>Sent: Tuesday, January 21, 2020 at 1:50 AM >From: "Christopher Gregory via blfs-support" ><[email protected]> >To: [email protected] >Cc: "Christopher Gregory" <[email protected]> >Subject: Re: [blfs-support] GDM startup problem
> Sent: Tuesday, January 21, 2020 at 12:11 PM > From: "Ken Moffat via blfs-support" <[email protected]> > To: "BLFS Support List" <[email protected]> > Cc: "Ken Moffat" <[email protected]> > Subject: Re: [blfs-support] GDM startup problem > > On Mon, Jan 20, 2020 at 11:01:45PM +0100, Cliff McDiarmid via blfs-support > wrote: > > .Sent: Saturday, January 18, 2020 at 8:55 PM > > >From: "Ken Moffat via blfs-support" > > ><[email protected]> > > >To: "BLFS Support List" <[email protected]> > > >Cc: "Ken Moffat" <[email protected]> > > >Subject: Re: [blfs-support] GDM startup problem > > >On Sat, Jan 18, 2020 at 08:24:55PM +0100, Cliff McDiarmid via blfs-support > > >wrote: > > > > > > > >I notice that two of those directories are from January and March > > >2017. That suggests that the base LFS system is 8.2 or before ? > > > > 7.9-systemd-rc2 > > > > So, I can't count or have forgotten which year we are in. The > problem with diagnosing if it is a systemd problem, or indeed a > toolchain problem, is that everything has moved on a lot. However, > your next response suggests otherwise. > > > >I don't use systemd, let alone gdm, so I can't comment on any known > > >issues along the way - but I start to wonder if versions have got > > >out of kilter. I have no idea what mix of packages / versions you > > >are running, perhaps summarising (gcc, binutils, glibc, kernel > > >headers, meson, systemd, kernel, glib, gtk3, gnome) might help if > > >someone who uses gdm reads this. > > > > Correct - all the packages mentioned. The system has been running for over > > a year without issues. > > That _is_ somewhat worrying. At one time I wondered if a memory > problem (one chip starting to fail) might be involved. I can't see > any likely connection, but perhaps memtest86 (current) might dismiss > that possibility. It isn't libre, and the free version defaults to > only 4 passes (or maybe is limited to only 4), but it seems to work > well - and better than the old memtest86+. > > More likely, if packages have not been updated I think it is > possible that someone has strung vulnerabilities together. There > have been vulnerabilities all over the place - both the kernel and > userspace such as ghostscript and browser engines. > > > I had begun the build a new lfs from this one using Jhalfs. Relevant? > > > > Not a likely cause of the problem, but I suppose that with a bind > mount something in chroot might be doing this. You would need to > ask people who use jhalfs from a session running under gdm, but only > if you have been doing that between restoring from backup and > hitting the problem. > > > > > >Not sure if I've parsed that last sentence, so let me try what I > > >think you are saying: > > > > >1. On the broken system, you changed ownership of > > >/var/lib/gdm/.local/share to gdm:gdm (but not the .local directory > > >itself - I have no idea what else, if anything that contains). > > > > Correct. Based on forum advice. > > > > >2. This possibly made progress, i.e. X tried to load the nvidia > > >module but failed. I regard that as 'possible' progress because I > > >suspect that happens after opening the log. > > > > Yes. The directories were accessible again, but the nvidia module fails to > > load. > > > > >3. You restored from backup. I think you are saying that this used > > >to work for a while, even without changing perms, but now you are > > >back to the failure to open the log ? ~Or are you back to the > > >nvidia error > > > > Correct. The backup was from a working system on the 7.1.20. And back to > > failure to open log after maybe three reboots. > > > > The only other things I suggest are that you make a note of what you > are doing, and where you browse, to see if there is any likely > connection. > > And: please read the LFS and BLFS errata - particularly the current > 9.0 errata (we are getting better at updating that re > vulnerabilities) but also previous versions back to 7.9 to see if > any of your packages are mentioned. > > I recommend that you keep the current good backup, but also update > vulnerable packages to the extent you are able (dependencies change, > and some things give problems with older versions of dependencies or > with older compilers). If you do that, check that functionality you > use is not impacted (e.g. ghostscript has changed a lot and some > things are now prohibited - evince used to be able to open eps files > (It needed an external dependency, libspectre) but it doesn't > open them now, similarly dvisvgm needed a new version for recent > ghostscript), and if ok make a separate backup. > > Maintaining our own systems is fun, but not in the sense in which > most people use 'fun'. > > Other things which get less mention include perl (loads of serious > vulnerabilities in the past few years - fixing them either means > upgrading and then rebuilding everything that creates a perl module, > or patching the original perl version, I've done that for some > versions (based on what I could find at debian or ubuntu) but those > are probably newer than what you are running. Details should be in > the archives (maybe -support, maybe -dev). Also ffmpeg - they tend > to do point updates for older versions, some fix vulnerabillities - > and vlc (we've picked up fixed for vlc3, but maybe you are on vlc2 > and there might be fixes for that. > > ĸen > -- > The politics of wizardry were either very simple, and resolved by > someone ceasing to breathe, or as complex as one ball of yarn in a > room with three bright-eyed little kittens. - Unseen Academicals > -- > http://lists.linuxfromscratch.org/listinfo/blfs-support > FAQ: > http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/blfs/faq.html[http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/blfs/faq.html] > Unsubscribe: See the above information page > >Hello, >The funny thing about this is, that since Armin and I created the systemd >version of the book, I have NEVER had any issue with a running lfs/blfs >system. I always use GDM. I also have three firewalls between me and the >>outside world, and never allow ANYONE to use my computer, which is on 24/7. >When I go out, my computer is in a locked room. >The only time I have problems with GDM, has been when a new release of GNOME >has come out, and at times it has taken a couple of releases from the >developers to iron out the issues. I also never do backups, nor do I >update >an already installed system. Each time there is a new BOOK version, I update >from scratch. Thanks Chris. I agree these systems are very stable and there is no way mine has been tampered with. This is a software issue. i will sort it Regards Cliff -- http://lists.linuxfromscratch.org/listinfo/blfs-support FAQ: http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/blfs/faq.html Unsubscribe: See the above information page
