executing > sudo echo 512 > /proc/sys/fs/inotify/max_user_instances
does not work because it won't open the file as root but as your current user. This is because "> /proc/sys/fs/inotify/max_user_instances" is not part of what sudo executes. The command is interpreted by your shell as follows: open the file "/proc/sys/fs/inotify/max_user_instances " for writing and execute the programm "sudo" with the following arguments ["echo", "512"] and replace the output(stdout) of the program with said file for starting it. Since your shell is not running as root, it cannot open "/proc/sys/fs/inotify/max_user_instances" for writing. You can either get a shell running as root (with "sudo -i" for example), or do "echo 512 | sudo tee /proc/sys/fs/inotify/max_user_instances". The 2nd way works by passing the output of echo to sudo with in turn will pass it on to tee which then will open the file, which it can do because sudo invoked tee as root. -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Desktop Packages, which is subscribed to gnome-system-monitor in Ubuntu. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1430068 Title: Unable to launch gnome-system-monitor Status in gnome-system-monitor package in Ubuntu: Confirmed Bug description: When you have too many open files, you can't launch gnome-system- monitor: $ gnome-system-monitor (gnome-system-monitor:23720): glibmm-CRITICAL **: unhandled exception (type Glib::Error) in signal handler: domain: g-io-error-quark code : 0 what : Unable to find default local directory monitor type (gnome-system-monitor:23720): Gtk-CRITICAL **: gtk_window_present_with_time: assertion 'GTK_IS_WINDOW (window)' failed ProblemType: Bug DistroRelease: Ubuntu 14.10 Package: gnome-system-monitor 3.8.2.1-2ubuntu4 ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.16.0-31.41-generic 3.16.7-ckt5 Uname: Linux 3.16.0-31-generic x86_64 ApportVersion: 2.14.7-0ubuntu8.2 Architecture: amd64 CurrentDesktop: Unity Date: Tue Mar 10 09:32:12 2015 InstallationDate: Installed on 2014-06-26 (255 days ago) InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 14.04 LTS "Trusty Tahr" - Release amd64 (20140417) SourcePackage: gnome-system-monitor UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to utopic on 2014-10-27 (133 days ago) To manage notifications about this bug go to: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gnome-system-monitor/+bug/1430068/+subscriptions -- Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~desktop-packages Post to : desktop-packages@lists.launchpad.net Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~desktop-packages More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
