HD Install :: xauthority problem

Hi there Jtroupe

I have had a similar problem.

For me it only occurs when I have not shutdown the computer properly previously, that is, it only occurs when I have shut it down by physically switing off thw power, rather than powering down properly using the  'Powerdown' command from the right-click-on-desktop menu, or something like 'shutdown -h now' at a prompt. *


Does your error message have lines like this:

xauth: error in locking authority file /home/dsl/.Xauthority



If this is the case for you also, then luckily the issue is very easy to fix.



What you need to do is
1) First you need to shut it down cleanly:

type 'sudo shutdown -h now' at the prompt.


The 'shutdown -h now' command tells it to power down cleanly. The 'sudo' at the start gives you a chance to give it a possword if necessary. If you are asked you for a password, try your own password, and if that doesn't work then also try the 'root' password.

This will power down the computer properly, and clean up any old .Xauthority files left around.

2) Now switch it on again and hopefully everything's ok now!



A possible explanation:

I think that what has happened is to do with the following, but I am not sure. If anyone knows better than this please let me know!


What has happened is this:

The software which provides graphics for linux is called 'X-windows',  (or 'X-server' or 'X11' or just plain  'X'.)

[Layered on top of this are things such as your window manager and your 'desktop environment', but we are not concerned with them now. ]

, You don't normally have to worry about running 'X' yourself or even know it exists - usually it will be started automatically.

X-windows is a networkable graphics provider - the way it  works is that, usually, it will just display the graphics on the monitor connected directly to the computer which you ran 'X' on.

However, in addition to this expected behaviour, it can actually display your graphics on the monitor of another computer connected to you via a network. But becasue this could be a security issue, it needs to check that,  wherever it is trying to display them (the graphics) , that this place is properly 'authenticated'. When a place has been succesfully authenticated, it places a 'lock' file or 'authority' file in a specified folder somewhere, and it checks for the existence of this file later.  

To cut a long story short, again, you don't have to worry about this usually. It is all done automatically for you. But when X- shuts down, it normally needs to 'clean up' any old 'Xauth files'. If it hasn't been shut down properly, these are left lying around, and they confuse it next time it tries to start up.

One way to fix this is simply to delete the old 'Xauthority' files. But it is hard to do this from the point where it has left you at, because the ilesystem is mounted read-only. It is easier just to shut down properly, which will do the cleanup for you, then start again.

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*I know it's very bad to do this!  The reason I was shutting it down using the power button was because there was a problem with it hibernating after it had been on for awhile, and the keybord and mouse going completely dead, so it seemed the only way to switch it off and start again was to physically cut it's power! If anyone knows a better way please let me know!