Gedit can't save files

Question

Gedit can't save files. My Gedit has greyed out the 'Save' button, and only offers to 'Close without saving'. Other programs saves the same files without any problems and i seem to have enough rights. This happends with files all my home folder, even on a usb drive. With 'gksudo gedit' it works. But i have the permission for the file, and i can save the file if i open it with Libre office write instead, only gedit will not. If i make a test file on my desktop, that have the permission read and write, for Me, my group and others. I open it with gedit, i cannot save it. open it with libre office i can save it. with 'sudo gedit' it does not work, but with 'gksudo gedit' i can save it. i must have broken something in gedit?

The only thing i have been messing with are changing the 'Run', 'Display or 'Ask' option for texts files in Nautilus, but i set it back. I also reinstalled gedit.

I can't figure out what to do, please help.

Solution

Use the following steps to circumvent the issue: (this is a workaround, not a solution)

• create a new user (E.g. mote2 for original user mote)
• with the same groups as the other user (if you need details on that, leave a comment)

Now:

1. open the file manager
2. browse to the /home/mote directory
3. copy (not move!) all the files from Downloads to /home/mote2/Downloads
4. check you did a good job.
5. Now delete /home/mote/Downloads
6. Go back to step 3 and repeat for Documents, Videos, ...
7. In a terminal type the following command: deluser mote --remove-home

Done!

Why? As you have seriously messed up some problems with the current's user profile, some setting somewhere in one of the .config files is causing a problem. As we can't solve this problem in a reasonable amount of time, it's best to just leave that profile behind and starting afresh!

Comments

[Rinzwind]

Make sure the directory gedit wants to save a file is owned by you and not by root. You probably changed the default save location to something owned by root by using sudo or gksudo...

[mote]

But, if i use 'LO Writer' in stead, i don't have any problems. And it, not only one directory, it everywhere, desktop, homefolder ext. drives. The problem are one with gedit.

[Fabby]

Could you do a ` gsettings list-recursively | grep --ignore-case gedit` and copy-paste the output to paste.ubuntu.com and provide a link back here and then drop a comment @Fabby?

[mote]

@Fabby I was installing ecryptfs-utils and did a lot in a SU terminal. Another user that tried to help me at the forums, thinks that i made problems in dbus. Unfortunately it's above my knowledge. ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2262774 Here are the pastebin of bith gedit and eog. All other apps and users work fine. paste.ubuntu.com/9912966

[mote]

@fabby, I was almost about to. The weird thing is that it's the only user affected. Other user work perfectly.

[Fabby]

I've got a solution for you then! :-) (And sorry for not asking first: Do you have this in the guest session as well???)

[mote]

Thanks, that was just the solution i had figured out my self. You get all the stars and upvotes i have. ;-) Thanks

[WinEunuuchs2Unix]

+1 This also works for problem files in Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) on my NTFS partition /mnt/e which is E:\ within windows. I've been struggling for a couple of hours trying various things but cp /mnt/e/bin/* /mnt/e/bin2/ was an easy fix!

[Fabby]

@WinEunuuchs2Unix Yup: it's a universal solution independent of OS.