Network applet sometimes not showing complete list

[Kyle Guilbert]

I'm using network-manager on a laptop with only wi-fi available. When I log into my session, I click the network-manager applet in the top panel, and it only has the following options:

Enable Networking [checked]
Enable Wireless [checked]
Connection Information
Edit Connections

Meanwhile the laptop's wi-fi LED is flashing away, and if I click Connection Information it shows that I'm connected to my usual network.

If I use the wi-fi killswitch (which the touch-sensitive wi-fi LED indicator on my HP EliteBook 8540p) to turn off and on the wireless hardware, the menu then becomes populated with all the available networks, the VPN Connections submenu, and so on.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.04
Package: network-manager-gnome 0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2 [modified: usr/bin/nm-applet usr/bin/nm-connection-editor]
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.2.0-24.38-generic-pae 3.2.16
Uname: Linux 3.2.0-24-generic-pae i686
NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
ApportVersion: 2.0.1-0ubuntu7
Architecture: i386
CheckboxSubmission: 7451bb2c84d577f3248044893e3259ad
CheckboxSystem: b845c366ea09c60efa3a45c1b5b21525
Date: Fri May 25 10:42:51 2012
IpRoute:
 default via 192.168.1.1 dev wlan0 proto static
 169.254.0.0/16 dev wlan0 scope link metric 1000
 192.168.1.0/24 dev wlan0 proto kernel scope link src 192.168.1.4 metric 2
NetworkManager.state:
 [main]
 NetworkingEnabled=true
 WirelessEnabled=true
 WWANEnabled=true
ProcEnviron:
 SHELL=/bin/bash
 TERM=xterm
 PATH=(custom, user)
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 LANGUAGE=en_US:en
SourcePackage: network-manager-applet
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to precise on 2012-05-20 (4 days ago)
WpaSupplicantLog:

nmcli-con:
 NAME UUID TYPE TIMESTAMP TIMESTAMP-REAL AUTOCONNECT READONLY DBUS-PATH
 Auto usb0 4beaf1f0-2a38-4794-94cd-4708e1f6b133 802-3-ethernet 0 never yes no /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Settings/2
 Bluefin 5b59477a-06a3-400e-b0ce-81fdbd6d3220 vpn 1337953994 Fri 25 May 2012 09:53:14 AM EDT no no /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Settings/1
 eth0 412ddfd3-9a23-4b98-b85e-fe002241c63d 802-3-ethernet 1337897463 Thu 24 May 2012 06:11:03 PM EDT yes no /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Settings/0
 blinky 40d3cc92-b762-41c5-8461-cf734ffc260c 802-11-wireless 1337956714 Fri 25 May 2012 10:38:34 AM EDT yes no /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Settings/3
nmcli-dev:
 DEVICE TYPE STATE DBUS-PATH
 wlan0 802-11-wireless connected /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Devices/1
 eth0 802-3-ethernet unavailable /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Devices/0
nmcli-nm:
 RUNNING VERSION STATE NET-ENABLED WIFI-HARDWARE WIFI WWAN-HARDWARE WWAN
 running 0.9.4.0 connected enabled enabled enabled enabled disabled

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

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

[matbroadbent (mail-matthew-broadbent)]

I think this bug best describes my experiences with network applet too, although I use a Dell D610 not an HP machine. The menu of nm-applet can, reliably and repeatedly, be free of all menu items except the four above after every reboot/new session. Using 3.2.0-29-generic "Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS" with network-manager 0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2. Killing wifi with a hardware switch and then re-enabling it causes all menu options to appear as normal. In both scenrio, actual wifi connectivity works fine.

(Bugs 995864 and 993964 also descibe similar symptoms, but make reference to VPN and wired connections. Unfortunately I don't use either. Bug 986224 details the same fix with the same result, but from the standpoint of a slightly different issue.)

[Peter De Maeyer (peter-de-maeyer)]

As a workaround, you can do "sudo network-manager restart" to restore all the menu items.

[Peter De Maeyer (peter-de-maeyer)]

Actually it is "sudo service network-manager restart".

[matbroadbent (mail-matthew-broadbent)]

Cool! Top tip, cheers Peter. Bit of a faff all round though, to be fair. Whatever happened to "It just works", eh? lol :)