem we just solved here was that, since quite recently, it began to matter whether that user (not root!) clicked the “user allowed to connect” box or not. If he did not, then the reconnect was impossible for that user - only root could do that.
To me, that is not a logical behaviour of the system, but at least I now know how to get around it (by making the user, not root, click the permission for himself to connect next time)…
It seems to me that someone who programmes network manager has changed something there recently, in order to make the “user may connect” button actually work, but the fundamental behaviour is still flawed. What I would like to see is some place where root can enable my user to create, reconnect, modify or delete nm connections as the user thinks is necessary. I have not found that place yet.
No, and it is also not the standard or intended behavior.
It seems to me that someone who programmes network manager has changed something there recently, in order to make the “user may connect” button actually work
It always worked, but it was called “system connection” in earlier versions.
Btw, it is called “Allow other users to connect” now, not “the user may connect”.