can log in from command line but not from GUI logon screen

[bezdomny]

I made the mistake of running

#usermod -l login-name newname old-name oldname

Now, when I reach the GUI logon screen and attempt to logon with the new name using the password of the old name, it seems to accept the password, the screen blanks as per normal as if the Xserver is about to start, but then returns-- without an error message-- to the GUI logon screen.

There, I selected "console logon" from "menu", logged in from the command line as root and successfully ran

#passwd newname

and the procedure ran nominally without error.

Returned to the GUI logon screen and attempted logon as newname with the password that had just been set. Same result as mentioned above with GUI logon screen. Again selected "console logon" from "menu" and successfully logged in as newname with the password that had just been set. Ran

$startx

After a long wait, it returned the error message

xauth:  timeout in locking authority file /home/newname/.serverauth.3606

followed by

xauth:  timeout in locking authority file /home/newname/.Xauthority

It ran the latter message in a loop several times, then screen went blank as if Xserver was about to start, but then returned to the command line environment with several error messages about fonts, followed again by

xauth:  timeout in locking authority file /home/newname/.Xauthority

Trying to login from the GUI logon screen as oldname results immediately in the error message "login failed".

Navigating from command line confirms the directory /home/oldname/allfiles still exists, so thank goodness my data is preserved and safe.

cat /proc/version=

Linux version 2.6.25.9 (root@hostname) (gcc version 4.3.1 Debian 4.3.1-2 #1) SMP Fri July 4 19:52:20 PDT 2008

cat /proc/meminfo=

MemTotal 1036224 kB

cat /proc/cpuinfo=

Intel (R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 1.40GHz

The box is a venerable, reliable Dell Dimension 4400.

Can anyone here please help this poor sap who screwed himself?!? Is there some trick to logging in from the GUI logon screen as newname that will succeed? Or should I log in as root from the command line and try to reverse the name change I did that started this whole mess? Please don't hesitate to let me know if more information is needed. Thank you!

[jledhead]

can you login to a console with that user, or su from root to that user?

not sure what is happening here, you could check out /var/log/messages, /var/log/auth.log, and probably /var/log/Xorg.log and see if there is anything related to this user account and post back.

[bezdomny]

can you login to a console with that user, or su from root to that user?

Yes.

Will check out the suggested commands and let you know the output. Thanks very much, jledhead!

[bezdomny]

cat /var/auth.log=

FAILED LOGIN (2) on 'tty1' FOR 'NewName' Authentication failure

which is weird because it lets 'NewName' log in from the command line with the same password. Go figure.

cat /var/log/messages revealed nothing remarkable to my eyes. (although only that last screenful was visible; "pageup" and "pagedown" keys of course don't work and I don't know the command to make it print one screen at a time)

cat /var/log/Xorg.0.log revealed nothing remarkable to my eyes, but, again, only the last screenful was visible and I don't know the command to make it print one page at a time.

I think I'm going to take a nap and come back fresh in a couple of hours!

[jledhead]

less /var/log/Xorg.log

man less

you can go up, down, page up, page down, q to exit

maybe you just need a new profile.

mv /home/username /home/username.backup

and then try and log in again. obviously this dumps all of your settings.

[bezdomny]

Thanks, jledhead.

less /var/log/Xorg.0.log

produces pages upon pages of documentation; it's hard to find a needle in this haystack. One thing, however, that stands out is a series of error messages complaining of missing font directories.

Yes, maybe the thing to do is simply create a new account, logon to it, and copy over my data. Hmmmm...I'd really rather simply find the right combinations of arguments for "usermod" to reverse the change. However, if I can't find that combination, then creating a new account may be my only recourse.

Thanks again.

[bezdomny]

Basically just started all over.

Logged into the command line as root, used "groupdel" and "userdel" to just get rid of everybody. Then used "adduser" to restore OldName and everything boots into GUI just fine-- even my /home/OldName directory is intact, as well as all my auto-start items.

Sometimes I think I tinker too much with Linux!

[jledhead]

Sometimes I think I tinker too much with Linux!

isn't that the funnest part