Cannot browse Timeshift snapshots

Interesting problem - when I run Timeshift-gtk, I am unable to browse the files.

When I launch in terminal (kdsu timeshift-gtk) and I hit ‘browse’ I see that it’s attempting to open the folder with other applications (easytag first, when I removed that it then started to open folders with filebot).

Now I can’t run settings as root… so how do I set the default file browser for the root user?

Why are you running it as root ?

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When you launch timeshift-gtk, it asks for a password. Browse files fails - so I then run in terminal and must use kdesu.

Admin access is required to backup and restore system files.
Please re-run the application as admin (using ‘sudo’ or ‘su’)

Then you shouldnt be using kdesu

Well thats just dumb design then. Oh well.

then I can try also as su
But still, timeshift tries to open a folder with filebot as root.
❯ su timeshift-gtk
[sudo] password for ben:
App config loaded: /etc/timeshift/timeshift.json

/dev/sdc1 is mounted at: /run/timeshift/backup, options: rw,relatime

/usr/bin/filebot must NOT run as root

I guess I’ll repeat then…

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So KDE is a dumb design? IT does cause some stupid problems.

No … timeshift … if its a graphical application that not only needs to be opened with su/sudo … and then also calls for a root graphical file manager … then … thats pretty silly.

In my opinion that means its just broken.

Right - it’s only recently broken. Before I reinstalled/updated, it would simply open Dolphin to browse…

Actually, Timeshift must be run as root to have permission to backup ROOT folders, but KDE only allows browsing this in terminal - that’s silly.

Not really.
Until proper polkit or gvfs or similar support in dolphin (incoming soon supposedly) is fully functional you should not have any sort of ‘admin dolphin’ and certainly not ‘sudo dolphin’ which is rightly blocked.

Right - so we have a problem, a root application has the option to browse files, but that’s not allowed. Also the Settings is unable to set the default browser being called by timeshift-gtk.

So I start timeshift, enter password, and am now unable to browse files as I previously could. This also means I can’t ‘browse’ the non-root timeshift backups as I could before - it’s a new problem, and hence something which changed possibly when updating this week to plasma 20.x

From a quick look … it also seems you are using the wrong executable … timeshift-launcher apparently does use polkit to validate you first.

…and… it seems that its broken similar to gufw.

$ timeshift-launcher
Unable to init server: Could not connect: Connection refused

(timeshift-gtk:209061): Gtk-WARNING **: 18:43:39.298: cannot open display: 

which is equal to:

$ pkexec timeshift-gtk
Unable to init server: Could not connect: Connection refused

(timeshift-gtk:209660): Gtk-WARNING **: 18:45:30.599: cannot open display:

but I got it to run with

pkexec env DISPLAY=$DISPLAY XAUTHORITY=$XAUTHORITY timeshift-gtk

So … once again … we are at least partially talking about timeshift being broken… regardless of how you feel about root/dolphin.

aha - interesting there’s an error in my KDE menu, timeshift comes up as ‘timeshift-gtk’.

When I run ‘timeshift-launcher’ I get a different error:

Summary

❯ timeshift-launcher
App config loaded: /etc/timeshift/timeshift.json

/dev/sdc1 is mounted at: /run/timeshift/backup, options: rw,relatime

QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
“Session bus not found\nTo circumvent this problem try the following command (with Linux and bash)\nexport $(dbus-launch)”

Oh … are you on wayland ?

I don’t think so, just a standard KDE install…
❯ loginctl show-session 2 -p Type
Type=x11

Hm. OK - I see the QSTandard things on my output too.
But the Session one I dont have.
You can see about doing what it says

export $(dbus-launch)

(though again not sure why you need to and I dont)

oh, no output…
❯ export $(dbus-launch)

╭─ ~ ───────────────── :heavy_check_mark:  at 09:57:14 ─╮
╰─

yeah … there wouldnt be. its setting an env var.
I kinda more meant include it in the string like above. but it should also now be ative in your current session … so execute the launcher again.

❯ timeshift-launcher

[Warning] Deleted invalid lock
App config loaded: /etc/timeshift/timeshift.json

/dev/sdc1 is mounted at: /run/timeshift/backup, options: rw,relatime

When I hit browse, then I get:
❯ timeshift-launcher
[Warning] Deleted invalid lock
App config loaded: /etc/timeshift/timeshift.json

/dev/sdc1 is mounted at: /run/timeshift/backup, options: rw,relatime

QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
QStandardPaths: XDG_RUNTIME_DIR not set, defaulting to ‘/tmp/runtime-root’
“Session bus not found\nTo circumvent this problem try the following command (with Linux and bash)\nexport $(dbus-launch)”