I recently installed Qubes and I now have several problems

312 views
Skip to first unread message

explodingbee .

unread,
Dec 13, 2016, 9:29:28 PM12/13/16
to qubes...@googlegroups.com
Hi folks,

I installed qubes several days ago.  I now have several problems and I would appreciate some help:

1) How can I open WIndows 7 again?  First, I intended to install Qubes beside Windows 7, which was working fine.  Instead I can only boot to Qubes now.  How can I have a dual-boot setup so that I can also go to Windows 7?  (Note: my files from Windows 7 were apparently not damaged and I have recently managed to get apparently all of them off of the computer and onto an external hard drive so they should be safe.)  (I did read this file [https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/multiboot/] but it seems to say that one needs to wipe out everything and reinstall Windows 7 and then reinstall Qubes.  Can't I fix the GRUB file somehow so that I can use my existing installations and programs?) 

2) In Qubes the computer often gets slow as molasses.  I get error messages saying "Warning: unresponsive script" sometimes.  When I try to open a VM it says that there is not enough memory and that I should close a VM first.  When the computer gets like this sometimes I click on things and nothing happens or it takes forever for something to happen; sometimes I can't even close windows because they don't respond.  (I am using an HP Elitebook 8540w laptop.  It has 4 GB of RAM and an i7 CPU.)  Also, when I shut down the computer sometimes it gets stuck and does not shut down all the way.  It freezes with the Qubes splash screen there and the progress bar indicating partial or complete progress.

3) Problem relating to program installation:  When I install programs in the Fedora or Debian templates they don't appear in the list of available programs in the templates or in the VMs based on those templates so I don't see how I can create shortcuts for programs in my VMs.

4) Problem in getting a video player to work:  I have installed four different video players (Snappy, Budgie, Banshee and Parole) and none of them seem to be able to play videos I have downloaded (with Video Download Helper and Firefox in an App VM).  (I can get the video players to launch not with the proper shortcuts but in another, awkward way, by going to Domain: personal -> personal: Software and then clicking around until I get to the right app which was previously installed and then clicking on "launch.")  Also, the default player, apparently called "Videos," doesn't work.  Am I missing something here? 

This paragraph shows the problems which arise when I try to use each of the above mentioned video players.  You may (or may not) want to skip this paragraph.  (I am including these video player error descriptions partly because they may give a clue as to an overall problem here.)
     (a) Snappy: The video player shows that a video has loaded but then when I click play it does nothing. 
     (b) Parole: When I try to play a video I get the following error message: "Error   GStreamer backend error   Could not intialize Xv output."  The only button to click on the error message dialogue box says: "Close." 
     (c) Banshee: This video player doesn't play videos when I click play.  It sometimes causes an error message which reads: "Additional multimedia codecs requires.  An application is requesting additional multimedia codecs."  Then there is a button which reads "find in software."  (Other times when I click play after selecting a video the video player just does nothing.) 
     (d) Budgie: This videos player does nothing when I click play after a video which has been loaded into the program is selected. 
     (e) Videos:  (Apparently this video player is called "Videos."  It is the default player.)  When I select a video and then select "Play with Videos" an error message comes up.  It says: "H.264 (Constrained Baseline Profile) decoder, MPEG-4 AAC decoder are required to play the file, but are not installed."  Then there is a button which says "Find in software."  When I click that button I get another error message which says "Unfortunately, the H.264 (Constrained Baseline Profile) decoder and MPEG-4 AAC decoder you were searching for could not be found.  Please see this website for more information."

5) I can't update Fedora:  I have tried to update Fedora 23 to Fedora 25.  I am able to download the update but then I click "Install" and nothing happens.  I also click "restart and install" just below that and again nothing happens.  What is going on with that?  (I just tried that again and I got the following error message this time:  "Sorry this did not work  Upgrade to Fedora failed.  Details    Detailed errors from the package manager follow:  Error running transaction: installing package filesystem-3.2-37.fc24.x86_64 needs 135168 on the /rw filesystem")

So I am frustrated.  I had a whole life on Windows 7 and now I can't do most of what I used to do.  (Do you think that maybe I downloaded and installed a bad copy of Qubes?)  Help would be appreciated. 

Thanks in advance.

Vincent Gillespie


Foppe de Haan

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 3:13:12 AM12/14/16
to qubes-users, explod...@gmail.com
re: 1, can you boot to windows from the bios boot menu (usually accessed via f9/f11)? If you can, that's a rather easier solution.

re: 3, do you mean the list of available programs in the 'add more shortcuts' view?

re: 4, this has to do with the licensing for modern codecs, which is non-free. Instructions to add a repository which contains those here: https://unitedrpms.github.io/

re: 5, try this: "sudo dnf --releasever=25 --enablerepo=qubes-vm-r3.2-current-testing update"

dumbcyber

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 6:29:59 AM12/14/16
to qubes-users, explod...@gmail.com
I'm not sure Fedora 25 is Qubes-ready yet. Check here https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/supported-versions/#templatevms

Andrew David Wong

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 9:20:26 AM12/14/16
to explodingbee ., qubes...@googlegroups.com
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA512

On 2016-12-13 18:29, explodingbee . wrote:
> [...]
>
> 2) *In Qubes the computer often gets slow as molasses.* I get
> error messages saying "Warning: unresponsive script" sometimes.
> When I try to open a VM it says that there is not enough memory and
> that I should close a VM first. When the computer gets like this
> sometimes I click on things and nothing happens or it takes forever
> for something to happen; sometimes I can't even close windows
> because they don't respond. (I am using an HP Elitebook 8540w
> laptop. It has 4 GB of RAM and an i7 CPU.) Also, when I shut down
> the computer sometimes it gets stuck and does not shut down all the
> way. It freezes with the Qubes splash screen there and the
> progress bar indicating partial or complete progress.
>

I think this is just due to a lack of RAM. 4 GB is the bare minimum.
Any chance you can add some more?

> 3) *Problem relating to program installation:* When I install
> programs in the Fedora or Debian templates they don't appear in the
> list of available programs in the templates or in the VMs based on
> those templates so I don't see how I can create shortcuts for
> programs in my VMs.
>

Are you installing these programs from the Fedora and Debian repos? If
so, are you fully shutting down the template after installing the
program? This should trigger qvm-sync-appmenus, but you can try to run
it manually from dom0:

qvm-sync-appmenus <templatevm-name>

> 4) *Problem in getting a video player to work:* I have installed
> four different video players (Snappy, Budgie, Banshee and Parole)
> and none of them seem to be able to play videos I have downloaded
> (with Video Download Helper and Firefox in an App VM). (I can get
> the video players to launch not with the proper shortcuts but in
> another, awkward way, by going to Domain: personal -> personal:
> Software and then clicking around until I get to the right app
> which was previously installed and then clicking on "launch.")
> Also, the default player, apparently called "Videos," doesn't work.
> Am I missing something here?
>

I haven't had any problems with VLC. I'd recommend giving that a try,
if you're willing. You can easily enable the RPMFusion repos to get it:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/software-update-vm/#rpmfusion-for-a-fedora-
templatevm

> [...]
>
> 5) *I can't update Fedora:* I have tried to update Fedora 23 to
> Fedora 25. I am able to download the update but then I click
> "Install" and nothing happens. I also click "restart and install"
> just below that and again nothing happens. What is going on with
> that? (I just tried that again and I got the following error
> message this time: *"Sorry this did not work Upgrade to Fedora
> failed. Details Detailed errors from the package manager
> follow:** Error running transaction: installing package
> filesystem-3.2-37.fc24.x86_64 needs 135168 on the /rw
> filesystem")*
>

Instead of trying to upgrade to Fedora 25, I'd recommend upgrading to
Fedora 24 for now (unless you specifically require 25 for some
reason). Fedora 24 templates are supported (assuming you're running
Qubes 3.2), whereas Fedora 25 is not yet supported:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/supported-versions/#templatevms

Here are instructions on upgrading an existing Fedora 23 template to
Fedora 24:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/template/fedora/upgrade-23-to-24/

If you just want a fresh Fedora 24 template, it's much easier:

$ sudo qubes-dom0-update qubes-template-fedora-24

> So I am frustrated. I had a whole life on Windows 7 and now I
> can't do most of what I used to do. (Do you think that maybe I
> downloaded and installed a bad copy of Qubes?) Help would be
> appreciated.
>

You really should verify the ISO before installing from it:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/verifying-signatures/

- --
Andrew David Wong (Axon)
Community Manager, Qubes OS
https://www.qubes-os.org
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
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=9oH3
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

explodingbee .

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 11:14:11 AM12/14/16
to qubes...@googlegroups.com
Hi folks,

Thank you all for your responses.  There is some significant new information at this point: 

Last night I was able to install Linux Mint beside the other operating systems.  It is not that I wanted to use Mint, it is just that by installing it it redid the GRUB file so now I can boot to Windows 7 or Qubes (or Mint).  So that solves the first problem.  (I had tried to do this previously but was unable to.  Last night I deleted most of the files [which I was able to copy to an external hard drive] from the hard drive and apparently that made a difference.) 

However, now for some reason Qubes doesn't work right at all.  The Dom0 domain doesn't load.  (I can see that this is true because it isn't there and also I could read one of the error messages while the program was loading.  It said something like "FAIL.  Dom0 did not load.")  So I am going to download a fresh copy of Qubes and then reinstall it.

So it may be that after I reinstall Qubes some of these problems I have been having will be resolved.  Nonetheless, I will answer the questions where appropriate that each of you posed because I appreciate your help and also because I may have the same issues when I reinstall.

(Note: I am going out of town later today so it may be several days before I can reinstall Qubes.)

Best regards,

Vincent

Andrew David Wong

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 11:34:07 AM12/14/16
to explodingbee ., qubes...@googlegroups.com
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA512

(Please keep the list CCed.)

On 2016-12-14 08:17, explodingbee . wrote:
> *Hi Andrew Wong,* *See my comments below.*
>
> On Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 9:20 AM, Andrew David Wong
> <a...@qubes-os.org> wrote:
>
> On 2016-12-13 18:29, explodingbee . wrote:
>>>> [...]
>>>>
>>>> 2) *In Qubes the computer often gets slow as molasses.* I
>>>> get error messages saying "Warning: unresponsive script"
>>>> sometimes. When I try to open a VM it says that there is not
>>>> enough memory and that I should close a VM first. When the
>>>> computer gets like this sometimes I click on things and
>>>> nothing happens or it takes forever for something to happen;
>>>> sometimes I can't even close windows because they don't
>>>> respond. (I am using an HP Elitebook 8540w laptop. It has
>>>> 4 GB of RAM and an i7 CPU.) Also, when I shut down the
>>>> computer sometimes it gets stuck and does not shut down all
>>>> the way. It freezes with the Qubes splash screen there and
>>>> the progress bar indicating partial or complete progress.
>>>>
>
> I think this is just due to a lack of RAM. 4 GB is the bare
> minimum. Any chance you can add some more?
>
>
>> *I have not had any problems with lack of RAM in Windows 7. Maybe
>> Qubes needs more RAM than Windows 7? If you are correct I can
>> certainly get more RAM. After I reinstall Qubes if the problem
>> persists I may get more RAM.*
>

Yes. Windows 7 requires a minimum of 1 GB for 32-bit and 2 GB for
64-bit, whereas Qubes requires a minimum of 4 GB (and is available
only as a 64-bit operating system). Take a look at our system
requirements:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/system-requirements/

>
>>>> 3) *Problem relating to program installation:* When I
>>>> install programs in the Fedora or Debian templates they
>>>> don't appear in the list of available programs in the
>>>> templates or in the VMs based on those templates so I don't
>>>> see how I can create shortcuts for programs in my VMs.
>>>>
>
> Are you installing these programs from the Fedora and Debian
> repos? If so, are you fully shutting down the template after
> installing the program? This should trigger qvm-sync-appmenus, but
> you can try to run it manually from dom0:
>
> qvm-sync-appmenus <templatevm-name>
>
>
>> *Yes, I was installing from within the Fedora VM (which is what
>> I think you mean). Yes, I fully shut everything down, including
>> the whole computer, after installing the programs and then at no
>> time did the installed programs appear on the list of available
>> programs in the Fedora VM or in the AppVMs. If the problem
>> persists after I reinstall Qubes I may try to manually enter the
>> phrase you provided above.*
>

How were you installing them? Were you using a command like `sudo dnf
install <program-name>` in a Fedora TemplateVM, or were you installing
them in some other way, instead?

In any case, in order to have a menu entry, there has to be an
appropriate .desktop file for the program. You can write one yourself
if necessary, but usually programs installed through a package manager
like dnf or apt-get do this for you.

>
>>>> 4) *Problem in getting a video player to work:* I have
>>>> installed four different video players (Snappy, Budgie,
>>>> Banshee and Parole) and none of them seem to be able to play
>>>> videos I have downloaded (with Video Download Helper and
>>>> Firefox in an App VM). (I can get the video players to
>>>> launch not with the proper shortcuts but in another, awkward
>>>> way, by going to Domain: personal -> personal: Software and
>>>> then clicking around until I get to the right app which was
>>>> previously installed and then clicking on "launch.") Also,
>>>> the default player, apparently called "Videos," doesn't work.
>>>> Am I missing something here?
>>>>
>
> I haven't had any problems with VLC. I'd recommend giving that a
> try, if you're willing. You can easily enable the RPMFusion repos
> to get it:
>
> https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/software-update-vm/#rpmfusion-for-a-
> fedora-templatevm
>
>
>> *I have also used VLC before in Windows and I liked it. It is a
>> video player which can play almost any type of video file.
>> After I reinstall Qubes if I am still having video problems I
>> will probably try to install it. Thanks for sending the page to
>> help with that.*
>

You're very welcome!

>
>>>> [...]
>>>>
>>>> 5) *I can't update Fedora:* I have tried to update Fedora
>>>> 23 to Fedora 25. I am able to download the update but then
>>>> I click "Install" and nothing happens. I also click
>>>> "restart and install" just below that and again nothing
>>>> happens. What is going on with that? (I just tried that
>>>> again and I got the following error message this time:
>>>> *"Sorry this did not work Upgrade to Fedora failed. Details
>>>> Detailed errors from the package manager follow:** Error
>>>> running transaction: installing package
>>>> filesystem-3.2-37.fc24.x86_64 needs 135168 on the /rw
>>>> filesystem")*
>>>>
>
> Instead of trying to upgrade to Fedora 25, I'd recommend upgrading
> to Fedora 24 for now (unless you specifically require 25 for some
> reason). Fedora 24 templates are supported (assuming you're running
> Qubes 3.2), whereas Fedora 25 is not yet supported:
>
> https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/supported-versions/#templatevms
>
> Here are instructions on upgrading an existing Fedora 23 template
> to Fedora 24:
>
> https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/template/fedora/upgrade-23-to-24/
>
> If you just want a fresh Fedora 24 template, it's much easier:
>
> $ sudo qubes-dom0-update qubes-template-fedora-24
>
>
>> *Thanks. I don't even know Fedora very well at all. So I have
>> no problem with trying Fedora 24 instead of Fedora 25. I think
>> I will try that after I reinstall Qubes.*
>

Sounds good.

>
>>>> So I am frustrated. I had a whole life on Windows 7 and now
>>>> I can't do most of what I used to do. (Do you think that
>>>> maybe I downloaded and installed a bad copy of Qubes?) Help
>>>> would be appreciated.
>>>>
>
> You really should verify the ISO before installing from it:
>
> https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/verifying-signatures/
>
>
>> *I did read that I was supposed to do that before I installed
>> Qubes. But I am coming from a Windows environment. There
>> seemed to be a number of concepts and terms used in that page
>> that you provided (which I previously read) that I did not
>> understand. For example, where do I type that text? If I am in
>> Windows does that go into a DOS prompt window? Also, I am
>> supposed to import a key with GPG? I had never heard of GPG
>> before and I did know what I was importing the key into. But I
>> guess that now, seeing the problems I had (at least some of which
>> may be due to a bad installation file of Qubes) I guess I will
>> spend the time and try to figure out how to understand that page
>> and verify the signature of the file. *
>

Yes, I understand that it can be challenging when all of this is new.
There are guides out there on how to verify PGP signatures in Windows.
If your immediate concern is checking whether the ISO you downloaded
is corrupt or not, though, you can just check the hash values first
(MD5, SHA-1, SHA-256, or SHA-512). This should be much easier, and
there are many Windows tools available for computing these values:

http://superuser.com/q/245775

- --
Andrew David Wong (Axon)
Community Manager, Qubes OS
https://www.qubes-os.org
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
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=tzkJ
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----

explodingbee .

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 12:39:41 PM12/14/16
to Andrew David Wong, qubes...@googlegroups.com
Hi Andrew,

See my comments below:

On Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 11:33 AM, Andrew David Wong <a...@qubes-os.org> wrote:
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA512

(Please keep the list CCed.)

Ok.  I thought that was automatically happening.  I guess it was not.  I will cc qubes...@googlegroups.com in future correspondence.
Yes, I see that 4 Gb is the minimum RAM requirement.  I suspect though that there may have been some problem with the Qubes installation file which was causing this issue.  But if the problem persists after I reinstall Qubes I can get more RAM.


>
>>>> 3) *Problem relating to program installation:*  When I
>>>> install programs in the Fedora or Debian templates they
>>>> don't appear in the list of available programs in the
>>>> templates or in the VMs based on those templates so I don't
>>>> see how I can create shortcuts for programs in my VMs.
>>>>
>
> Are you installing these programs from the Fedora and Debian
> repos? If so, are you fully shutting down the template after
> installing the program? This should trigger qvm-sync-appmenus, but
> you can try to run it manually from dom0:
>
> qvm-sync-appmenus <templatevm-name>
>
>
>> *Yes, I was installing from within the Fedora VM (which is what
>> I think you mean).  Yes, I fully shut everything down, including
>> the whole computer, after installing the programs and then at no
>> time did the installed programs appear on the list of available
>> programs in the Fedora VM or in the AppVMs.  If the problem
>> persists after I reinstall Qubes I may try to manually enter the
>> phrase you provided above.*
>

How were you installing them? Were you using a command like `sudo dnf
install <program-name>` in a Fedora TemplateVM, or were you installing
them in some other way, instead?

I was installing programs by going to the "software" link in the Fedora domain and then clicking around until I found the video or other program I wanted and then clicking on "install."  I did not use any command lines.
Ok.  I can look at this when I get back from my trip and try to reinstall Qubes.

Also, I just realized that I may have the same problem again when I reinstall Qubes; I don't want it to change the GRUB file so that again I can only go into Qubes and not Windows 7.  I guess I will have to study this page [https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/multiboot/] to try to not have that problem repeat.


- --
Andrew David Wong (Axon)
Community Manager, Qubes OS
https://www.qubes-os.org
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
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=tzkJ
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----


Thanks again for the help,

Regards,

Vincent

explodingbee .

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 12:40:58 PM12/14/16
to qubes...@googlegroups.com

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: explodingbee . <explod...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 12:21 PM
Subject: Fwd: I recently installed Qubes and I now have several problems
To: Foppe de Haan <0spin...@gmail.com>, Andrew David Wong <a...@qubes-os.org>, dumbcyber <dumb...@riseup.net>



---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: explodingbee . <explod...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 11:15 AM
Subject: Re: I recently installed Qubes and I now have several problems
To: Foppe de Haan <0spin...@gmail.com>


Hi Foppe de Haan:

See my comments below:

On Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 3:13 AM, Foppe de Haan <0spin...@gmail.com> wrote:
re: 1, can you boot to windows from the bios boot menu (usually accessed via f9/f11)? If you can, that's a rather easier solution.

re: 3, do you mean the list of available programs in the 'add more shortcuts' view?

Yes, that is what I mean.
 

re: 4, this has to do with the licensing for modern codecs, which is non-free. Instructions to add a repository which contains those here: https://unitedrpms.github.io/

Ok.  Thanks.  When I reinstall Qubes I will try that (if necessary).  


re: 5, try this: "sudo dnf --releasever=25 --enablerepo=qubes-vm-r3.2-current-testing update"

Thanks, when I reinstall I may try that.  But two of the other people who responded said or implied that maybe I should use Fedora 24 instead.  So maybe I will try Fedora 24.

Regards,

Vincent



explodingbee .

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 12:41:32 PM12/14/16
to qubes...@googlegroups.com
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: explodingbee . <explod...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 12:22 PM
Subject: Fwd: I recently installed Qubes and I now have several problems
To: dumbcyber <dumb...@riseup.net>, Andrew David Wong <a...@qubes-os.org>, Foppe de Haan <0spin...@gmail.com>


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: explodingbee . <explod...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 11:15 AM
Subject: Re: I recently installed Qubes and I now have several problems
To: dumbcyber <dumb...@riseup.net>


Hi dubmcyber,

See my comment below.

Ok.  Thanks for the info.  Another guy who responded suggested I use Fedora 24 instead of Fedora 25.  So maybe that is what I will do (after I reinstall Qubes).

Regards,

Vincent



explodingbee .

unread,
Dec 14, 2016, 12:42:28 PM12/14/16
to qubes...@googlegroups.com
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: explodingbee . <explod...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 12:23 PM
Subject: Fwd: [qubes-users] I recently installed Qubes and I now have several problems
To: Andrew David Wong <a...@qubes-os.org>, Foppe de Haan <0spin...@gmail.com>, dumbcyber <dumb...@riseup.net>


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: explodingbee . <explod...@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 11:17 AM
Subject: Re: [qubes-users] I recently installed Qubes and I now have several problems
To: Andrew David Wong <a...@qubes-os.org>


Hi Andrew Wong,

See my comments below.

On Wed, Dec 14, 2016 at 9:20 AM, Andrew David Wong <a...@qubes-os.org> wrote:
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA512

On 2016-12-13 18:29, explodingbee . wrote:
> [...]
>
> 2) *In Qubes the computer often gets slow as molasses.*  I get
> error messages saying "Warning: unresponsive script" sometimes.
> When I try to open a VM it says that there is not enough memory and
> that I should close a VM first.  When the computer gets like this
> sometimes I click on things and nothing happens or it takes forever
> for something to happen; sometimes I can't even close windows
> because they don't respond.  (I am using an HP Elitebook 8540w
> laptop.  It has 4 GB of RAM and an i7 CPU.)  Also, when I shut down
> the computer sometimes it gets stuck and does not shut down all the
> way.  It freezes with the Qubes splash screen there and the
> progress bar indicating partial or complete progress.
>

I think this is just due to a lack of RAM. 4 GB is the bare minimum.
Any chance you can add some more?

I have not had any problems with lack of RAM in Windows 7.  Maybe Qubes needs more RAM than Windows 7?  If you are correct I can certainly get more RAM.  After I reinstall Qubes if the problem persists I may get more RAM.
> 3) *Problem relating to program installation:*  When I install
> programs in the Fedora or Debian templates they don't appear in the
> list of available programs in the templates or in the VMs based on
> those templates so I don't see how I can create shortcuts for
> programs in my VMs.
>

Are you installing these programs from the Fedora and Debian repos? If
so, are you fully shutting down the template after installing the
program? This should trigger qvm-sync-appmenus, but you can try to run
it manually from dom0:

qvm-sync-appmenus <templatevm-name>

Yes, I was installing from within the Fedora VM (which is what I think you mean).  Yes, I fully shut everything down, including the whole computer, after installing the programs and then at no time did the installed programs appear on the list of available programs in the Fedora VM or in the AppVMs.  If the problem persists after I reinstall Qubes I may try to manually enter the phrase you provided above.

> 4) *Problem in getting a video player to work:*  I have installed
> four different video players (Snappy, Budgie, Banshee and Parole)
> and none of them seem to be able to play videos I have downloaded
> (with Video Download Helper and Firefox in an App VM).  (I can get
> the video players to launch not with the proper shortcuts but in
> another, awkward way, by going to Domain: personal -> personal:
> Software and then clicking around until I get to the right app
> which was previously installed and then clicking on "launch.")
> Also, the default player, apparently called "Videos," doesn't work.
> Am I missing something here?
>

I haven't had any problems with VLC. I'd recommend giving that a try,
if you're willing. You can easily enable the RPMFusion repos to get it:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/software-update-vm/#rpmfusion-for-a-fedora-
templatevm

I have also used VLC before in Windows and I liked it.  It is a video player which can play almost any type of video file.  After I reinstall Qubes if I am still having video problems I will probably try to install it.  Thanks for sending the page to help with that.
> [...]
>
> 5) *I can't update Fedora:*  I have tried to update Fedora 23 to
> Fedora 25.  I am able to download the update but then I click
> "Install" and nothing happens.  I also click "restart and install"
> just below that and again nothing happens.  What is going on with
> that?  (I just tried that again and I got the following error
> message this time:  *"Sorry this did not work  Upgrade to Fedora
> failed.  Details    Detailed errors from the package manager
> follow:**  Error running transaction: installing package
> filesystem-3.2-37.fc24.x86_64 needs 135168 on the /rw
> filesystem")*
>

Instead of trying to upgrade to Fedora 25, I'd recommend upgrading to
Fedora 24 for now (unless you specifically require 25 for some
reason). Fedora 24 templates are supported (assuming you're running
Qubes 3.2), whereas Fedora 25 is not yet supported:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/supported-versions/#templatevms

Here are instructions on upgrading an existing Fedora 23 template to
Fedora 24:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/template/fedora/upgrade-23-to-24/

If you just want a fresh Fedora 24 template, it's much easier:

$ sudo qubes-dom0-update qubes-template-fedora-24

Thanks.  I don't even know Fedora very well at all.  So I have no problem with trying Fedora 24 instead of Fedora 25.  I think I will try that after I reinstall Qubes.

> So I am frustrated.  I had a whole life on Windows 7 and now I
> can't do most of what I used to do.  (Do you think that maybe I
> downloaded and installed a bad copy of Qubes?)  Help would be
> appreciated.
>

You really should verify the ISO before installing from it:

https://www.qubes-os.org/doc/verifying-signatures/

I did read that I was supposed to do that before I installed Qubes.  But I am coming from a Windows environment.  There seemed to be a number of concepts and terms used in that page that you provided (which I previously read) that I did not understand.  For example, where do I type that text?  If I am in Windows does that go into a DOS prompt window?   Also, I am supposed to import a key with GPG?  I had never heard of GPG before and I did know what I was importing the key into.  But I guess that now, seeing the problems I had (at least some of which may be due to a bad installation file of Qubes) I guess I will spend the time and try to figure out how to understand that page and verify the signature of the file. 

Thanks.  Regards,

Vincent

raah...@gmail.com

unread,
Dec 17, 2016, 4:26:40 PM12/17/16
to qubes-users, explod...@gmail.com
To triple boot mint, qubes and win 7 with the mint grub. edit the /etc/grub.d/40_custom file in mint. append in there everything between the xen sections of the grub.config file located on the qubes boot partition.

Then update grub on mint and reboot and qubes should boot from menu. You will have to do this everytime qubes updates kernel or it errors again.

explodingbee .

unread,
Dec 17, 2016, 6:18:21 PM12/17/16
to raah...@gmail.com, qubes...@googlegroups.com
Thanks for the input.  The grub menu issue is one thing that is presently working ok.  What happened was that when I installed Linux Mint it automatically identified all the operating systems present and it created a boot menu which comes up with every startup which lets me choose between Mint,  Qubes and Windows 7 (and some other things).    I don't understand some of what you wrote (like what a "xen section" is) but I don't think I need to worry about that right now.

Best regards,

Vincent

Leeteqxv

unread,
Dec 20, 2016, 5:25:02 AM12/20/16
to explodingbee ., raah...@gmail.com, qubes...@googlegroups.com

THIS message has NO further comments below, just FYI:

I have spun off a new discussion for the Grub issue:

"[qubes-users] GRUB fix GUI: Qubes community invitation to the other Linuxes for a collaboration?"

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/qubes-users/c372c227-c00d-ecdc-6abb-db65c40b2690%40leeteq.com.

LeeteqXV
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "qubes-users" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to qubes-users...@googlegroups.com.
To post to this group, send email to qubes...@googlegroups.com.
To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/qubes-users/CAEgwnuT0i-%3D-W7TPq9oSBY%2B%3Do2p_D%3Dv1ZcHN2%2BY9UFZ0UFTjHA%40mail.gmail.com.
For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.

Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages