1-2 minute delay from login manager to loading desktop : RESOLVED

Operating Systems & Open Source Linux
1

When i log into sddm, it takes 1- 2 minutes to actual start loading KDE.
the screen is frozen except i can move the mouse.
what i have tried:
switched to lxde - no change
switched to lightdm login manager (kde and lxde) - no change
removing programs that might cause conflicts, as per the internet (arch forums etc)
interestingly using startx at a tty is blazing fast ,a few secs to kde desktop, < 1 sec to lxde desktop

what i will try (later as its nearly time to goto work) :
i still have sysvinit install, will try a boot with that, incase its a systemd issue.

system:
debian sid (i know , expect issues)
amd 5950X
nvidia 1050

relevant journelctl log (as far as i can tell)

Feb 27 09:42:51 minifang systemd[1]: libvirtd.service: Deactivated successfully.
Feb 27 09:42:51 minifang systemd[1]: libvirtd.service: Unit process 3084 (dnsmasq) remains running after unit stopped.
Feb 27 09:42:51 minifang systemd[1]: libvirtd.service: Unit process 3085 (dnsmasq) remains running after unit stopped.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Reloading.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[4556]: /usr/lib/environment.d/99-environment.conf:2: invalid syntax (around "http_proxy
"), ignoring.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[4556]: /usr/lib/environment.d/99-environment.conf:3: invalid syntax (around “ftp_proxy”
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Started gcr-ssh-agent.service - GCR ssh-agent wrapper.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Starting kde-baloo.service - Baloo File Indexer Daemon…
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Starting plasma-kcminit.service - KDE Config Module Initialization…
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Started ssh-agent.service - OpenSSH Agent.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Starting xdg-desktop-portal-rewrite-launchers.service - Rewrite dynamic launcher portal entries…
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Finished xdg-desktop-portal-rewrite-launchers.service - Rewrite dynamic launcher portal entries.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Reached target graphical-session-pre.target - Session services which should run early before the graphical session is brought up.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang baloo_file[4578]: Baloo File Indexing has been disabled
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Started kde-baloo.service - Baloo File Indexer Daemon.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang kcminit_startup[4580]: Initializing “/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/qt5/plugins/plasma/kcms/systemsettings/kcm_fonts.so”
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang kcminit_startup[4580]: Initializing “/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/qt5/plugins/plasma/kcms/systemsettings/kcm_style.so”
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang kcminit_startup[4580]: Initializing “/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/qt5/plugins/plasma/kcms/systemsettings/kcm_mouse.so”
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Started plasma-kcminit.service - KDE Config Module Initialization.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Starting plasma-ksmserver.service - KDE Session Management Server…
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Started plasma-kwallet-pam.service - Unlock kwallet from pam credentials.
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Starting plasma-kded.service - KDE Daemon…
Feb 27 09:43:55 minifang systemd[2491]: Starting plasma-kwin_x11.service - KDE Window Manager…
Feb 27 09:43:56 minifang ksmserver[4590]: Qt: Session management error: networkIdsList argument is NULL
Feb 27 09:43:56 minifang systemd[2491]: Started plasma-kded.service - KDE Daemon.

syslog is the same a journelctl above
1 minute period where nothing happens.
:it would appear something is crashing, but not logged, as systemd is reloading after that 1 minute pause.

edit:
yes this is a very old install, dating back to 2007 or so. it might just simply be time to reinstall. waiting on medical bills to come in to see if i can afford a larger boot drive (currently a 256GB samsung ssd) . i might just have to live with it for a while, as i do not reboot/logout often (once a month or less).

2

  1. Check systemd-analyze after you are logged in for any services that are taking a long time to start up.

  2. Check your filesystem (fsck or whatever the equivalent is for whatever filesystem you use).

  3. Try making a new user with no customization and see if they have the same issue when logging in.

1 Like
3

I was experiencing the same behavior recently, and in my case, the fix was clearing out lingering video driver files that shouldn’t have been in use. I had switched between the open source and proprietary AMD driver. I see you’re running NVIDIA, but I figured it might be worth mentioning.

4

New user made, same issues.
I will look for old video drivers, and check systemd-analyse

5

Yeah, every log in and out reboot issue has been related to NVIDIA drivers.

6

ok home now, tried changing to the nouveau driver (blacklisting the nvidia driver in /etc/modprobe.d/blacklist); no change.

rebooted with sysvinit, no change.
nvidia drivers seem up to date , no older drivers found.

systemd-analyze results:
systemd-analyze
Startup finished in 2.419s (kernel) + 17.114s (userspace) = 19.534s
graphical.target reached after 11.247s in userspace.

7

systemd-analyze blame will give you an itemized list in order of which units took the longest to start up, but based on those numbers it sounds like your issue is occurring after systemd believes the system is fully started up.

Personally at this point I would assume a hardware issue, a Sid issue, or a residual issue from it being continuously updated for so long that is complex and unlikely to be reproducible by others. fsck (or equivalent) your filesystem, run a long SMART test on the storage device, run memtest, and try changing out hardware with compatible spares if you have any (especially power supply). If you are waiting on funds for a new system disk and have any external/secondary drive you can backup your personal files to, the easiest thing of all might just be a fresh install on the same drive to rule out possible Sid/residual issues from being updated for so long. It would be ideal to try stable first to rule out possible Sid issues as well.

8

Since using startx results in the expected result (a few seconds to a KDE desktop) i dont think its a hardware issue.
you are probably right about reinstalling, and i will do that when i get a new ssd, as my current one is 6 years old (and constantly on for that whole time). It passes SMART testing with no issues, but its age makes me suspect.

9

Reinstalling on the new drive solved all the problems. After an adventure in data recovery , i’m where i need to be.

The Adventure:
i installed the new drive and moved my 970 pro to a pcie card.
After installation i was going to copy the /home directory bits i needed, the partition table became corrupted ( as a a result of the pcie card perhaps?) .
I installed the drive into a different computer and after a few hours of recovery with testdisk i got what i needed. i then redid the partition table with fdisk.
And what do you know, all the data re-appeared on the drive (remounted and used “ls” to see the files). i then copied it all off to an external drive and put it aside in case i need something else. Also will copy off to my NAS.

EDIT:
i should of just pulled the files from my backups, but i wanted a challenge i guess.