After update, cannot enable/disable networking

[mark1mint]

More precisely: after a recent update of network-manager package in Mint 13 MATE, an annoying glitch has appeared on my system, in that I can start the network manager (I have it disabled on boot) and connect to the internet, but after that if I want to disconnect or restart the network manager from the GUI (using the nm applet in the panel) I can't because these options are greyed out.
To make things work again, I have to go to System-->Admnistration-->Network and enter my password to make changes, then things are (apparently) back to normal -but only until the next reboot.
Since I have made modifications to the standard settings, also including disabling dnsmasq, I imagine that the update may have changed some configuration file or maybe some setting that network manager normally expects to find isn't there.
Any ideas on what may be causing this and what to check?

[kukamuumuka]

http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=191551

With Mint 13 and Ubuntu 12.04 the newest NetworkManager can cause a situation where you cannot edit or disconnect. The solution is to downgrade NetworkManager.

1. Download network-manager-gnome_0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2_i386.debfor 32-bit system or network-manager-gnome_0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2_amd64.deb for 64-bit system.
2. Downgrade NetworkManager via command line.

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 cd /path/the-package.deb (eg. network-manager-gnome_0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2_i386.deb)

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sudo dpkg -i network-manager-gnome_0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2_i386.deb ## for 32-bit

.. or

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sudo dpkg -i network-manager-gnome_0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2_amd64.deb ## for 64-bit

3. Prevent upgrading the package.

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sudo apt-mark hold network-manager-gnome

[mark1mint]

Thank you very much, I thought it was an issue on my system only.

Are there any disadvantages (other than having to go through System settings each time,obviously) or maybe security issues in keeping the current package?

[kukamuumuka]

Thank you very much, I thought it was an issue on my system only.

Are there any disadvantages (other than having to go through System settings each time,obviously) or maybe security issues in keeping the current package?

The same bug is infected in Ubuntu 12.04 too, and it has come within new updates. The new NetworkManager works with root privileges, so it a clear bug. Anyway, older version is better than the new one.

I think that unnecessary sudoing with network connection does not add any security.

[Pjotr]

Are there (.....) security issues in keeping the current package?

It's all about risk profile.... I assume that the faulty update was level 4 or even 5. Which means: relatively high risk of breakage by installing the new package, and relatively low risk of security problems by keeping the old package.

[kukamuumuka]

Are there (.....) security issues in keeping the current package?

It's all about risk profile.... I assume that the faulty update was level 4 or even 5. Which means: relatively high risk of breakage by installing the new package, and relatively low risk of security problems by keeping the old package.

It was not level 4 or 5 package. I think that it is an irritating bug, which prevents you edit or disconnect. If you install that updated NetworkManager, you can edit connections by editing /etc/NetworkManager/system-connections/someconnection file.

[mark1mint]

To be fair, I don't care for level 4 or 5 updates: after breaking my Mint 13 installation a couple of times (and recovering it from backups) I think (or hope?) that I more or less got the hang of what can break it again, so I just upgrade the packages I want from a terminal and eventually put on hold the risky ones.

Network manager caught me by surprise, I can only agree with this

The new NetworkManager works with root privileges, so it a clear bug.

and especially this

I think that unnecessary sudoing with network connection does not add any security.

thinking of it, that's the exact kind of apparently harmless albeit annoying issues that can sometimes mask huge security holes...

[mark1mint]

With Mint 13 and Ubuntu 12.04 the newest NetworkManager can cause a situation where you cannot edit or disconnect. The solution is to downgrade NetworkManager.

1. Download network-manager-gnome_0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2_i386.debfor 32-bit system or network-manager-gnome_0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2_amd64.deb for 64-bit system.

I was going to fix this, but in the process a couple of doubts surfaced:

- I currently have both network-manager 0.9.4.0-0ubuntu4.4.1 and
network-manager-gnome 0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2.5 installed in my system, is that normal?

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dpkg-query -W -f '${STATUS}\t${PACKAGE}\t${VERSION}\n' *network-manager* |sort -k1,1
install ok installed	network-manager	0.9.4.0-0ubuntu4.4.1
install ok installed	network-manager-gnome	0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2.5
install ok installed	network-manager-pptp	0.9.4.0-0ubuntu1
install ok installed	network-manager-pptp-gnome	0.9.4.0-0ubuntu1

-the package you are advising to downgrade would be the second one, i.e. network-manager-gnome which you are suggesting to downgrade to version 0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2, but looking at the changelog I see that this version isn't the last before the update to the current version 0.9.4.1-0ubuntu2.5, is that the last known "good" version?

I'd just like to know that I'm doing this right before causing any other issue.

[mark1mint]

I'll answer myself this time: digging in the /var/cache/apt/archives (I try not to delete anything) I've retrieved an older network-manager-gnome package, so I've re-installed it with dpkg and then put it on hold.