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Since 20.04 my headless xubuntu / xfce server freezes the vnc server after a short time, like after 5 minutes or so and certainly when not active. From the start of the vncserver the syslog shows

Oct 11 22:35:02 BS-Server2 systemd[1]: Started Run anacron jobs.
Oct 11 22:35:02 BS-Server2 anacron[93014]: Anacron 2.3 started on 2020-10-11
Oct 11 22:35:02 BS-Server2 anacron[93014]: Normal exit (0 jobs run)
Oct 11 22:35:02 BS-Server2 systemd[1]: anacron.service: Succeeded.
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] AppArmor D-Bus mediation is enabled
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.a11y.Bus' requested by ':1.0' (uid=1000 pid=93089 comm="xf
ce4-session " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.a11y.Bus'
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.xfce.Xfconf' requested by ':1.2' (uid=1000 pid=93089 comm=
"xfce4-session " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.xfce.Xfconf'
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 org.a11y.Bus[93110]: dbus-daemon[93110]: Activating service name='org.a11y.atspi.Registry' requested by ':1.0' (uid=1000 pid=93089 comm=
"xfce4-session " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 org.a11y.Bus[93110]: dbus-daemon[93110]: Successfully activated service 'org.a11y.atspi.Registry'
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 org.a11y.Bus[93120]: SpiRegistry daemon is running with well-known name - org.a11y.atspi.Registry
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.xfce.ScreenSaver' requested by ':1.2' (uid=1000 pid=93089
comm="xfce4-session " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.gtk.vfs.Daemon' requested by ':1.5' (uid=1000 pid=93124 co
mm="/usr/bin/xfce4-screensaver --no-daemon " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.gtk.vfs.Daemon'
Oct 11 22:36:18 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.xfce.ScreenSaver'
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.freedesktop.thumbnails.Thumbnailer1' requested by ':1.15'
(uid=1000 pid=93168 comm="xfdesktop --display :1.0 --sm-client-id 2f8228d1d-" label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 org.freedesktop.thumbnails.Thumbnailer1[93201]: error: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set in the environment.
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 kernel: [115733.127180] xiccd[93203]: segfault at e4 ip 00005602078484f6 sp 00007ffdf326ff50 error 4 in xiccd[560207844000+5000]
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 kernel: [115733.127196] Code: 00 eb 91 90 48 89 ef e8 e8 f8 ff ff eb c5 e8 01 cc ff ff 90 f3 0f 1e fa 55 53 48 89 fb 48 83 ec 08 e8 ce f
8 ff ff 48 8b 7b 08 <8b> 97 e4 00 00 00 85 d2 7e 34 31 ed 66 0f 1f 44 00 00 48 89 e8 ba
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 kernel: [115733.257146] Lockdown: systemd-logind: hibernation is restricted; see man kernel_lockdown.7
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.freedesktop.Notifications' requested by ':1.21' (uid=1000
pid=93208 comm="xfce4-power-manager " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 kernel: [115733.304595] Lockdown: systemd-logind: hibernation is restricted; see man kernel_lockdown.7
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 kernel: [115733.317064] Lockdown: systemd-logind: hibernation is restricted; see man kernel_lockdown.7
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.freedesktop.Notifications'
Oct 11 22:36:20 BS-Server2 NetworkManager[812]: <info>  [1602448580.7144] agent-manager: agent[12c3d6c8e884b7fb,:1.130/org.freedesktop.nm-applet/1000]: agent regis
tered
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 org.freedesktop.thumbnails.Thumbnailer1[93180]: Registered thumbnailer /usr/bin/gdk-pixbuf-thumbnailer -s %s %u %o
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 org.freedesktop.thumbnails.Thumbnailer1[93180]: Registered thumbnailer atril-thumbnailer -s %s %u %o
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 org.freedesktop.thumbnails.Thumbnailer1[93180]: Registered thumbnailer /usr/bin/gdk-pixbuf-thumbnailer -s %s %u %o
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 org.freedesktop.thumbnails.Thumbnailer1[93180]: Registered thumbnailer gnome-thumbnail-font --size %s %u %o
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.gtk.vfs.UDisks2VolumeMonitor' requested by ':1.18' (uid=10
00 pid=93180 comm="/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/tumbler-1/tumblerd " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.gtk.vfs.UDisks2VolumeMonitor'
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.gtk.vfs.AfcVolumeMonitor' requested by ':1.18' (uid=1000 p
id=93180 comm="/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/tumbler-1/tumblerd " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.gtk.vfs.AfcVolumeMonitor'
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.gtk.vfs.GoaVolumeMonitor' requested by ':1.18' (uid=1000 p
id=93180 comm="/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/tumbler-1/tumblerd " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.gtk.vfs.GoaVolumeMonitor'
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.gtk.vfs.GPhoto2VolumeMonitor' requested by ':1.18' (uid=10
00 pid=93180 comm="/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/tumbler-1/tumblerd " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.gtk.vfs.GPhoto2VolumeMonitor'
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.gtk.vfs.MTPVolumeMonitor' requested by ':1.18' (uid=1000 p
id=93180 comm="/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/tumbler-1/tumblerd " label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.gtk.vfs.MTPVolumeMonitor'
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.freedesktop.thumbnails.Thumbnailer1'
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Activating service name='org.gtk.vfs.Metadata' requested by ':1.15' (uid=1000 pid=93168
 comm="xfdesktop --display :1.0 --sm-client-id 2f8228d1d-" label="unconfined")
Oct 11 22:36:21 BS-Server2 dbus-daemon[93103]: [session uid=1000 pid=93101] Successfully activated service 'org.gtk.vfs.Metadata'
Oct 11 22:36:25 BS-Server2 kernel: [115738.266473] panel-6-systray[93172]: segfault at f8 ip 00007f5b3f656b66 sp 00007ffdcdb33948 error 4 in libgdk-3.so.0.2404.16[
7f5b3f633000+81000]
Oct 11 22:36:25 BS-Server2 kernel: [115738.266503] Code: 25 fe ff e9 57 fd ff ff 66 66 2e 0f 1f 84 00 00 00 00 00 90 f3 0f 1e fa 48 8b 87 f8 00 00 00 c3 0f 1f 40 0
0 f3 0f 1e fa 31 c0 <48> 39 bf f8 00 00 00 0f 94 c0 c3 66 66 2e 0f 1f 84 00 00 00 00 00
Oct 11 22:36:26 BS-Server2 kernel: [115738.861088] traps: nm-applet[93189] trap int3 ip:7f04ad3a20d5 sp:7ffc72c8b330 error:0 in libglib-2.0.so.0.6400.3[7f04ad36600
0+84000]
Oct 11 22:36:33 BS-Server2 org.xfce.ScreenSaver[93124]: Xlib:  extension "DPMS" missing on display ":1".
Oct 11 22:36:48 BS-Server2 org.xfce.ScreenSaver[93124]: Xlib:  extension "DPMS" missing on display ":1".
Oct 11 22:37:03 BS-Server2 org.xfce.ScreenSaver[93124]: Xlib:  extension "DPMS" missing on display ":1".

However when the server freezes, I do NOT get another error message, syslog only shows:

Oct 11 22:38:33 BS-Server2 org.xfce.ScreenSaver[93124]: message repeated 6 times: [ Xlib:  extension "DPMS" missing on display ":1".]
Oct 11 22:38:48 BS-Server2 org.xfce.ScreenSaver[93124]: Xlib:  extension "DPMS" missing on display ":1".

And it's stuck.

I am under the impression that the freezing happens when I am not working in the vnc window for a few minutes (like 5 minutes). Difficulty is there will be no error message.

Any ideas? The setup ran well for years up to Ubuntu 18. I specifically switched to xfce because of the fact that other vnc servers gave problems but now I'm stuck with no VNC - it's the cornerstone of my Ubuntu environment.

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1
  • I'm experiencing the same problem -- vnc works, but freezes after a few minutes and needs to be killed and restarted. it's a pain because you lose your session. I'm on 20.04.2 LTS and have been experiencing this problem since I left 18.04 to 20.04.
    – haventchecked
    Apr 17, 2021 at 19:53

6 Answers 6

Reset to default
1

I uninstalled tightvncserver:

sudo aptitude remove tightvncserver

and installed tigervnc:

sudo aptitude install tigervnc

In my case I had to edit /etc/vnc.conf since the defaults didn't work for me, but YMMV.

After 10 minutes, no freezing, and the xfce4 windows are now drawn properly with their window borders and controls.

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1
  • That worked for me on Xubuntu 20.04. It seems that tightvnc is too old.
    – raspiduino
    Jan 26, 2022 at 2:14
1

The problem:

Oct 11 22:38:33 BS-Server2 org.xfce.ScreenSaver[93124]: message repeated 6 times: [ Xlib:  extension "DPMS" missing on display ":1".]

The headless server tries to execute a (doh!) screensaver which is useless (its a headless server), and then the system waits for the screensaver to exit, and this will fail. I can't tell you exactly what happens, but the screensaver properly will not run, yet the server still waits for the exit event, which never occurs.

The solution: Disable the screensaver on the headless unit and you'll be just fine. Restart the headless vncserver, connect via VNC and disable the screensaver.

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0

For now, I have created a small script that kills all Xvnc processes and related locks and kicks off the vnc process again. It's ugly but works

killall Xvnc4
sudo rm -r /tmp/.X*
exec ./vncstart1680

the last one being:

#!/bin/sh
#echo resetting keyboard..
#gconftool --set /desktop/gnome/peripherals/keyboard/kbd/layouts --type List --list
-type String [aa]
echo starting vnc X session..
vncserver -geometry 1680x1050 -depth 24 -localhost
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0

I too have have lots of trouble getting remote access with Ubuntu 20.04 (My base system is Xubuntu and thus is XFCE by default). Using a connection as noted in the xrdp.ini file as

[Xvnc]
name=Xvnc
lib=libvnc.so
username=ask
password=ask
ip=127.0.0.1
port=-1

-----------the above fails ---------------

A connection using Xorg - the xrdp.ini definition:

[Xorg]
name=Xorg
lib=libxup.so
username=ask
password=ask
ip=127.0.0.1
port=-1
code=20

----------- finally worked HOWEVER  ------------

The primary system user ID is logged on the console. You cannot remote into that ID until the primary system user ID logs out of the system console.

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2
  • I do not have xrdp installed - I could install it but I am using VNC over SSH so I am not sure how xrdp would interact with that.
    – Frederik Boersma
    Oct 15, 2020 at 11:25
  • 1
    Point is - VNC works but it sort of just dies after 5 minutes. Are those the same symptons / problems you have?
    – Frederik Boersma
    Oct 15, 2020 at 11:26
0

On Ubuntu Studio 20.04LTS, this error is not appeard, but on Ubuntu Studio 22.04LTS, it appears with xfce4. Finally, I remove screen saver: sudo apt remove xfce4-screensaver and it works fine.

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-1

Go to "Settings->Session and Startup" and disable:

  • Power Manager
  • Printers
  • Blueman (if you dont use bluethooth)
  • ...

Restart VNC session

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2
  • Your answer could be improved with additional supporting information. Please edit to add further details, such as citations or documentation, so that others can confirm that your answer is correct. You can find more information on how to write good answers in the help center.
    – Error404
    Oct 30, 2021 at 13:23
  • This is the same as your other answer: askubuntu.com/a/1372541/348964
    – Greenonline
    Oct 30, 2021 at 18:27

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