Network Manager does not show any available connection devices, if installed from mini ISO and ubuntu-desktop task.

[Thomas Ward]

This seems to be an issue with Network Manager, but I'm not 100% sure.

In testing Ubuntu 17.10 in a VM, installed via the mini ISO and then installing the ubuntu-desktop package and all tasks that TaskSel would have executed, the system lists no managed interfaces.

The LAN interface, therefore, is not able to have its config altered out-of-the-box with *just* Network Manager. The interface is not listed in /etc/network/interfaces or any such interface configuration file, and though it gets a DHCP address, there is no way to switch it to a static configuration or DHCP with customized DNS servers without adding a definition into /etc/network/interfaces or similar, based on my testing.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 17.10
Package: network-manager-gnome 1.8.4-1ubuntu1
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.13.0-16.19-generic 4.13.4
Uname: Linux 4.13.0-16-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.20.7-0ubuntu3
Architecture: amd64
CurrentDesktop: ubuntu:GNOME
Date: Tue Oct 24 13:11:44 2017
IpRoute:
 default via 192.168.226.2 dev ens33 proto dhcp src 192.168.226.131 metric 100
 192.168.226.0/24 dev ens33 proto kernel scope link src 192.168.226.131
 192.168.226.2 dev ens33 proto dhcp scope link src 192.168.226.131 metric 100
IwConfig:
 ens33 no wireless extensions.

 lo no wireless extensions.
NetworkManager.state:
 [main]
 NetworkingEnabled=true
 WirelessEnabled=true
 WWANEnabled=true
ProcEnviron:
 TERM=xterm-256color
 PATH=(custom, no user)
 XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
RfKill:

SourcePackage: network-manager-applet
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
nmcli-con: NAME UUID TYPE TIMESTAMP TIMESTAMP-REAL AUTOCONNECT AUTOCONNECT-PRIORITY READONLY DBUS-PATH ACTIVE DEVICE STATE ACTIVE-PATH SLAVE
nmcli-dev:
 DEVICE TYPE STATE DBUS-PATH CONNECTION CON-UUID CON-PATH
 ens33 ethernet unmanaged /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Devices/2 -- -- --
 lo loopback unmanaged /org/freedesktop/NetworkManager/Devices/1 -- -- --
nmcli-nm:
 RUNNING VERSION STATE STARTUP CONNECTIVITY NETWORKING WIFI-HW WIFI WWAN-HW WWAN
 running 1.8.4 disconnected started unknown enabled enabled enabled enabled enabled

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

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

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make Ubuntu better. The issue you are reporting is an upstream one and it would be nice if somebody having it could send the bug to the developers of the software by following the instructions at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/Upstream/GNOME. If you have done so, please tell us the number of the upstream bug (or the link), so we can add a bugwatch that will inform us about its status. Thanks in advance.

[Thomas Ward (teward)]

This works fine in upstream. It also works fine in the Desktop ISO install suggesting it is NOT an upstream problem, but something local to a mini iso origin desktop install.

*Sent from my iPhone. Please excuse any typos, as they are likely to happen by accident.*

> On Oct 24, 2017, at 16:14, Sebastien Bacher <email address hidden> wrote:
>
> Thank you for taking the time to report this bug and helping to make
> Ubuntu better. The issue you are reporting is an upstream one and it
> would be nice if somebody having it could send the bug to the developers
> of the software by following the instructions at
> https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/Upstream/GNOME. If you have done so, please
> tell us the number of the upstream bug (or the link), so we can add a
> bugwatch that will inform us about its status. Thanks in advance.
>
> ** Changed in: network-manager-applet (Ubuntu)
> Importance: Undecided => Low
>
> --
> You received this bug notification because you are subscribed to the bug
> report.
> https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1726958
>
> Title:
> Network Manager does not show any available connection devices, if
> installed from mini ISO and ubuntu-desktop task.
>
> Status in network-manager-applet package in Ubuntu:
> Confirmed
>
> Bug description:
> This seems to be an issue with Network Manager, but I'm not 100% sure.
>
> In testing Ubuntu 17.10 in a VM, installed via the mini ISO and then
> installing the ubuntu-desktop package and all tasks that TaskSel would
> have executed, the system lists no managed interfaces.
>
> The LAN interface, therefore, is not able to have its config altered
> out-of-the-box with *just* Network Manager. The interface is not
> listed in /etc/network/interfaces or any such interface configuration
> file, and though it gets a DHCP address, there is no way to switch it
> to a static configuration or DHCP with customized DNS servers without
> adding a definition into /etc/network/interfaces or similar, based on
> my testing.
>
> ProblemType: Bug
> DistroRelease: Ubuntu 17.10
> Package: network-manager-gnome 1.8.4-1ubuntu1
> ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 4.13.0-16.19-generic 4.13.4
> Uname: Linux 4.13.0-16-generic x86_64
> ApportVersion: 2.20.7-0ubuntu3
> Architecture: amd64
> CurrentDesktop: ubuntu:GNOME
> Date: Tue Oct 24 13:11:44 2017
> IpRoute:
> default via 192.168.226.2 dev ens33 proto dhcp src 192.168.226.131 metric 100
> 192.168.226.0/24 dev ens33 proto kernel scope link src 192.168.226.131
> 192.168.226.2 dev ens33 proto dhcp scope link src 192.168.226.131 metric 100
> IwConfig:
> ens33 no wireless extensions.
>
> lo no wireless extensions.
> NetworkManager.state:
> [main]
> NetworkingEnabled=true
> WirelessEnabled=true
> WWANEnabled=true
> ProcEnviron:
> TERM=xterm-256color
> PATH=(custom, no user)
> XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=<set>
> LANG=en_US.UTF-8
> SHELL=/bin/bash
> RfKill:
>
> SourcePackage: network-manager-applet
> UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
> nmcli-con: NAME UUID TYPE TIMESTAMP TIMESTAMP-REAL AUTOCONNECT AUTOCONNECT-PRIORITY READONLY DBUS-PATH ACTIVE DEVICE STATE ACTIVE-PATH SLAVE...

[Thomas Ward (teward)]

Sebastien:

I should also add that this affects nmcli as well, it also shows the device as 'unmanaged' even though there's nothing that would outwardly prevent Network Manager from actually managing the device.

[Kamil Jastrzębski (drainhad)]

I can confirm this bug is *not* present in upstream as I am using the newest GNOME stack on Arch Linux, and I haven't encountered this bug ever before on my system.

I have a suspicion that the same bug also affects Debian Stretch Stable. If installing the system from the Small CD image with every TaskSel task unselected but "Standard System Utilities", and manually installing GNOME stack via CLI, result in no devices being managed by the system after reboot.

[Thomas Ward (teward)]

Sebastien:

I wonder if this has to do with the switch to `netplan`... could that be interfering, since by default mini.iso would probably set up netplan by default?

[Thomas Ward (teward)]

Sebastien:

I've confirmed it's a hybrid of two problems...

Firstly, netplan. I had to disable the netplan configurations for the Ethernet interface, and put netplan as such in `/etc/netplan/01-netcfg.yaml`:

# This file describes the network interfaces available on your system
# For more information, see netplan(5).
network:
  version: 2
  renderer: networkd

(I removed the ethernets: section)

I then had to fix Network Manager, as per Bug #1658921 and had to revise /usr/lib/NetworkManager/conf.d/10-globally-managed-devices.conf to the following:

[keyfile]
unmanaged-devices=*,except:type:wifi,except:type:wwan,except:type:ethernet

After this, and restarting Network Manager, I am able to get Network Manager to handle the Ethernet interface.