glib2-2.86.0 breaks lain widgets

[cyberpunkrocker-zero]

Recent upgrade to glib2-2.86.0 on Arch Linux breaks most of the lain widgets. I get the following errors while starting up the Awesome wm:

error while running function!
stack traceback:
    /usr/share/awesome/lib/awful/spawn.lua:485:in function 'awful.spawn.with_line_callback'
    (...tail calls...)
    /usr/share/lua/5.3/lain/widget/net.lua:36: in field 'get_devices'
    /usr/share/lua/5.3/lain/widget/net.lua:41: in function 'lain.widget.net'
    /home/madmax/.config/awesome/rc.lua:554: in main chunk
error: /usr/share/awesome/lib/awful/spawn.lua:485: attempt to index a nil value (field *UnixInputStream")

Similar errors for other widgets. Downgrade to glib2-2.84.4 resumes functionality.

[Aire-One]

It has been reported to awesome. See awesomeWM/awesome#4022 and awesomeWM/awesome#4025

[AliensInc]

Recent upgrade to glib2-2.86.0 on Arch Linux breaks most of the lain widgets. I get the following errors while starting up the Awesome wm:
.
.
.
Similar errors for other widgets. Downgrade to glib2-2.84.4 resumes functionality.

Have the same thing so gonna try that glib2-thing, thx

Update: yep it works, thanks a million.

Update 2: Missed some stuff so other utils crashed so I used the AUR util: archarchive and selected all files from Sept. 22nd and now it works.

[sleeptightAnsiC]

It seems that lain/widget/fs.lua silently breaks, even when using patch from awesomeWM/awesome#4022

I suspect that patch from awesomeWM/awesome#4027 also wouldn't help in this case.

FS widget simply does not appear on the Wibox, without any error message.

[sleeptightAnsiC]

It seems that lain/widget/fs.lua silently breaks, even when using patch from awesomeWM/awesome#4022

Yea, I can confirm that FS widget has issue unrelated to those from AwesomeWM upstream. FS directly uses lgi.Gio and probably some of Unix symbols are now missing in it. I suspect it's one of those:

lain/widget/fs.lua

Lines 79 to 80 in 88f5a8a

	for _, mount in ipairs(Gio.unix_mounts_get()) do
	local path = Gio.unix_mount_get_mount_path(mount)

---

EDIT: Yup! Checked every Gio symbol that FS widget uses, and unix_mounts_get and unix_mount_get_mount_path are missing in my enviroment:

$ lua
Lua 5.4.8  Copyright (C) 1994-2025 Lua.org, PUC-Rio
> require("lgi")
table: 0x55c129f47ef0   /usr/share/lua/5.4/lgi.lua
> require("lgi").Gio
table: 0x55c129f6cc50
> require("lgi").Gio.unix_mounts_get
nil
> require("lgi").Gio.unix_mount_get_mount_path
nil
> require("lgi").Gio.File.new_for_path
lgi.fun (0x7f69490a6940): Gio.File.new_for_path
> require("lgi").Gio.Async.start
function: 0x55c129f74010
> require("lgi").Gio.FILE_ATTRIBUTE_FILESYSTEM_SIZE
filesystem::size
> require("lgi").Gio.FILE_ATTRIBUTE_FILESYSTEM_FREE
filesystem::free
> require("lgi").Gio.FILE_ATTRIBUTE_FILESYSTEM_USED
filesystem::used

[AliensInc]

It seems that lain/widget/fs.lua silently breaks when using patch from awesomeWM/awesome#4022

Yea, I can confirm that FS widget has issue which AwesomeWM upstream will (most likely) not fix. FS directly uses lgi.Gio and probably some of Unix symbols are now missing in it. I suspect it's one of those:

lain/widget/fs.lua

Lines 79 to 80 in 88f5a8a
for _, mount in ipairs(Gio.unix_mounts_get()) do
local path = Gio.unix_mount_get_mount_path(mount)

EDIT: Yup! Checked every Gio symbol that FS widget uses, and unix_mounts_get and unix_mount_get_mount_path are missing in my enviroment:

$ lua
Lua 5.4.8 Copyright (C) 1994-2025 Lua.org, PUC-Rio

require("lgi")
table: 0x55c129f47ef0 /usr/share/lua/5.4/lgi.lua
require("lgi").Gio
table: 0x55c129f6cc50
require("lgi").Gio.unix_mounts_get
nil
require("lgi").Gio.unix_mount_get_mount_path
nil
require("lgi").Gio.File.new_for_path
lgi.fun (0x7f69490a6940): Gio.File.new_for_path
require("lgi").Gio.Async.start
function: 0x55c129f74010
require("lgi").Gio.FILE_ATTRIBUTE_FILESYSTEM_SIZE
filesystem::size
require("lgi").Gio.FILE_ATTRIBUTE_FILESYSTEM_FREE
filesystem::free
require("lgi").Gio.FILE_ATTRIBUTE_FILESYSTEM_USED
filesystem::used

I hope I understand this incorrectly!!
Will the awsomewm team NOT fix the glib2 errors?
If so I gotta move away from this superb WM as I now have 174 packages waiting to update and if I do, it crashes I can't run awesomewm anymore

UPDATE: Now 177 packages
... and climbing...

[sleeptightAnsiC]

It seems that lain/widget/fs.lua silently breaks when using patch from awesomeWM/awesome#4022

Yea, I can confirm that FS widget has issue which AwesomeWM upstream will (most likely) not fix. FS directly uses lgi.Gio and probably some of Unix symbols are now missing in it.

I hope I understand this incorrectly!! Will the awsomewm team NOT fix the glib2 errors?

@AliensInc Chill man. You misunderstood me 😅

This whole issue (actually several issues) come from changes in glib2, which AwesomeWM and Lain use through lgi.Gio.* interface.

AwesomeWM will fix their issue (caused by use of lgi.Gio.UnixInputStream), but Lain will still have to fix the FS widget (which uses lgi.Gio.unix_mount* symbols). Those are two unrelated things caused by same change in glib2. I should probably report another Lain bug about it...

Sorry, if my comments were confusing. I will edit them in sec

[AliensInc]

phew, I hoped correctly then thus incorrectly 😜

I don't know what the FS widget is and as I don't I can"t be using that, can I 🤣

I only use, netup, netdown, mem, bat, textclock, all else are my own scripts used with 'textbox' and 'watch'.

This is as I at that point couldn't find a way to colorize the characters depending on it's values.
eg. I want my colors for the CPU temp at certain values etc etc.

[madhur]

I have raised PR for the fix #564

[cyberpunkrocker-zero]

Today Arch Linux released a patched version of awesome-4.3. which allows all the lain widgets to work with glib2-2.86.0 without modification (except the FS widget), so as far as Arch Linux is concerned, the issue is solved.

[AliensInc]

Yep, seems to work👍

Where is the changelog nowadays?

The one on github ended 2019 so that's out. Can they fix their homepage please.

I tested the update on one of the laptops to see if it worked as I couldn't find any info about it and it worked so now on the main machine and also worked.

Can it really be that hard to tell people abput this, like anywhere.

[cyberpunkrocker-zero]

@AliensInc Do you mean Arch Linux or Awesomewm changelog? Arch Linux is nowadays on Gitlab

[AliensInc]

Oh, sorry awesomewm.
Know about arch and gitlab.
Moved there myself when MS took over github.