Bug#1151747: gnome-shell: GNOME fails to start after Sid update ("Session never registered")

Leo Unglaub leo at unglaub.at
Fri Oct 23 14:42:32 BST 2026


Package: gnome-shell
Severity: important

Hey,

since a recent system update (approx. 2 days ago) on Debian Sid, the 
GNOME desktop environment fails to start. The screen remains black, but 
switching to a virtual terminal (e.g., TTY2) works normally.

When attempting to restart the display manager, GDM3 fails immediately.

Here are the relevant details from `systemctl status gdm3` and the 
system journal:

--- Logs & Error Output ---
gdm3[1621]: GdmDisplay: Session never registered, failing
gdm3[1621]: Child process -2395 was already dead.
gdm-launch-environment[2494]: pam_unix(gdm-launch-environment:session): 
session opened for us...
gdm-launch-environment[2494]: gkr-pam: couldn't unlock the login keyring.
gdm3[1621]: GdmDisplay: Session never registered, failing
gdm-local-display-factory: maximum number of display failures reached. 
Giving up.
-------------------------

System Information:
- Distribution: Debian Sid (unstable)
- Graphics Hardware: AMD Radeon / Ryzen Graphics (amdgpu driver)
- Latest packages

Is this something on my system or are you noticing this to? My concern 
is this moving into testing with this bug.

Greetings



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