LM 21.3 XFCE Danger in "Recent" folder (Problem solved!)

[ricardogroetaers]

If we open a file (text, image, spreadsheet, other, ...) located anywhere (folder, partition, disk drive, ...), the file appears in the "Recent folder".

If you click on the "remove from recent" option in the Recent folder, no problem.

If, in the "recent" folder, we click on "move to trash", or worse click on "delete" or use the <del> key or the <shift><del> combination, the file will also be deleted in its original location.

Unless I understand better, these "features" ("move to trash" or "delete") shouldn't exist in the "recent" folder. It could take someone by surprise.

So far I have no solution to the problem.

Note:
- the "Recent" folder (the name may vary depending on the language) doesn't seem to exist physically, it appears to be a virtual folder.
- I haven't tested it on LM XFCE 21; 21.1 and 21.2, but I assume that the problem also exists in these versions of LM.

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[MiZoG]

Don't quite agree. "Remove from Recent", "Move to Trash" and "Delete" are all too clear to be misunderstood.
And when access to recent files is desirable, then quick option to trash or delete em is desirable too.

[ricardogroetaers]

I respect your point of view, but deleting (intentionally) a file located in the folder we are in (Recent folder in this case) is one thing.
Deleting, as a consequence and without intending to do so, a file located in a place we haven't even opened is quite another.

Consider that the "Places" plugin (the name may vary depending on the language) for the XFCE panel only deletes the list of recently opened files and folders, it doesn't delete anything.

There's no perfect analogy, but it's a bit like deleting a shortcut and, consequently, "behind the user's back", the system also deleting the object to which the shortcut points.

[michael-hi]

Hi Ricardo

I think this is a good point and I agree with you. Not everybody is a computer wizard, and someone in a hurry or thinking about something else could easily say "I'll just clear out all the stuff in this Recent folder" and move to delete it without any further thought.

It's true that they should then get a message saying "Are you sure you want to delete?" but it would still be easy to click that automatically if you are mistakenly thinking it's just a bunch of shortcuts. Indeed, here's a related post from the Xfce forums a few months ago:
https://forum.xfce.org/viewtopic.php?id=17013

I think the Recent folder in Thunar only came in with version 4.18, so it would not have been there before LM 21.2.

For anyone who's concerned about this, it might be a good idea to remove the Recent folder from the sidebar. Just right-click on a blank part of the Thunar sidebar, eg beside a heading, and deselect Recent from the Places section. Alternatively, on the Behaviour tab of Thunar's preferences you could deselect "Show action to permanently delete files and folders" (but then it would still be possible to absent-mindedly send something to Trash).

I always add the Places plugin (which you mention) to the panel instead of a Thunar launcher. Then there should still be quick access to recently-opened items or recently-visited folders anyway.

[Midnight True]

Alternatively, on the Behaviour tab of Thunar's preferences you could deselect "Show action to permanently delete files and folders" (but then it would still be possible to absent-mindedly send something to Trash).

+1

IMO it is better a file got send to Trash than to be entirely deleted

[ricardogroetaers]

For anyone who's concerned about this, it might be a good idea to remove the Recent folder from the sidebar. Just right-click on a blank part of the Thunar sidebar, eg beside a heading, and deselect Recent from the Places section. ....

This procedure only works if the Thunar side panel is in shortcut mode. If it is in tree mode, this procedure does not work.

[ricardogroetaers]

Problem solved.

- Using the File Manager (Thunar, in this case), open the folder as root:
/usr/share/gvfs/mounts/
- In this folder, open the file with a Text Editor (Xed, for example):
recent-mount
- Comment out (with a #) all the lines in this file (see figure).
- Save the edited file.
- Restart your computer.

The damned "Recent" folder disappears from the File Manager and the Places plugin for the Xfce panel works normally, with no risk of deleting the files in their original locations. Only the "list" of recently opened folders and files is deleted.

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[michael-hi]

Excellent! Good work tracking down and neutralising the offending file.

And it's good that it doesn't seem to affect the display of recently-opened folders in the Places plugin. I suppose you still have to be careful that the edited file doesn't get silently overwritten/replaced during some future software update...

PS. It would be good if Mint had this disabled by default, but I think that's unlikely to happen.

[SMG]

PS. It would be good if Mint had this disabled by default, but I think that's unlikely to happen.

Linux Mint does not develop the Xfce desktop. A different development team does and they would be responsible for default settings.

[ricardogroetaers]

Linux Mint does not develop the Xfce desktop. A different development team does and they would be responsible for default settings.

I'm sorry, but I don't partly agree with that point of view.
There is no perfect or exact analogy, but ....

- Linux Mint doesn't develop snap but has blocked it in package management, as well as providing instructions for the user to enable it if they wish.

- Linux Mint doesn't develop the XFCE environment, but it does make available the "mint-meta-xfce" package, which, roughly speaking, can be seen as a customization of the Xfce environment in Linux Mint.

- The problem, which is the subject of this topic, does not seem to be exclusive to the Xfce environment. I haven't tested it on other desktop environments but I have received reports of it occurring in other environments too (as long as you use a File Manager that supports GVFS, as is the case with Thunar).

- I'm not a computer professional (or an IT professional), nor am I a software developer, programmer or engineer. I'm just an ordinary user.
I believe that the Linux Mint developer team, if it deems the problem pertinent, can develop a more professional solution.

- The fact is that the problem exists and can cause serious damage, some of it irreparable, to the unwary user. Take, for example, the case of the user who lost 348 files of all places.

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[Jo-con-Ël]

Thank you for sharing ricardogroetaers.

I though it was enough just setting recently used amount to 0 on Menu (right click)>Properties>Behavior but bookmark Thunar was still. Now it also has disappeared.

[ricardogroetaers]

I though it was enough just setting recently used amount to 0 on Menu (right click)>Properties>Behavior but bookmark Thunar was still. Now it also has disappeared.

Note: Don't confuse the list of recently used programs (software, applications) in the Whisker menu with the recently opened files shown in the damn Recent folder.

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[Jo-con-Ël]

Yes, I was confused. It is not the same as on Cinnamon Menu where show recents option is reffered to documents/files and you need to disable on Menu and/or disable Remember rencently accessed files on System Settings>Privacy. That's the problem when working with different desktop environments.

[ricardogroetaers]

... It is not the same as on Cinnamon Menu where show recents option is reffered to documents/files and you need to disable on Menu and/or disable Remember rencently accessed files on Sytem Settings>Privacy. ...

I've never used or tested the Cinnamon environment.
I reasonably assume that Cinnamon's "remember recently accessed files" menu option doesn't pose a risk, as does the "places" plugin in the Xfce panel.

The problem is with the "Recent" folder shown in the File Manager, if the File Manager supports GVFS, of course.
For example, the simple file manager "Xfe" (X File Explorer) does not show the "Recent" folder.

Note: Do not confuse the "Xfe" file manager with the "Xfce" desktop environment.

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[SMG]

- Linux Mint doesn't develop the XFCE environment, but it does make available the "mint-meta-xfce" package, which, roughly speaking, can be seen as a customization of the Xfce environment in Linux Mint.

Not really. It is more of adding Minty things rather than changing the default Xfce.

- The problem, which is the subject of this topic, does not seem to be exclusive to the Xfce environment. I haven't tested it on other desktop environments but I have received reports of it occurring in other environments too (as long as you use a File Manager that supports GVFS, as is the case with Thunar).

It is listed in the Xfce 4.18 tour for the new features under the heading "File Manager (Thunar) Recently used Files" so I do not understand why you think it is not Xfce functionality. Thunar is built by the Xfce team.

[ricardogroetaers]

It is listed in the Xfce 4.18 tour for the new features under the heading "File Manager (Thunar) Recently used Files" so I do not understand why you think it is not Xfce functionality. Thunar is built by the Xfce team.

My text (originally in Brazilian Portuguese) is translated into English by DeepL.
This translation may be unclear and lead to a misunderstanding of the text.

I didn't say that this (recently used files) is not an Xfce feature.
I said that it is not an exclusive feature of Xfce.

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[Dullard du Jour]

If we open a file (text, image, spreadsheet, other, ...) located anywhere (folder, partition, disk drive, ...), the file appears in the "Recent folder".
.
.
If, in the "recent" folder, we click on "move to trash", or worse click on "delete" or use the <del> key or the <shift><del> combination, the file will also be deleted in its original location.

Yeah....that is a problem, I got burned with those two options as well. Thanks for the work-around, it has been implemented.

Users from Windows will treat Recent as a list of past actions, and not as a pointer to the actual file or app. This is one of those cases where Mint should remove the Delete, and Move to Trash options, for the good of the user. The Recent folder has good use, but it should be for accessing recent apps and files, not for permanently deleting those items.

Removing the app or file from the list, without perm deleting is acceptable. No harm, no foul.

[ricardogroetaers]

... The Recent folder has good use, but it should be for accessing recent apps and files, not for permanently deleting those items.

Removing the app or file from the list, without perm deleting is acceptable. No harm, no foul.

Note:
The Recent folder only shows recently opened files, it does not show applications (programs, software).
The "places" plugin for the Xfce panel shows recently opened folders as well as files, but it doesn't cause any problems.