cinnamon 🚀 - Desktop background resets to default every now and then

Can confirm for Cinnamon version 2.4.6 on Antergos. Unlike above the desktop background resets to a random but default wallpaper (Antergos switches default wallpaper on every boot, this is on purpose).

xamino on 15 Mar 2015

Almost the same problem with "Rosa". Wallpaper resets sometimes (maybe because of cinnamon crashing) during the system work. Last time it happened when i ran xarchiver.

ghost on 10 May 2016

It also happens on Linux Mint 17.3. Cinnamon edition, everything updated....

As the title says, now and then I also lose my wallpaper....

rodrigograca31 on 10 Jun 2016

Happens on up-to-date Arch x64 multilib with Cinnamon installed too

sumanguru on 21 Jul 2016

Please try to note what you were doing/did when this happens. Also maybe check your logs and see if anything stands out when it does. This has been around for awhile but there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason for it. Without that it's extremely hard to pin down any type of fix.

JosephMcc on 21 Jul 2016

I have had one reset after processing an update, but also had it reset a few times when typing in Qt Creator. (as in I'm in the middle of typing and notice the background changes on my second monitor) It happens for me about once every 1-3 weeks.

One thing to note is I have three computers at home running Arch with Cinnamon installed for well over a year (January 2015 was the latest), and I have never seen this happen on those computers. I also haven't changed the wallpapers for those computers in a very long time. However, I have seen the bug occur on recent installs both with Ubuntu 16.04 and with Arch. Perhaps an older version was setting the wallpaper settings to some configuration file before that is no longer being set?

akb825 on 5 Aug 2016

Happens also on 17.3 with Cinnamon 2.8.8. It even crashes and sets no wallpaper at all.

mdumrauf on 14 Aug 2016

Also happens on 18.0 with Cinnamon Stable (and Unstable) and can confirm it resets the Dconf setting too when it happens...

dominichayesferen on 5 Sep 2016

👍2

I've just had it happen on an machine with an old install (but fully up to date) after resuming from suspend, so my previous thought of it only occurring on new installs wasn't correct.

akb825 on 5 Sep 2016

Hello, everybody.
This happens to me constantly on Linux Mint 18 Cinnamon 3.0.7 stable. I always set the options Picture aspect to No picture, Background gradient to None and Gradient start color to Black. But it changes itself to Picture aspect > Zoom. It happened hundred of times, and still don't know what triggers it. I'm always doing something different when I realize that the desktop background changed. At first, I thought that the culprit was conky (that's why I don't use a background image), so I disabled all my conky scripts from starting on system start up for a couple of days. It didn't made any difference (the background kept changing randomly to the default). Sometimes, it happens like 5 times in less than an hour. Some other times, it doesn't happen for days. My system never goes into suspend/hibernation mode (but I shut it down every day).

Odyseus on 7 Sep 2016

I have this problem too, in that (1) every so often the picture aspect resets, and (though this hasn't happened for a month or so) (2) sometimes my system reverts to a default background.

EDIT: I am sorry I can't be more specific about just when it happens. Problem 1 is fairly subtle, so I don't always notice it.

Linux Mint Cinnamon 18.

ghost on 24 Sep 2016

On Arch, I just had the background reset when upgrading the following packages:

assimp-3.3.1-1  bluez-libs-5.42-1  chromaprint-1.3.2-1
curl-7.50.3-1  doxygen-1.8.12-1  ffmpeg-1:3.1.3-2
firefox-49.0.1-1  git-2.10.0-1  gnome-online-accounts-3.20.4-1
gtkspell3-3.0.9-1  gvim-8.0.0005-1  hwids-20160801-1
iana-etc-20160921-1  jansson-2.8-1  libass-0.13.3-1
libcups-2.2.0-4  libinput-1.5.0-1  libjpeg-turbo-1.5.1-1
libkeybinder3-0.3.1-1  libmm-glib-1.6.2-1  libphonenumber-7.7.0-1
libtool-2.4.6-6  libva-1.7.2-1  linux-4.7.5-1
linux-firmware-20160915.c4c07a8-1  logrotate-3.10.0-1
mesa-12.0.3-1  mpfr-3.1.4.p5-1  openssl-1.0.2.j-1  pango-1.40.3-1
perl-5.24.0-2  pinentry-0.9.7-3  qt5-3d-5.7.0-2  qt5ct-0.27-1
qtcreator-4.1.0-3  shared-mime-info-1.7-1  sqlite-3.14.2-1
sudo-1.8.18-1  vim-runtime-8.0.0005-1  wayland-1.12.0-1
xf86-input-libinput-0.19.1-1  xproto-7.0.31-1

akb825 on 28 Sep 2016

I had two computers with recent updates (see my post above for a list of packages) have the background reset, and both of those have 2 monitors. I just updated my laptop and the background didn't reset, so it could also be related to having multiple monitors.

akb825 on 30 Sep 2016

I have the same problem on my laptop Lenovo z510. I haven't connected any additional monitor. And the background did reset after the last update and it also occurs randomly from time to time.
System:
Linux Mint 18 Cinamon 64-bit
Cinnamon Version 3.0.7
Linux Kernel 4.4.0-21-generic

Last update:
I show if somebody will tell me how to retrieve them from an upgrade manager in a plain text. But the list looks kinda similar to akb825

Devnull85 on 30 Sep 2016

Same problem in LMDE 2, Cinnamon 3.0.6. Background image resets to default after playing video in fullscreen (sometimes) and working in terminal.

Sunderland93 on 30 Sep 2016

+1, I also have had this happen to me.

As a wild guess, I feel like it might be related to the graphics driver crashing and rebooting, as my computer slowed dramatically when it happened...?

Using Linux Mint 18, Cinnamon 3.0.7, and NVIDIA Closed-source Drivers 361.42, with an NVIDIA GTX 660 Graphics Card.

SolarLune on 6 Oct 2016

Update, it just happened - my computer slowed down again, but I notice that it happened when I plugged my phone in. Perhaps that has something to do with it? Or the fact that the file manager always starts up to open the phone's folder when it plugs in?

EDIT: Re-plugging my phone didn't do anything, so some time or other condition might need to pass first for it to happen...

SolarLune on 8 Oct 2016

When it happens here, it's mostly the lag out where the system tray icons have a black background behind them...

dominichayesferen on 8 Oct 2016

On my system (cf. @SolarLune) the problem seems unconnected to plugging in any external device. Moreover, on my system the problem does not seems associated with any lag (though I do not quite know what @feren means when s/he writes about lag).

ghost on 9 Oct 2016

@ACinnamonUserInUK Sometimes when changing the Cinnamon theme, applet set, etc, the system tray icons get a black background behind them whilst Cinnamon is unresponsive...

dominichayesferen on 9 Oct 2016

After loosing the wallpaper the only way to set it again is using the Monitor-configuration and set the main-Display again. After that i can setup the wallpaper again. So i think the problem is about multiple monitors. Sometimes my applications switches from monitor 1 to monitor 2 after standby.

ikarus13 on 10 Nov 2016

On my Arch with Cinnamon sometimes Cinnamon does not even start and .xsession-errors is full of "method SetDesktopBackground unavailable" or smth along those lines

sumanguru on 17 Nov 2016

Occurs to me randomly with Linux Mint 18 Cinnamon

dic1911 on 17 Nov 2016

👍1

I just watched the background change:
I have a shortcut to my home folder in the panel. When I clicked the shortcut it changed the background.

Then I tested:

rebooted the computer
opened the browser (as I had it open before)
clicked the 'files' shortcut'
----> background changed again

My background always goes back to the very first one I set up.
I am running Ubuntu 16.04 and Cinnamon 3.0.7
I use only an external monitor as display