Post # 12 :
""chmod: cannot access `/home/user/.gvfs': Permission denied""

No idea, if you are having a gvfs issue.
I've never had any gvfs problems. It is a mount point,
and as long as it is mounted, not even root can access ~.gvfs.
# 6 http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=791693
.....

Steve, don't get too caught up on the permissions thing just yet, have a look at the other suggestions I mentioned (new user, clicking around, troubleshooting more...) and let us know whats going on. NOTE: the create a new user solution would be the easiest and best 'first test'.

I only suggest those chowning commands to make sure everything is normal, if you simply do a

and you find all files 'user' and 'group' are correct then permissions should be ok and there is no need to run the chown commands.

Knudfl is correct, post #6 in his link above says it all, the .gvfs file is temporarily used by gnome, if you really wanted those chmod commands to work, you would need to either exclude that one file, or easier yet, kill X, then run those commands (if X is not running, .gvfs would not be there I believe). But again, if permissions are user:user on your files, just skip those commands for now and look at the other suggestions.

I thought that I would report back because I have made some progress (or at least have more useful information).

The problem may possibly be a file that is in my user folder (i.e. in /home/me)

What I did to arrive at the above conclusion:

I installed Midnight Commander, a Norton Commander look-alike, so that I could easily move files around from the command line:
I then pressed CTrl+Alt+F1 to get out of the gnome desktop. I logged in and, to start Midnight Commander, typed
I then created a folder called "oldgnome" and moved the following files and folders from /home/me to /home/me/oldgnome:
.ICEauthority
.Xauthority
.dmrc
.gtk-bookmarks
/.gconf
/.gconfd
/.gnome2
/.gnome2-private
/.gnupg
/.metagui
/.nautilus
/.pulse
plus a lot of PDF, SVG and TIF files that I had saved in my /home/me folder.

I pressed Alt+F7 to get back to the desktop and rebooted the computer.

Following reboot, when I clicked on 'Places', 'Home Folder' the problem seemed to have disappeared. I could access all folders without File Manager freezing.

However, when I clicked on the 'oldgnome' folder to open it, the folder opened to show the files within and the window froze so I had to force quit. (Don't forget, the files in oldgnome are the files that were originally in the /home/me folder which comes up as the default window when you start File Manager. That's why I think that my problem lies with one of these files.)

So as long as I don't click on the oldgnome folder, I am operational again.

I now need to experiment to find out what file(s) were causing the problem.

Very interesting, and good troubleshooting steve, thats the right way to narrow it down. Now just try moving individual folders back to your /home/me and find which file/folder might be causing the problem. I would start with the config folders first, because if those are not the problem, you will at least get your old gnome look and feel back (so you don't have to redo your background/skin/look etc...). Let us know what you find.

I systematically put all the folders back...
...and none had any adverse effect on File Manager!

Nor did reinstating .ICEauthority, .Xauthority, .dmrc and .gtk-bookmarks

Now I have my desktop back to the way it was and File Manager seems to be working normally.

The only exception to the above is the one folder holding the PDF, SVG and TIF files that were originally in /home/me.

All the PDF files and some of the SVG files have an orange clock emblem on them even though they are under 10MB (the thumbnail threshold in Preferences).

When I click some of them, Image Viewer doesn't start up. This is a minor irritation, however.

I will carry on using File Manager to make sure that I'm not celebrating too soon.

Just Solved,

if anybody has the same problem follow the instructions on this forum, here is the link


Regards, and thanks for the help

I am having same problem with me home freezes nautilus completely also freezes gksudo nautilus. I am running ubuntu 10.10