magnifier plugin in compiz make X crash

[Alassane]

Binary package hint: compiz

In intrepid (latest with all updates) with gnome, enabling the magnifier and mousepoll plugings crash the x server. It makes me forcefully logout and the gdm to start. Attached are my xorg.conf. I think the bug is related to the new intel driver because I experienced the same issue using fedora 9.
If you need further information let me know. (tell me how I can get them cause I'm quite a newbie)

[lusepuster (thoeger)]

Experiencing the same thing, on a Lenovo 3000 n100. No special settings in my xorg.conf, attached.

[pablomme (pablomme)]

Same here on a laptop with the Intel 945GM chipset. Happened when upgrading from Hardy, so I panicked and re-installed afresh, only to find it was the magnifier...

I'm up for any required patch-testing.

[Ulises Quiroz (uliquiroz)]

I also commented on the duplicate, after enabling the same plugins, I'm having pink bars in the display and then it goes back to the login screen, i managed to login with KDE, but then, trying to disable compiz, I enabled the effects there... so it crashed too, I tried deleting the xorg.conf, and logging in as root I can enter normally, but cannot do anything, I have disabled all effects and then reinstalled Intrepid, but it still crashes.

I've got no clue as what to do next

[Chris Hood (chris-univate)]

I also have just experienced this problem, enabled magnifier from compizconfig-settings-manager in intrepid and crashed the x server.

When I rebooted the computer it would get to the login screen and when I tried to login would then crash and go back to login screen.

I managed to back into my user account by first remove all the compiz stuff through the terminal:

sudo apt-get remove compiz-core compiz-fusion-plugins-extra compiz-fusion-plugins-main compiz-gnome compizconfig-settings-manager libcompizconfig0 libdecoration0 compizconfig-settings-manager python-compizconfig emerald

I was then able to log into the user account and re-install all the compiz stuff. Before enabling any effect though I first made sure that magnifier was disabled form the compizconfig-settings-manager.

I am also using an Intel 945GM chipset - if that is significant

[pablomme (pablomme)]

You don't need to reinstall the system, remove compiz or even deactivate it to solve the problem. Here are three ways of doing this. All of them can start with:

1. In the login screen, select Options > Select Session...
2. Choose "Failsafe Terminal" and press "Change Session"
3. Write your username and password, and click the info window away

Then:

Method A (if you use the GConf backend for compiz, which is the default):
--------
4A. At the terminal, type
    gedit .gconf/apps/compiz/general/allscreens/options/%gconf.xml
    and press enter
5A. Delete these three lines:
      <li type="string">
        <stringvalue>mag</stringvalue>
      </li>
6A. Click on save
7A. Select File > Quit, type "exit" in the terminal and press enter. Then login as usual.

Method B (if you use the GConf backend for compiz, which is the default):
--------
4B. At the terminal, type
     gconf-editor
     and press enter
5B. Navigate to apps/compiz/general/allscreens/options on the left pane
6B. On the right pane, double-click on "active_plugins"
7B. Select "mag" in the list, click "Remove" and press OK
8B. Exit gconf-editor using the File > Quit option, type "exit" in the terminal and press enter. Then login as usual.

Method C (if you have ccsm installed, which it is not by default)
--------
4C. At the terminal type
    ccsm
5C. Deactivate the Magnifier plugin.
6C. Exit ccsm at the "Close" button, type "exit" in the terminal and press enter. Then login as usual.

You can do something similar if you use the flat-file backend, etc. The point is: change the compiz configuration without having started compiz.

Hope this helps people with this problem.

[Andrew Todd (at-drinian)]

Thank you for the fix information, pablomme.

I'm seeing the same problem, and, like most of the other posters, have an Intel 945GM chipset.

[pablomme (pablomme)]

The problem indeed persists. I get the following message in /var/log/syslog when I try to enable the magnifier plugin:

gdm[6583]: WARNING: gdm_slave_xioerror_handler: Fatal X error - Restarting :0

Does this mean anything to anyone? BTW, I'm flagging the bug as confirmed.

[Alassane (alassane-maiga)]

I hope it will attract the attention of someone who could provide us a fix. Maybe it needs to be forwarded upstream ? it doesn't look like a bug that exist only in ubuntu. Like I said it was present in fedora, but I can't confirm if it has been fixed there. I dropped my laptop for one with an nvidia card. Goggling, I couldn't see anything relevant related to it though.

[Elias Belsky (oluckyman)]

pablomme, thanx for help-) I was going to reinstall ubuntu again-)
I have this problem too, and I also have an Intel 945GM chipset!.

[Robert Ancell (robert-ancell)]

Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. You reported this bug a while ago and there hasn't been any activity in it recently. We were wondering if this is still an issue for you. Can you try with the latest Ubuntu release? Thanks in advance.

[Travis Watkins (amaranth)]

We're closing this bug since it is has been some time with no response from the original reporter. However, if the issue still exists please feel free to reopen with the requested information. Also, if you could, please test against the latest development version of Ubuntu, since this confirms the bug is one we may be able to pass upstream for help.