#810911 cinnamon: when cinnamon crashes failsafe session is no longer started

Package:
cinnamon
Source:
cinnamon
Description:
Innovative and comfortable desktop
Submitter:
Michal Suchanek
Date:
2026-08-28 18:45:02 UTC
Severity:
normal
Tags:
#810911#5
Date:
2016-01-13 16:40:51 UTC
From:
To:
Hello,

I upgraded cinnamon to current version and the failsafe session no longer includes gnome panel.

This reduces dependencies but when cinnamon actually fails you are left with a black screen with a mouse cursor.

It turns out that this screen actually shows my desktop folder (empty after fresh installation) so strategically placing some program icons there allows me to continue with the session.

Also right-clicking the black screen gives a menu which allows starting a terminal.

Neither is very obvious, however.

It would be nice if the failsafe session included some visible program menu/launcher.

Thanks

Michal


Xsession: X session started for user at Wed Jan 13 17:24:40 CET 2016
localuser:user being added to access control list
** Message: couldn't access control socket: /run/user/1000/keyring/control: No such file or directory
** Message: couldn't access control socket: /run/user/1000/keyring/control: No such file or directory
** Message: couldn't access control socket: /run/user/1000/keyring/control: No such file or directory
SSH_AUTH_SOCK=/run/user/1000/keyring/ssh
=== xinerama setup Configuration ===
  Clone: false
  Output: (null) attached to VGA-0
     status: off
     width: -1
     height: -1
     rate: -1
     primary: false
     position: -1 -1
  Output: Laptop attached to LVDS
     status: on
     width: 1024
     height: 768
     rate: 60
     primary: true
     position: 0 0
  Output: (null) attached to S-video
     status: off
     width: -1
     height: -1
     rate: -1
     primary: false
     position: -1 -1
=== Applying Configuration Configuration ===
  Clone: false
  Output: (null) attached to VGA-0
     status: off
     width: -1
     height: -1
     rate: -1
     primary: false
     position: -1 -1
  Output: Laptop attached to LVDS
     status: on
     width: 1024
     height: 768
     rate: 60
     primary: true
     position: 0 0
  Output: (null) attached to S-video
     status: off
     width: -1
     height: -1
     rate: -1
     primary: false
     position: -1 -1

(cinnamon-settings-daemon:584): power-plugin-WARNING **: Unable to inhibit lid switch: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.DBus.Error.AccessDenied: Permission denied

(cinnamon-settings-daemon:584): media-keys-plugin-WARNING **: Unable to inhibit keypresses: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.DBus.Error.AccessDenied: Permission denied

(cinnamon-settings-daemon:584): color-plugin-WARNING **: There is no colord server available
[1452702349,000,xklavier.c:xkl_engine_start_listen/] 	The backend does not require manual layout management - but it is provided by the application
/usr/bin/cinnamon-launcher:8: PyGIWarning: Gtk was imported without specifying a version first. Use gi.require_version('Gtk', '3.0') before import to ensure that the right version gets loaded.
  from gi.repository import Gtk
x-session-manager[508]: WARNING: Failed to start app: Unable to start application: Failed to execute child process "zeitgeist-datahub" (No such file or directory)

** (polkit-gnome-authentication-agent-1:697): WARNING **: Unable to register authentication agent: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: An authentication agent already exists for the given subject
Cannot register authentication agent: GDBus.Error:org.freedesktop.PolicyKit1.Error.Failed: An authentication agent already exists for the given subject
/usr/bin/cinnamon-killer-daemon:7: PyGIWarning: Gtk was imported without specifying a version first. Use gi.require_version('Gtk', '3.0') before import to ensure that the right version gets loaded.
  from gi.repository import Gtk, Gio

** (nemo:687): WARNING **: Can not determine workarea, guessing at layout
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: About to start Cinnamon
Gtk-Message: GtkDialog mapped without a transient parent. This is discouraged.
x-session-manager[508]: WARNING: Could not launch application 'print-applet.desktop': Unable to start application: Failed to execute child process "system-config-printer-applet" (No such file or directory)

(cinnamon-settings-daemon:584): power-plugin-WARNING **: failed to set dim backlight to 30%: csd-backlight-helper failed: Could not get or set the value of the backlight: No backlight devices present

St-Message: cogl npot texture sizes NOT supported
Window manager warning: Trying to remove non-existent custom keybinding "magnifier-zoom-in".
Window manager warning: Trying to remove non-existent custom keybinding "magnifier-zoom-out".
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: Cinnamon started at Wed Jan 13 2016 17:27:52 GMT+0100 (CET)
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: network applet: Cannot find connection for active (or connection cannot be read)
failed to create drawable
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: Invalid network device type, is 14
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: network applet: Found connection for active

(cinnamon:680): AccountsService-WARNING **: Could not get current seat: No data available

(cinnamon:680): Cogl-WARNING **: driver/gl/cogl-pipeline-opengl.c:932: GL error (1280): Invalid enumeration value


(cinnamon:680): Cogl-WARNING **: driver/gl/cogl-pipeline-opengl.c:932: GL error (1280): Invalid enumeration value

drmRadeonCmdBuffer: -22. Kernel failed to parse or rejected command stream. See dmesg for more info.
x-session-manager[508]: WARNING: Application 'cinnamon.desktop' killed by signal 15
/usr/bin/cinnamon-launcher:8: PyGIWarning: Gtk was imported without specifying a version first. Use gi.require_version('Gtk', '3.0') before import to ensure that the right version gets loaded.
  from gi.repository import Gtk
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: About to start Cinnamon
St-Message: cogl npot texture sizes NOT supported
Window manager warning: Trying to remove non-existent custom keybinding "magnifier-zoom-in".
Window manager warning: Trying to remove non-existent custom keybinding "magnifier-zoom-out".
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: Cinnamon started at Wed Jan 13 2016 17:28:02 GMT+0100 (CET)
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: network applet: Cannot find connection for active (or connection cannot be read)
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: Invalid network device type, is 14
Cjs-Message: JS LOG: network applet: Found connection for active

(cinnamon:3232): AccountsService-WARNING **: Could not get current seat: No data available

(cinnamon:3232): Cogl-WARNING **: driver/gl/cogl-pipeline-opengl.c:932: GL error (1280): Invalid enumeration value


(cinnamon:3232): Cogl-WARNING **: driver/gl/cogl-pipeline-opengl.c:932: GL error (1280): Invalid enumeration value

drmRadeonCmdBuffer: -22. Kernel failed to parse or rejected command stream. See dmesg for more info.
x-session-manager[508]: WARNING: App 'cinnamon.desktop' respawning too quickly
x-session-manager[508]: CRITICAL: We failed, but the fail whale is dead. Sorry....
Gtk-Message: GtkDialog mapped without a transient parent. This is discouraged.
** Message: x-terminal-emulator has very limited support, consider choose another terminal

** (lxpanel:3273): WARNING **: launchbar: desktop entry does not exist


** (lxpanel:3273): WARNING **: launchtaskbar: can't init button


(blueman-applet:693): Gdk-CRITICAL **: gdk_window_thaw_toplevel_updates: assertion 'window->update_and_descendants_freeze_count > 0' failed

(nm-applet:688): Gdk-CRITICAL **: gdk_window_thaw_toplevel_updates: assertion 'window->update_and_descendants_freeze_count > 0' failed
Gtk-Message: GtkDialog mapped without a transient parent. This is discouraged.
/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/blueman/gui/GenericList.py:6: PyGIWarning: Gtk was imported without specifying a version first. Use gi.require_version('Gtk', '3.0') before import to ensure that the right version gets loaded.
  from gi.repository import Gtk
blueman-services version 2.0.3 starting
wlan0

** (lxpanel:3273): WARNING **: lxpanel : X error: BadWindow (invalid Window parameter)

#810911#10
Date:
2016-03-20 10:05:35 UTC
From:
To:
Just to add some context, cinnamon-launcher falls back to metacity as a window
manager and gnome-panel or tint2 for a panel if cinnamon fails to start
correctly. Neither of these three are dependencies of cinnamon, and I don't
think they should be. These are only used in case of a total system failure to
show something to the user.

It would be nice if the launcher script had more fallback options, but I think
that it should be a valid installation if the user doesn't want to install
them.

Maybe adding this information to the Readme.Debian file will be enough.

Happy hacking,

#810911#13
Date:
2026-08-28 18:43:15 UTC
From:
To:
Hello,

Bug #810911 in cinnamon reported by you has been fixed in the
Git repository and is awaiting an upload. You can see the commit
message below and you can check the diff of the fix at:

https://salsa.debian.org/cinnamon-team/cinnamon/-/commit/6481cf634dcdcfc01a1ff04dcb9dd424aa304f91
------------------------------------------------------------------------
d/control: recommend metacity and tint2 for the fallback session

When Cinnamon crashes, cinnamon-launcher starts metacity as the fallback
window manager and the first panel it finds among mate-panel,
gnome-panel and tint2. None of them was installed on Debian:
metacity-common is recommended only for its window border themes and
ships no binary, so the forked child died with a FileNotFoundError
traceback in ~/.xsession-errors and the user was left with a bare
desktop, without window manager and without panel.

Verified in a sid VM with 6.6.9-2: with these two packages installed the
fallback session comes up complete, with the crash dialog decorated and
a panel with task list, tray and clock, and restarting Cinnamon from it
works and cleans up both processes. The cost is 4 packages and about 2.5
MB installed.

tint2 is recommended instead of mate-panel, which upstream lists first,
because apt installs the first alternative of a Recommends and
mate-panel would pull in 16 packages. Upstream Mint has metacity and
mate-panel | gnome-panel | tint2 in Depends.

Closes: #810911

Assisted-by: Claude Code:claude-opus-5
------------------------------------------------------------------------

(this message was generated automatically)
-- 
Greetings

https://bugs.debian.org/810911