Hi, CC'ing debian-x, who I hope can help us with some clarification.
Justin B Rye: > Niels Thykier wrote: >>> <note> >>> <para> >>> This change only applies if your X Display Manager supports >>> - running X as rootless (or if you start X manually via >>> + running X without root privileges (or if you start X manually via >>> <command>startx</command>). Currently the only known display >>> - manager supporting this is gdm. Other display managers simply >>> + manager supporting this is <systemitem >>> role="package">gdm</systemitem>. >>> + Other display managers simply >>> start X as root regardless of this change. >>> </para> >>> </note> >>> >>> [...] >>> >>> This way of phrasing it makes it really difficult to work out that >>> using startx *does* require the installation of xserver-xorg-legacy. >>> >> >> Sadly, then I have confused you. Assuming the system meets the >> requirements, then the following will *not* require root: >> >> * startx (from a virtual terminal "owned" by the current user) >> * gdm (which knows how to start X without using root) > > I was assuming otherwise because the first symptom I ran into was that > running startx in the absence of xserver-xorg-legacy gave me an X > session with non-functional mouse and keyboard. > > But when I check now, installing every available xserver-xorg-* > package in main including -legacy as well as -input-libinput makes no > difference to that. On a testbed stretch machine with functional > logind and so on but with an old KMS-incapable graphics card, I > haven't found any way of making startx usable. > Not sure what is going there. But I haven't used startx for years until I learned of this feature, so I am probably not the right person to ask what is going on/why it doesn't work. > Switching over to lightdm I can get a usable session without -legacy > as long as I have -input-libinput. So I'm afraid I have no idea > what's going on, or even how many problems there are. > As I understand it, lightdm will start X as root unconditionally, so that will work with or without -legacy. You want -legacy when using gdm (or startx) plus have "old drivers". * @debian-x: Is the above correct? Thanks, ~Niels