Kde error message on kubuntu: "The process for the file protocol died unexpectedly"

I got this message too, on a Dell Inspiron 1200 w/ Kubuntu Edgy liveCD. The system seemed to work fine after that, though I didn't test extensively.

Do you have yakuake installed?

No, I didn't. Unless it's installed by default, which I don't think it is. That was on a liveCD.

Actually this isnt a yakuake issue.

Could you possibly provide screenshots for this bug ?

For some reason I'm unable to reproduce the message now, even though it's on a ro livecd. Maybe it was just a temporary hickup.

Same error, running the live CD (Kubuntu Edgy Eft 6.10, Desktop) on an old machine. I also get it with the Dapper Drake 6.0.6.1 live CD, although also with other error messages there.

Can't get a screenshot off the machine, but it's a standard grey popup error box, with the red 'X' on the left. Headed 'Error - KDesktop' and the 'The process for the file protocol died unexpectedly' message inside the box.

Behind that is the normal desktop with the usual icons, Konqueror etc. Only difference is if I click 'OK', there's no option to install (or examples) on the desktop.

Yes, the same happens with to me. And, too, I don't have any desktop icons.

I think there's a problem with the network card on the machine. Either way, I don't have internet access. This seems to be common with others who're having this problem (see also https://launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/+source/kubuntu-meta/+bug/49950).
Does this apply to others?

Uhm, nope. I have normal internet connection :)

The laptop I was using didn't have an Internet connection at the time of this message. I don't have that machine anymore, so I won't be able to do any more tests on it.

While doing a fresh install "Kubuntu 6.10" on the desktop and not getting the install icon, I got the same window "The process for the file proptocol died unexpectedly" (#70240).

yes same here with two different old machines, both has network card but the problem show up when there is no cable is attached to the network card.

Adding more memory to the machine has solved the problem for me in multiple cases.

I think this is not the problem at all because with the same machine with network cable attached error doesn't happen.

Please doesn't provide false hints to people, we are talking about a real bug.

Er....

How does the fact that more memory solved my identical problem mean I'm giving false hints to people? Or make my problem any less 'real', whatever that means. I'm sorry if it doesn't work for you (have you even tried it?). Perhaps it will help others. This bug isn't for your use alone you know :)

If you read above, you'll see that having a network cable attached did not always solve the problem. There may be numerous factors involved, as this bug's description is quite general. Perhaps memory is common to all of them?

Good luck with sorting out your problem.

Ian thought your message was generally.
Anyway please specify which amount of memory you had before (with the problem) and after (without the problem).

without this infos your message is not helpful don't you think?
I've this problem in a machine with more than 392 MB of ram

I've just encountered this on a brand new install of KUbuntu 6.10 alternate
on a Compaq Deskpro EN6350 Pentium 350MHz with 192Mb of ram.
It happened after the very first login, i.e. no extra software installed.
It was connected to my adsl router and had obtained a good address
from there using dhcp.

Power down (which did not complete) and reboot -- problem did not reappear.

Same problem here on 6.06LTS, a machine that was connected wirelessly at home, and is now donated to the church and wired.

stew

That wasn't clear...the problem did NOT occur at home, where it was connected wirelessly, but DOES occur here where it is connected via ethernet.

The wireless/wired difference made me suspect the NIC. I unplugged and rebooted without the error. That (and some comments in bug 49950 makes me think that it's related to the ethernet card in some way.

stew

Further, after logging in to KDE with the cat 5 unplugged without incident, I plugged the cat 5 in, and all was well. I then switched users, with the cat 5 connected, and got the error. I logged out of the second account returning me to the first account without error. The machine is an Insignia with onboard nic.

stew

I just came across this thread and would like to add my own information in case that's helpful.

I just installed kubuntu 6.10 on a very old IBM Thinkpad laptop, with a Celeron running at 400 MHz. It has 256 MB RAM (which maxes out the motherboard, to give you an idea how old this is). Upon booting up, it is not using swap, but it's close. I am successfully connected to the internet using a PCMCIA card. The laptop doesn't have an ethernet card. I'm not sure what chipset or driver is using, but it's native, not through ndiswrapper. (The words "PRISM" and "INTERSIL" ring bells from an OpenSUSE install on another laptop, but I don't know how to look this up in kubuntu to see exactly how this is handled with this laptop.)

I get this error message immediately after login, every time I log in. I am unable to show icons on my desktop. When I first installed, there were no files in /Desktop. I created a in /Desktop, a corresponding icon showed up, but on subsequent login's it did not show up.

I hope some of this information is helpful!

Jim

This is a symptom of Konqueror trying to make a network connection when the network isn't actually up yet. I see this routinely when I reboot with Konqueror open with active sftp: sessions.

BTW, Jim, I run Kubuntu on a similar vintage Dell PIII-700 w/256MB of RAM. I don't think it's a function of your wireless, but of Konqueror not knowing when the network comes up for some reason.

Well, I don't commonly run Konqueror, so I don't know if that was the problem, but I did notice that I still had an entry in /etc/fstab for a Windows share which no longer exists, now that I've moved the box. That may have something to do with it.

I have this problem too in a fresh installation of Kubuntu Feisty (using alternate CD) in a low powered machine (a VIA Epia 600 MhZ).

Finally I have solved the problem, simply removing any picture from the Desktop background.

I have also had this problem both with Dapper and Edgy.

RadikalQ3 has hit the nail on the head for me, remove any desktop picture and it's all fine.

Just installed 7.10 and this error comes up on login. I also get "the media protocol died" too. Nothing changed from fresh install yet. I had 7.04 on this old P3 with 256MB and had not seen this problem but it was only running for a week or so.

Error kdesktop: "The process for the file protocol died unexpectedly."," The process for the media protocol died unexpectedly."
  Then I have a CD or DVD in DVD drive I have this error. Making bigger your RAM resolves it partially - with 256MB RAM I has got this error almost every time and now then I have got a 1GB RAM it is occurring sometimes.

I'm using kubuntu 7.10 gutsy.

Clean install of Kubuntu 7.10.
Error kdesktop: "The process for the file protocol died unexpectedly."," The process for the media protocol died unexpectedly."

There are CD and SMB mapped disks icons on my desktop.
Sometimes such error does not appear, but I cannot say when.
In Kubuntu 7.04 there was not such error at all.

Apparently nobody really knows what happends. a roundup:

1. More memory decreases the chance the message occurs.
2. The problem seems to be related to the availability of a network, but only just after boot up. After that, network seems irrelevant
3. The problem seems to be connected to whether a cd is in the tray when kdm starts or not.
4. Loading a desktop picture or not, seems to have connection to the problem as well.

So, it seems safe to deduct that the default order of starting things in kdm start is not quite right. Obviously, more RAM causes some processes to start - and finish - faster. A disk being present in a tray will spawn an extra process (maybe even requiring network, like cddb lookups), which will delay some other process, which causes the error. Loading desktop pictures causes the same delay (but wouldn't need network, unless the picture is on a remote drive).

Is there a place (like in /var/log) where this kdm stores this messages? I tried /var/log/kdm.log.1 (Kubuntu 7.10), but this specific error wasn't there.

These error messages still appear in Kubuntu 8.04.

This problem just showed up today on Hardy Heron (8.04) after a normal update, which installed kernel 2.6.24-16-generic. As before, logging out and logging in again gets me my desktop back.

I just changed wallpapers (Kubuntu 8.04 with KDE 3.5.x). After the new wallpaper was used (4 MB in size!), I kept getting the above error and my desktop icons weren't displayed. After I replaced the huge wallpaper with a smaller one, everything went back to normal. This behaviour is just what I would expect (see my post above). I think there is some race condition (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Race_condition) that has so many inputs that it almost isn't possible to predict which one(s) cause(s) the error.

Workaround for all people having this issue:
1. Remove all removable drives from their trays/slots/interface
2. Change display settings: No/small wallpaper, small (but still usable) screen resolution
3. Make sure your network is up before kdm is started

And the error won't happen

I use Kubuntu Hardy, kde 3.5.9 and I had the same error message. I looked deeper in my system and I discovered that there was no mount poin 'media/cdrom0' created yet. I used kde system settings -> advanced -> disks and filesystems to remedy that and now works fine.

Just got it again (Kubuntu 8.041). There are many "chicken soup" fixes around that work for particular people in particular installations, but I have yet to see a clear explanation of the cause of the error and a universal fix for it. There is clearly a bug here.

Oh wellz.

a) this is fixed in any KDE 4 based release (i.e. >= 8.10)
b) I am not sure I want to investigate this... anyway. Please run kdebugdialog and activate all sections (that is if that app even exists in those rock old KDE 3 packages), once you have done that, trigger the issue and attach the file .xsession-errors from your home directory. Ultimately that should contain some more useful information on why exactly the problem occurs. But since that might not be the case (due to missing or useless kdebugdialog for the better part), try to pinpoint what exactly trigger the issue. Is it an oversized wallpaper or a broken desktop file or both of them, is it related to some installed package, does it occur with every login. Does apport (the crash report util) pop-up at any given point and ask to report a crash report about kio_file or similar (if not, install apport-qt and activate apport in /etc/default/apport and reboot)

In short: I want all the information everyone of you can obtain and I want it in one comment, not 5 of them written as you test along, but one single comment that makes it easier to triage the problem, especially since this report already got loads of comments. The more coherent the information and the more precise your debugging, the more likely it is that I will fix this issue before Kubuntu 8.04 runs out of support (which is in a month or so).

We are closing this bug report because it lacks the information we need to investigate the problem, as described in the previous comments. Please reopen it if you can give us the missing information, and don't hesitate to submit bug reports in the future. To reopen the bug report you can click on the current status, under the Status column, and change the Status back to "New". Thanks again!

It seems strange to me that Harald writes "...Is it an oversized wallpaper or a broken desktop file or both of them, is it related to some installed package, does it occur with every login. Does apport (the crash report util) pop-up at any given point and ask to report a crash report about kio_file or similar (if not, install apport-qt and activate apport in /etc/default/apport and reboot)".

I wrote in 2007-04-07 "I've just encountered this on a brand new install... It happened after the very first login, i.e. no extra software installed." so I would have thought oversized wallpaper, or a broken desktop file weren't candidates for suspicion.

However I'm grateful to Harald for his suggestions on how to debug this, though sad that the problem has been around for almost 3 years before anyone bothered to try to hand us useful debugging recipes.

1.5 people are working on some 4000 bugs, 3 years sounds pretty good
considering this :S We are trying to improve this situation though :)

2009 10 6 18:06 schrieb am "JohnWashington" <email address hidden>:

It seems strange to me that Harald writes "...Is it an oversized

wallpaper or a broken desktop file or both of them, is it related to some
installed package, does it...
apport in /etc/default/apport and reboot)".

I wrote in 2007-04-07 "I've just encountered this on a brand new
install... It happened after the very first login, i.e. no extra
software installed." so I would have thought oversized wallpaper, or a
broken desktop file weren't candidates for suspicion.

However I'm grateful to Harald for his suggestions on how to debug this,
though sad that the problem has been around for almost 3 years before
anyone bothered to try to hand us useful debugging recipes.

-- Kde error message on kubuntu: "The process for the file protocol died
unexpectedly" https://bug...

I had the same errors on startup using KDE 3.5.8 on Kubuntu 7.10. I changed the wallpaper and restarted, the desktop appeared with the icons and without the error mesages.

I guess the bug is related to some wallpaper issue.

Well, it seems kubuntu 9.10 is affected to.

I've began to receive this message some months ago with KDE SC 4.3.x, upgrading to 4.4 did not cure it.

Usually "The process for the file protocol died unexpectedly" appears when opening file dialog when you are back to PC after some hours of user inactivity. Also can not open new folders in Dolphin, Bookmarks in Konqueror.
But it seems continuous working session (< 9 hours) triggers it too.

Reboot helps but I have to do fsck and reboot again.

tail -1000 ~/.xsession-errors
http://pastebin.org/104025

Synaptic on close tells me different story:

E: ОШИБКА: Не удалось открыть /root/.synaptic/synaptic.conf для записи - ofstream (30: Файловая система доступна только для чтения)
E: Произошла ошибка при сохранении настроек.

E: ERROR: Can not open /root/.synaptic/synaptic.conf for write - ofstream (30: Filesystem is read only)
-----------------
E: ОШИБКА: Не удалось открыть /root/.synaptic/options для записи - ofstream (30: Файловая система доступна только для чтения)

E: ERROR: Can not open /root/.synaptic/options for write - ofstream (30: Filesystem is read only)

the error message:
The process for the file protocol died unexpectedly
what it should say (at least in my case)
The process has insufficient permissions to write to various files in your home directory

I got the error after installing kate on ubuntu on xp hosted vmware. careful use of chmod resolved the problem completely.
First off, I did a recursive chmod ( chmod -R 0777 ) from the home directory, which totally screwed the install, so you do not want to do that. With trial and error, I got it working trouble free for 2 months now. Here's a sample of before and after perms but there were quite a few more root only access dirs and files that had to be relaxed.

$ diff perms_befor perms_after
6,15c6,12
< 277109 4 drwx------ 2 root root 4096 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp
< 277359 0 srwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT5760.slave-socket
< 277538 0 srwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT5786.slave-socket
< 277302 0 srwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT5919.slave-socket
< 277149 0 srwxr-xr-x 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT7156.slave-socket
---
> 277109 4 drwxrwxrwx 2 root root 4096 Apr 12 23:27 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp
> 277359 0 srwxrwxrwx 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT5760.slave-socket
> 277538 0 srwxrwxrwx 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT5786.slave-socket
> 277302 0 srwxrwxrwx 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT5919.slave-socket
> 277149 0 srwxrwxrwx 1 root root 0 Jan 5 2009 ./.kde/socket-bagvapp/klauncherMT7156.slave-socket