cannot recover desktop on debian squeeze

[Alder8]

Hello,

After unsuccessfully trying to install some updates on my debian squeeze system, I can no longer login to gnome when I restart the system. I've tried logging in both as root and as user and have typed in 'startx' or 'gnome-session' at the prompt but I get an error message "**(gnome-session:12020): WARNING **: Cannot open display:". I've searched the web for solutions but nothing works. I'd be extremely grateful for some help -- I've had my debian squeeze for over three years now with no issues.

[arochester]

https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=73295 ?

[golinux]

Similar problem (maybe) . . . After the latest updates, my gnome 2 is no longer hibernating/suspending properly. I posted to the squeeze-lts list and was basically told to go pound sand. I suspect the kernel devs are no longer interested in maintaining squeeze for desktop users.

Sure hope that the Devuan beta is up and running soon . . .

[thanatos_incarnate]

Paid support is available, but don't expect me to spend time on LTS for
free.

Ben.

Wow, what a douche!

[Alder8]

https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=73295 ?

Hi arochester, thanks for this, unfortunately I cannot edit the /etc/X11/xinit/xinitrc file as suggested in that thread because gedit does not start from the prompt. In fact, nothing starts from the prompt, the whole system seems to be broken

[golinux]

Paid support is available, but don't expect me to spend time on LTS for
free.

Ben.

Wow, what a douche!

Indeed. This is the same Ben Hutchings that wrote this in an interview a few years ago. Note that Raphael Hertzog is also active on the LTS list. Quite a love fest . . .

Ben: I think we try too hard to accommodate every possible option, without regard for the cost to developers and users in general. As an example, we now have sysvinit, file-rc, upstart and systemd all in testing. Daemon maintainers can’t rely on any advanced features of upstart or systemd because we refuse to choose between them. And the decision to support the FreeBSD kernel means that we cannot choose upstart or systemd as the only option. So all daemon maintainers will have to maintain those baroque init scripts for the indefinite future. We really should be able to decide as a distribution that when one option is technically good and popular then it can be made the only option. But no one really has the authority to do that, so we muddle along with the pretence that all the options are equally valid and functional, while none of them is supported as well as they should be.

“We try too hard to accommodate every possible option, without regard for the cost to developers and users in general.”

We also try to build every package on every architecture, in general. I’m quite sure there are many (package, architecture) combinations that have no users, ever. But if at some point that combination FTBFS, developers will waste time investigating and fixing that – time that could have been spent working on bugs and features that users actually care about. Yes, sure, portability is good but you can’t prove portability just by making a package compile on every architecture. This also applies to the selection of drivers for the kernel, by the way.

Did he really say "only option"? Does not bode well for the future . . .

[Alder8]

I was wondering whether any of you could suggest solutions to the particular problem I'm encountering. I cannot open ANY program by issuing a command at the prompt -- each time I try, I get a warning "cannot open display:" CAN ANYONE PLEASE HELP?

[dasein]

CAN ANYONE PLEASE HELP?

(A) Not if you keep shouting, and

(B) Not if you keep rejecting possible solutions simply because you can't get to a GUI. Booting into single user mode (I believe GRUB calls it "recovery mode") will allow you to tinker/troubleshoot from a CLI, and nano is a perfectly good text editor, even if it isn't graphical.

"Installed some updates" isn't particularly useful diagnostic information, particularly as Squeeze no longer receives updates through official channels. What did exactly did you do?

[GarryRicketson]

I was wondering whether any of you could suggest solutions to the particular problem I'm encountering. I cannot open ANY program by issuing a command at the prompt -- each time I try, I get a warning "cannot open display:" CAN ANYONE PLEASE HELP?

Did you read the link posted by "golinux" ? https://lists.debian.org/debian-lts/201 ... 00065.html
Unfortunately, there is not much support for squeeze, any more, I had something similar happen when I was still using squeeze, but did not fully understand some things about Debian, well, there are
many things I still don't know about Debian, but anyway,

I cannot open ANY program by issuing a command at the prompt -

What prompt ?, Do you know how to use the linux command line at all ?
Try booting again, but select the "recovery mode", or something like that,..that will let you boot into
and login as root, ...but if you do not know how to use the command line, there is not much that you can do.
I never was able to fix my "squeeze", and it was recommended to me, here on this forum , to install the current stable version, at that time it was "wheezy", now it is Jessie,..
I hope you have back up copies of your important data ?,... if not, we will need to see if we can help you get to your data, and copy it to a storage device, then you can safely re-install, if need be,
I apologize, about the "trolls", they do make it hard to follow a thread sometimes, and are not
"capaz", (don't know the english word)edited:https://translate.google.com/#es/en/capaz
but they don't know how to stay on topic. . that makes it hard to "trouble shoot" real problem.
Oh, and welcome to the forum.
And as Dasein says:

"Installed some updates" isn't particularly useful diagnostic information, particularly as Squeeze no longer receives updates through official channels. What did exactly did you do?

It would help if you can give us more info, as to what upgrades , and typeing in all caps "LIKE THAT" is "shouting",..you don't want to do that, because it attracts more "trolls".

[dasein]

...not "capaz", (don't know the english word)

If the Interwebz is right, the literal translation is "capable." From context, I suspect a more informal translation might be something like "clueful."

(Sorry for the hijack.)

[golinux]

Maybe we could see your sources.list? Might tell us how borked your system might be.

FWIW, I need to remember how to reinstall my root partition (when my back will cooperate) from a refractasnapshot image I took when squeeze was still working. You do have a backup, don't you?

[arochester]

The link that I posted says :

1) -- running gnome-session alone won't work, because X isn't started.
Try putting "exec gnome-session" in ~/.xinitrc and then always start up X with "startx",
and it will load the gnome-session automatically.

and

2) editing .xinitrc is a bit of a pain, if you're just experimenting with different window managers.
$ startx /usr/bin/gnome-session
works, too.

Does it have to be Gnome? I would be tempted to install another Desktop Environment on top of things, to see it that worked e.g. (As Root) apt-get install lxde-core (Core because it will not load extra, unwanted, programs.) If it works you can at least access your system and work on Gnome.

There is also "The Definitive Guide to Getting Your Linux Desktop Back" - http://journalxtra.com/linux/desktop-re ... ktop-back/ - which is written from a Kubuntu perspective, with which I have had limited success

[Sarge-in-charge]

Hello,

After unsuccessfully trying to install some updates on my debian squeeze system, I can no longer login to gnome when I restart the system. I've tried logging in both as root and as user and have typed in 'startx' or 'gnome-session' at the prompt but I get an error message "**(gnome-session:12020): WARNING **: Cannot open display:". I've searched the web for solutions but nothing works. I'd be extremely grateful for some help -- I've had my debian squeeze for over three years now with no issues.

Abandon all hope. You are not running a reputable operating system like Windows XP, you are running Debian and you ARE SHORT OF LUCK.

[stevepusser]

After unsuccessfully trying to install some updates on my debian squeeze system, I can no longer login to gnome when I restart the system.

Try to be a bit more specific (OK, a lot more specific) about the cause of the problem. It's like calling your mechanic and saying your car won't run after you put "something" in the gas tank, then expecting a diagnosis over the phone.

[GarryRicketson]

Don't pay any attention to the trolls and stuff like this:

Abandon all hope. You are not running a reputable operating system like Windows XP, you are running Debian and you ARE SHORT OF LUCK.

If need be the posts will be removed.
-----------------------------------------------
Any way, "stevepusser " is very good at solving these kind of things, there may be a way to
"fix" it , restore you system back to what it was,..in fact probably there is a way. This is one of
many good things about Debian, it is remarkably "repairable", if you are willing to stick with it
and follow the instructions, post the output of some commands, when asked too,as well as details,
this probably is repairable.

[GarryRicketson]

Don't pay any attention to the trolls and stuff like this:

Sarge-in-charge » Abandon all hope. You are not running a reputable operating system like Windows XP, you are running Debian and you ARE SHORT OF LUCK.

If need be the posts will be removed.
---------------------------------------------
Any way, "stevepusser " is very good at solving these kind of things, there may be a way to
"fix" it , restore you system back to what it was,..in fact probably there is a way. This is one of
many good things about Debian, it is remarkably "repairable", if you are willing to stick with it
and follow the instructions, post the output of some commands, when asked too,as well as details,
this probably is repairable.

[Alder8]

Hello everyone, thanks for your replies. I was only shouting because my thread was being hijacked. I appreciate it's annoying to get shouted at but so is having your thread hijacked...

To the point: I used nano to edit the /etc/X11/xinit/xinitrc file but still no luck. I get the error message "usr/bin/X: error while loading shared libraries: libbz2.so.1.0: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory:". I also tried to export the display as per the original archlinux post but no luck.

I then tried to install the ldxe-core but I get the message that the following packages have unmet dependencies:
ldxe-core: Depends ldxe-common but it is not going to be installed
Depends lxpanel but it is not going to be installed
open box...
pcmanfm...
gksu
lxsession
xscreensaver...

How do I go back to find out which updates where getting installed at the time?

[thanatos_incarnate]

I was only shouting because my thread was being hijacked.

Jeez! It went a bit off topic. Drama queen!

How do I go back to find out which updates where getting installed at the time?

Do this at a command prompt:

Code: Select all

less /var/log/apt/history.log 

You can navigate with the arrow keys. It's neatly presented by date.
Go to the last entries quickly by pressing the END button.

[Alder8]

A drama queen?! Me? Well, maybe, I say maybe, I was overracting a bit...

There's absolutely nothing in my /var/log/apt/history.log. I tried the command that you said and I also tried opening the file with nano editor. Nano editor says 0 lines. Same for /var/log/apt/term.log. Am I doing something wrong here?

[arochester]

Maybe other people can still suggest a positive way to deal with this.

... At this point I would be looking at using a LiveCD to copy my stuff off to an external hard drive, doing a new clean install of Jessie and putting my stuff back on...