In my small sample size, there appears to be a related bug to Bug 2404966 where similar behavior is observed (seemingly roughly every other or 1 in 3 boot attempts). I am not clear of the exact cause, but a reboot can (mostly) reliably boot and then avoid the issue. Perhaps the retry window of the patch for 2404966 in Kwin 6.5.3 could be extended? For some reason on these sessions, I don't see a retry occurring after the initial failure, and the debug output indicates Systemd classifying service/scope of the attempted launch of sddm having "successfully entered the 'dead' state." I'm not sure what would a successful use of the retry logic look like, or how to dig in further there. Reproducible: Sometimes Steps to Reproduce: Attempt to boot (typically happening on a cold boot). Actual Results: Encounter black screen. Expected Results: A login screen from SDDM greeter. Additional Information: I've recorded a few logs now with the same sequence of errors shown below: > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora systemd-logind[1015]: New session '1' of user 'sddm' with class 'manager-early' and type 'unspecified'. > ░░ Subject: A new session 1 has been created for user sddm > ░░ A new session with the ID 1 has been created for the user sddm. > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora (systemd)[1440]: pam_unix(systemd-user:session): session opened for user sddm(uid=988) by sddm(uid=0) > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora audit[1440]: AUDIT1105 pid=1440 uid=0 auid=988 ses=1 subj=system_u:system_r:init_t:s0 msg='op=PAM:session_open grantors=pam_selinux,pam_selinux,pam_loginuid,pam_keyinit,pam_namespace,pam_systemd_home,pam_umask,pam_keyinit,pam_limits,pam_systemd,pam_unix acct="sddm" exe="/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-executor" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora systemd[1440]: drkonqi-coredump-cleanup.timer - Cleanup lingering KCrash metadata was skipped because of an unmet condition check (ConditionPathExistsGlob=/var/lib/sddm/.cache/kcrash-metadata/*.ini). > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora systemd[1440]: drkonqi-sentry-postman.timer - Submitting pending crash events was skipped because of an unmet condition check (ConditionPathExistsGlob=/var/lib/sddm/.cache/drkonqi/sentry-envelopes/*). > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora systemd[1440]: drkonqi-coredump-cleanup.service - Cleanup lingering KCrash metadata was skipped because of an unmet condition check (ConditionPathExistsGlob=/var/lib/sddm/.cache/kcrash-metadata/*.ini). > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora systemd[1]: Started session-c1.scope - Session c1 of User sddm. > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora audit[1413]: AUDIT1105 pid=1413 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:session_open grantors=pam_unix,pam_systemd acct="sddm" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=fedora addr=? terminal=/dev/tty1 res=success' > Nov 30 11:42:35 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1355]: "No backend specified, automatically choosing drm\n" > Nov 30 11:42:35 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1355]: "Accepting client connections on sockets: QList(\"wayland-0\")\n" > Nov 30 11:42:35 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1355]: "kwin_core: Failed to open drm node: \"/dev/dri/card1\"\n" > Nov 30 11:42:35 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1355]: "kwin_wayland_drm: No suitable DRM devices have been found\n" > Nov 30 11:42:35 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1355]: "QThreadStorage: entry 6 destroyed before end of thread 0x560646ec50a0\nQThreadStorage: entry 1 destroyed before end of thread 0x560646ec50a0\nQThreadStorage: entry 0 destroyed before end of thread 0x560646ec50a0\n" > Nov 30 11:42:35 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1355]: Stopping... "/usr/bin/sddm-greeter-qt6" > Nov 30 11:42:35 fedora sddm-helper[1297]: pam_unix(sddm-greeter:session): session closed for user sddm > Nov 30 12:06:35 fedora systemd[1]: session-c1.scope: Deactivated successfully. > ░░ Subject: Unit succeeded > ░░ Defined-By: systemd > ░░ Support: https://lists.freedesktop.org/mailman/listinfo/systemd-devel > ░░ > ░░ The unit session-c1.scope has successfully entered the 'dead' state. For reference, my setup is: HP Envy x360 laptop with AMD R5 5600U and integrated graphics. ~> lspci -k | grep -A 2 VGA 04:00.0 VGA compatible controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD/ATI] Lucienne (rev c2) Subsystem: Hewlett-Packard Company Device 888a Kernel driver in use: amdgpu
To follow up, the below log is from a successful reboot where it did appear to initially not succeed and then use the retry logic, catching near the 5 second mark: > Nov 30 12:59:26 fedora systemd[1]: Started sddm.service - Simple Desktop Display Manager. ░░ Subject: A start job for unit sddm.service has finished successfully ░░ A start job for unit sddm.service has finished successfully. > Nov 30 12:59:26 fedora audit[1]: SERVICE_START pid=1 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:init_t:s0 msg='unit=sddm comm="systemd" exe="/usr/lib/systemd/systemd" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:26 fedora sddm-helper[1274]: Detected locale "C" with character encoding "ANSI_X3.4-1968", which is not UTF-8. > Nov 30 12:59:26 fedora audit[1274]: AUDIT1100 pid=1274 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:authentication grantors=pam_permit acct="sddm" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:26 fedora audit[1274]: AUDIT1101 pid=1274 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:accounting grantors=pam_permit acct="sddm" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:26 fedora audit[1274]: AUDIT1103 pid=1274 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:setcred grantors=pam_permit acct="sddm" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:26 fedora sddm-helper[1274]: pam_unix(sddm-greeter:session): session opened for user sddm(uid=988) by (uid=0) > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora systemd-logind[1005]: New session 'c1' of user 'sddm' with class 'greeter' and type 'wayland'. ░░ Subject: A new session c1 has been created for user sddm ░░ A new session with the ID c1 has been created for the user sddm. > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora audit[1301]: AUDIT1101 pid=1301 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:init_t:s0 msg='op=PAM:accounting grantors=pam_unix acct="sddm" exe="/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-executor" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora audit[1301]: AUDIT1103 pid=1301 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:init_t:s0 msg='op=PAM:setcred grantors=? acct="sddm" exe="/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-executor" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=failed' > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora systemd-logind[1005]: New session '1' of user 'sddm' with class 'manager-early' and type 'unspecified'. ░░ Subject: A new session 1 has been created for user sddm ░░ A new session with the ID 1 has been created for the user sddm. > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora (systemd)[1301]: pam_unix(systemd-user:session): session opened for user sddm(uid=988) by sddm(uid=0) > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora audit[1301]: AUDIT1105 pid=1301 uid=0 auid=988 ses=1 subj=system_u:system_r:init_t:s0 msg='op=PAM:session_open grantors=pam_selinux,pam_selinux,pam_loginuid,pam_keyinit,pam_namespace,pam_systemd_home,pam_umask,pam_keyinit,pam_limits,pam_systemd,pam_unix acct="sddm" exe="/usr/lib/systemd/systemd-executor" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora systemd[1301]: drkonqi-coredump-cleanup.timer - Cleanup lingering KCrash metadata was skipped because of an unmet condition check (ConditionPathExistsGlob=/var/lib/sddm/.cache/kcrash-metadata/*.ini). > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora systemd[1301]: drkonqi-sentry-postman.timer - Submitting pending crash events was skipped because of an unmet condition check (ConditionPathExistsGlob=/var/lib/sddm/.cache/drkonqi/sentry-envelopes/*). > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora systemd[1301]: drkonqi-coredump-cleanup.service - Cleanup lingering KCrash metadata was skipped because of an unmet condition check (ConditionPathExistsGlob=/var/lib/sddm/.cache/kcrash-metadata/*.ini). > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora systemd[1]: Started session-c1.scope - Session c1 of User sddm. > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora audit[1274]: AUDIT1105 pid=1274 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:session_open grantors=pam_unix,pam_systemd acct="sddm" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=fedora addr=? terminal=/dev/tty1 res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1323]: "No backend specified, automatically choosing drm\n" > Nov 30 12:59:27 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1323]: "Accepting client connections on sockets: QList(\"wayland-0\")\n" > Nov 30 12:59:28 fedora audit: BPF prog-id=73 op=LOAD > Nov 30 12:59:28 fedora audit: BPF prog-id=74 op=LOAD > Nov 30 12:59:28 fedora audit: BPF prog-id=75 op=LOAD > Nov 30 12:59:28 fedora sddm-greeter-qt6[1332]: Loading file:///usr/share/sddm/themes/01-breeze-fedora/Main.qml... > Nov 30 12:59:28 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1323]: "QSoundEffect(pulseaudio): Error decoding source file:///usr/share/maliit/keyboard2/sounds/key_tick2_quiet.wav\n" > Nov 30 12:59:29 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1323]: "QSGContext::initialize: depth buffer support missing, expect rendering errors\nQSGContext::initialize: stencil buffer support missing, expect rendering errors\n" > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-greeter-qt6[1332]: file:///usr/share/sddm/themes/01-breeze-fedora/Main.qml:241:17 Parameter "username" is not declared. Injection of parameters into signal handlers is deprecated. Use JavaScript functions with formal parameters instead. > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: Detected locale "C" with character encoding "ANSI_X3.4-1968", which is not UTF-8. > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: gkr-pam: unable to locate daemon control file > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: gkr-pam: stashed password to try later in open session > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: pam_kwallet5(sddm:auth): pam_kwallet5: pam_sm_authenticate > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora audit[1477]: AUDIT1100 pid=1477 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:authentication grantors=pam_usertype,pam_localuser,pam_unix,pam_gnome_keyring acct="ayoungdukie" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora audit[1477]: AUDIT1101 pid=1477 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:accounting grantors=pam_unix,pam_localuser acct="ayoungdukie" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: pam_kwallet5(sddm:setcred): pam_kwallet5: pam_sm_setcred > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora audit[1477]: AUDIT1103 pid=1477 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:setcred grantors=pam_localuser,pam_unix,pam_gnome_keyring acct="ayoungdukie" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=? addr=? terminal=? res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora audit[1477]: AUDIT2300 pid=1477 uid=0 auid=1000 ses=2 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=pam_selinux default-context=unconfined_u:unconfined_r:unconfined_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 selected-context=unconfined_u:unconfined_r:unconfined_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=fedora addr=? terminal=/dev/tty2 res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1323]: Stopping... "kwin_wayland" > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper-start-wayland[1323]: "kwin_scene_opengl: Could not delete render time query because no context is current\n" > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1274]: pam_unix(sddm-greeter:session): session closed for user sddm > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora audit[1274]: AUDIT1106 pid=1274 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:session_close grantors=pam_unix,pam_systemd acct="sddm" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=fedora addr=? terminal=/dev/tty1 res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora audit[1274]: AUDIT1104 pid=1274 uid=0 auid=4294967295 ses=4294967295 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:setcred grantors=pam_permit acct="sddm" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=fedora addr=? terminal=/dev/tty1 res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: pam_unix(sddm:session): session opened for user ayoungdukie(uid=1000) by ayoungdukie(uid=0) > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: gkr-pam: gnome-keyring-daemon started properly and unlocked keyring > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: pam_kwallet5(sddm:session): pam_kwallet5: pam_sm_open_session > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1567]: pam_kwallet5: final socket path: /run/user/1000/kwallet5.socket > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora audit[1477]: AUDIT1105 pid=1477 uid=0 auid=1000 ses=2 subj=system_u:system_r:xdm_t:s0-s0:c0.c1023 msg='op=PAM:session_open grantors=pam_selinux,pam_loginuid,pam_selinux,pam_keyinit,pam_namespace,pam_keyinit,pam_limits,pam_systemd,pam_unix,pam_gnome_keyring,pam_kwallet5,pam_umask,pam_lastlog2 acct="ayoungdukie" exe="/usr/libexec/sddm-helper" hostname=fedora addr=? terminal=/dev/tty2 res=success' > Nov 30 12:59:32 fedora sddm-helper[1477]: Starting Wayland user session: "/etc/sddm/wayland-session" "/usr/libexec/plasma-dbus-run-session-if-needed /usr/bin/startplasma-wayland"