Ubuntu
unity-greeter package

Unity greeter no longer shows user backgrounds, worked 2 weeks ago

Bug #926726 reported by psypher
90
This bug affects 20 people
Affects Status Importance Assigned to Milestone
unity-greeter (Ubuntu)
Confirmed
Low
Unassigned

Bug Description

Since a couple of weeks ago an update caused unity greeter to stop showing my user desktop background at the lightdm login. I have set the oneiric ocelot origami background so as I understand only pictures in the /usr/share/backgrounds or ~/Pictures folders works.

Could this be due to me running Unity 5.2? Or should this be working for all versions of Unity on 12.04.

Thanks

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.04
Package: lightdm 1.1.1-0ubuntu4
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.2.0-12.21-generic 3.2.2
Uname: Linux 3.2.0-12-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 1.91-0ubuntu1
Architecture: amd64
Date: Sat Feb 4 18:01:52 2012
EcryptfsInUse: Yes
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 12.04 LTS "Precise Pangolin" - Alpha amd64 (20111129.1)
SourcePackage: lightdm
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to precise on 2011-12-21 (45 days ago)

Revision history for this message
psypher (psypher246) wrote :
Revision history for this message
Launchpad Janitor (janitor) wrote :

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

Changed in lightdm (Ubuntu):
status: New → Confirmed
Robert Ancell (robert-ancell)
affects: lightdm (Ubuntu) → unity-greeter (Ubuntu)
Revision history for this message
Sebastien Bacher (seb128) wrote :

Where is the picture you set stored? Images in the user directory will not be reflected on the login screen at the moment since the permission on the directory don't allow the greeter to read those

Changed in unity-greeter (Ubuntu):
importance: Undecided → Low
Revision history for this message
psypher (psypher246) wrote :

/usr/share/backgrounds/Stalking_Ocelot_by_Sayantan_Chaudhuri.jpg

Revision history for this message
psypher (psypher246) wrote :

If I change the background to something else the issue is fixed for now.

Revision history for this message
Rachel Greenham (rachel-strangenoises) wrote :

Ah, there was I trying to figure out why my wallpaper wasn't working in lightdm. Is under my dropbox folder, therefore under my $HOME therefore presumably lightdm can't see it.

You know you could probably just satisfy all the people who worry about their NSFW wallpapers being visible on the login screen by just saying "keep it under your homedir" rather than get into arguments about privacy. Just a thought. :-)

Revision history for this message
psypher (psypher246) wrote :

I have now tried to copy an image to the /usr/share/backgrounds folder and set the same owner and permissions and then set it as background. It does not show it as my background in lightdm. When I choose the picture I have to choose it under the "Pictures Folder" in the drop down list. It does not exists under"Wallpapers" like all the other pictures in the /usr/share/backgrounds folder.

So the bug seems to be that lightdm will only display backgrounds when it's part of the Wallpapers list not necessarily in the right folder on the PC.

Revision history for this message
psypher (psypher246) wrote :

Any update on this bug?

Revision history for this message
Thierry Carrez (ttx) wrote :

I can reproduce that.

Apparently when you select a custom wallpaper the Background value in AccountsService gets updated to an entry below $HOME/.cache/gnome-control-center/backgrounds/ that is not world-readable.

In contrast, if you select a standard wallpaper, the Background value gets set to a (world-readable) entry below /usr/share/backgrounds/

Revision history for this message
Thierry Carrez (ttx) wrote :

Workaround:

Resize your background image to 2000x1250, copy it to /usr/share/backgrounds, and create a my.xml under /usr/share/gnome-background-properties/ (with the same format as ubuntu-wallpapers.xml) referencing your image.

This makes your image available in the "Wallpapers" section: selecting it there works around the bug.

Revision history for this message
David Tangye (davidtangye) wrote :

I had the file defined in /etc/lightdm/unity-greeter.conf as background=/boot/grub/2011-0716-lgf-1280x1024.jpg
This used to work fine in 11.10. It is ignored in 12.04 and I get a standard-looking purple background.

One wonders how such a basic thing like this could get wrecked, and get right through into production.
Surely it must be a simple fix for whoever screwed this up to reverse it back.

Robert Ancell (robert-ancell)
Changed in unity-greeter:
importance: Undecided → Low
Revision history for this message
Ramzi njeim (ramzinjeim) wrote :

same here!
i started using a wallpaper changer, i don't know if it has something to do with this

Robert Ancell (robert-ancell)
no longer affects: unity-greeter
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