[SOLVED]Login screen offers no option for Cinnamon installed

[pierssnell]

Help please,

Debian newbie, but not Linux newbie. New installation of Debian 10 Buster.

Following installation, I very soon decided I wanted to change to Cinnamon desktop environment.

I *think* I have done everything I can to install Cinnamon. In the GUI software manager, every Cinnamon entry is reported as already installed. I have also backed this up with the "tasksel" routine recommended in other forums, and also with apt-get install from the terminal of task-cinnamon-desktop and cinnamon-desktop-environment ...

And re-booted.

What I was then *hoping* to see was an option to login to a Cinnamon desktop rather than Gnome.

No such option is visible. All I see are four icons at the top right of the screen -- network icon, sound icon, power-button icon, downwards triangle. Wherever I click, I am offered nothing further than a volume adjustment, and an option to switch wifi off.

My suspicion is that there is some element of Cinnamon which I *haven't* installed -- but I have no earthly way of working out which bit I missed.

Thanks in advance!

[Head_on_a_Stick]

The desktops can be selected by clicking on the cog-wheel icon next to the "sign in" button on the display manager login screen.

See the top of this page for a guide pertaining to GDM.

[pierssnell]

Thanks, Head on a Stick;

Sorry if this wasn't clear, but I am simply not being offered the option.

"No such option is visible. All I see are four icons at the top right of the screen -- network icon, sound icon, power-button icon, downwards triangle. Wherever I click, I am offered nothing further than a volume adjustment, and an option to switch wifi off."

Referring to the "See the top of this page" guide... the first illustration shown in that guide looks very like the login screen I am presented with, except that

1) the buttons I am offered are Cancel and Unlock, rather than Cancel and Sign in

2) there is no cog-wheel icon.

I have a suspicion that the automatic login may be causing mischief here, I'll try it with that disabled and get back...

[pierssnell]

[SOLUTION]

Thanks again, Head on a Stick... that difference between Unlock and Sign in provided the clue.

I was following the instructions to the letter, because I'm stupid that way. I *did* install Cinnamon, and I *did* reboot.

But I now understand that installing Cinnamon and then re-booting ONLY works if automatic login is disabled.

Because I had enabled automatic login during the boot process, Debian didn't know I was logging in, so never offered me the option of different desktop environments -- which is not that unreasonable; I suppose it was an Xorg session I was logging out of and then back into, rather than a Debian session.

We live and learn!

Thanks again for your help.