[Bug 11435] New: hald searches cd-rom when gnome starts; desktop fails to display

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http://bugzilla.ubuntu.com/show_bug.cgi?id=11435
Ubuntu | hal

           Summary: hald searches cd-rom when gnome starts; desktop fails to
                    display
           Product: Ubuntu
           Version: unspecified
          Platform: Other
        OS/Version: other
            Status: UNCONFIRMED
          Severity: normal
          Priority: P2
         Component: hal
        AssignedTo: martin.pitt at ubuntu.com
        ReportedBy: jens at unwesen.de
         QAContact: desktop-bugs at lists.ubuntu.com


hi!

a friend of mine who is not as proficient with computers, linux or english as i am has a problem with his 
ubuntu installation. since i don't have his computer in front of me, this post is slightly low on 
details, for now.

he's running 'hoary', and we changed the update settings to include crypto updates and the other kind - 
meaning we didn't check the 'unfree software' types. we did not run an update on hald, though. that's as 
much as i can tell you about the version of hald offhand.

the problem he is experiencing is twofold: for one thing his hal-device-manager _always_ complains that 
hald is not running - when it clearly is. i've found reference to that in bugs no. 1727 and 1891, but 
both are about usb devices. the other problem is that occasionally when gnome starts up, nothing is being 
displayed. i haven't seen this phenomenon, so i assume that by 'nothing' he means the panel is missing 
and apparently - from his reactions - the splash screen does not show. this happens sometimes, but not 
always, when the cd drive is empty - if there is a cd in the drive it has never happened.

here's the fascinating part: his keyboard macros etc. still work, so he can open gnome-terminal windows, 
etc. (another hint to me that it's just the panel that doesn't show). but as soon as he changes into a 
mounted volume (he mounts other volumes in his home directory) in he terminal, gnome-panel appears. this 
last part is reproducible.

to me it sounds a bit like hald is hanging, gnome-panel somehow depends on hald (don't ask me in what 
way), and hald is looping in code responsible for handling mounted volumes. this would also be similar to 
the above quoted bugs, as they are to do with usb drives afaik.

i'll do my best bugging him to produce answers to specific questions (version numbers, output from things 
to run) if you post them here. since he lives a few hundred miles from here, it's difficult for me to 
diagnose stuff.

hope you can help, and maybe it sheds some light on other hald-related problems!

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