Calendar constantly requiring Google authentication on 17.10

Question

I recently upgraded from 17.04 to 17.10.

The GNOME Calendar application displays a popup requesting my password for my linked Google account.

It does so whenever launched explicitly, and at times on its own.

When I type my (correct) password, the popup just reappears as if the password wasn't incorrect.

The only way to dismiss the popup is to press the Cancel button.

I can see my Gmail events in the calendar, so it does seem to sync.

I tried removing my Google account from Settings -> Online accounts and re-adding it, with no change.

If it's any help, I am using Google's two-factor authentication.

Also note that Thunderbird does not seem to have this issue.

Solution 1

I was having the same problem and resolve it by deleting the configuration files of Evolution. Do this:

rm -rf ./.config/goa-1.0/accounts.conf
rm -rf ./.config/evolution
rm -rf ./.local/share/evolution

I don't have that problem anymore since I did that. I hope this could help you.

Solution 2

Sorry to hear you had to revert @Mena. I had the same upgrade path and ran into this as well. Hopefully the below will be helpful for someone else who finds this.

What I found is that the Online Accounts feature isn't fully compatible with Google's TFA. The following is a workaround, to be entered when prompted for a password:
Enter an application specific password for Google in one of the recurring password prompts. Since setting an application specific password, it hasn't bugged me again, even after several reboots and my calendar was syncing before reboot. However for it to sync again- you have to manually bring up the calendar on each reboot, and when it prompts again for password - re-enter the app specific password.

To get the app specific password - go to Google's App password page and generate one to use with Ubuntu's Online Accts (and save it in your favorite password manager for use again later): https://security.google.com/settings/security/apppasswords

For more reading on Google TFA and application compatibility, here's Google's help page on the matter: https://support.google.com/accounts/answer/185833?hl=en

Screencap from me setting an app specific password in Google:

Comments

[Admin]

I have seen someone that had multiple google keyrings for some reason. Thus he had to repeatedly enter his password; once for each keyring.

[Admin]

@ravery any clue on how I would find out if that is my issue?

[Admin]

@ravery nevermind, I just launched the Passwords and Keys client, and there is only one entry listed for Google.

[Admin]

I'm experiencing this as well as of upgrading today.

[Admin]

I have actually had to downgrade to (or rather, re-install) 17.04, due to the appalling performance when gaming. While 17.10 fixed a few useful things in my case (lid closed detection, proper battery indicator and power-related operations such as shutdown and suspend without having to parametrize the kernel to ditch acpi), it also seems to go nuts when my CPU goes in turbo mode, and shuts the computer down without a warning despite no signs of overheating... Guess I'll wait it out a while.

[Admin]

Please file a bug and mention the bug number here.

[Admin]

I filled a bug in launchpad bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/gnome-calendar/+bug/172692‌​2 please if the description somehow matches your problem please mark it as affects me.

[Admin]

@AndrésAlcarraz thanks, I've downgraded due to other (far worse) issues, but I'll take a look soon.

[Admin]

@Andrés Alcarraz - Thanks for filing that bug, saved me the trouble. I've attached to it, and added the workaround to the comments.

[Admin]

Hi I pinpointed the problem a little, it seems that the problem is with calendars I added before I upgraded but not as online accounts but by url. Does anyone know how to remove those calendar? I couldn't find it in the app, it just let me "not show" the events of the calendar

[Admin]

APT INSTALL UBUNTU-DESKTOP

[Andrés Alcarraz]

Hi Jeff, I don't know where to put that password since the calendar already has my account set up and working, the problem is that it asks for the password despite that. And it does also with an account that doesn't have TFA.

[Jeff Burns]

I'll update my answer in the morning when pull the laptop back up.. You can edit the login used in account settings.

[Andrés Alcarraz]

Iknow that but the configured accounts are working.. I think the problem is some remanent account frombthe previous installation that don't show in the online accounts page.As I said

[Jeff Burns]

@AndrésAlcarraz and you're using an app specific password on the TFA enabled Google account? Until I did that, my calendar sync would work for a little bit, and then I'd be getting prompted for password again.

[Andrés Alcarraz]

I didn't, when I set up the account in online accounts it asked me for the TPA step, i.e. I had to authorize the login from my phone, I guess we are facing two different bugs, either way I will do what you suggest in your answer but I don't think that's gonna work since in the account not using TPA the problem is the same, it asks for my password again and again

[Andrés Alcarraz]

Hi @jeff-burns I pinpointed the problem a little, it seems that the problem is with calendars I added before I upgraded but not as online accounts but by url. Does anyone know how to remove those calendar? I couldn't find it in the app, it just let me "not show" the events of the calendar

[Demetris]

Even with freshly generated app password, I still get an error message "Try again with your Google Account password". It doesn't seem to accept App passwords.

[Jeff Burns]

OK, going back over this, I found I'd just put the app password in the dialog that kept popping up. This kept the dialog from ever popping up again, but that wasn't a permanent solution as it turns out, more of a per boot workaround. I discovered that when I noticed a new meeting didn't show up, so when I manually pull up the calendar, there was the password prompt again!

[Terry Dixon]

It would appear that removing "./.config/evolution" is sufficient to fix this. It is recreated on a restart and I don't have the problem now.

[dr mat]

Worked for me! Had to login into the account again and it tried to ask me multiple times, but logging in once and closing the other Google windows worked fine.

[Mena]

I recently had to upgrade again, since no fixes are delivered to 17.04 anymore, and tried Terry Dixon's variant of this solution. Works for me, thanks.

[Snorky35]

Worked for me. No need to remove the third element for me

[user4815162342]

I'm having this problem on arch, and I want to try this, but I'm not familiar with what is contained in those directories. Will deleting these files cause me to lose any of my current settings or locally stored e-mails?

[David Baucum]

This worked for me. Removing ~/.config/goa-1.0/accounts.conf was not necessary though.

[Duncan]

Worked for me too (and I'm using Ubuntu 18) - many thanks for your help. BUT, how on earth did you know that this was the solution - you must be a real pro! Once again, many thanks!

[Vigyani]

Using the commands rm -rf ./.config/goa-1.0/accounts.conf, rm -rf ./.config/evolution, rm -rf ./.local/share/evolution would remove all your account, local emails and configuration files. If you do not intent to lose all your downloaded emails then do not use the above commands. Do correct me if I am wrong.

[M Juckes]

The zombie accounts that I had trouble with were in .config/evolution/sources/ .