App Center Glitching

As it's only affecting the display of the application; I'd say it's related to the direct rendering manager (and perhaps something between that and the application itself). That means anywhere from libdrm to the snap-store; which I believe includes the compositor, too.

3 Likes

Here's a structured troubleshooting approach to help resolve the issue with Snap applications having altered window display in Ubuntu MATE:

1. Check if the Issue is Related to the Compositor

Since only Snap applications are affected, it might be related to the window compositor. MATE typically uses Marco (with or without compositing), Compiz, or Compton.

  • Try switching the window manager to Marco (No Compositing):

    mate-tweak
    
    • Go to Windows tab.
    • Set Window Manager to Marco (No Compositing).
    • Restart the affected Snap application and see if the issue persists.
  • If this resolves the issue, the problem is likely with the compositor conflicting with Snap applications.

2. Check if Wayland is Involved

Some Snap applications may not work well under Wayland. If you are using a Wayland session, try switching to Xorg:

  • Log out.
  • On the login screen, click the gear icon and select MATE (Xorg).
  • Log in again and check if the issue persists.

3. Verify Snap Application's Confinement Mode

Some Snap applications may have display issues due to strict confinement. Try running an affected Snap application with --disable-gpu-sandbox:

snap run --disable-gpu-sandbox <snap-app-name>

If this fixes the display issue, the problem may be related to GPU sandboxing in the Snap environment.

4. Check for Missing Permissions

Some Snap apps require specific permissions to interact correctly with the display server. Check the permissions:

snap connections <snap-app-name>

If any relevant interface (like x11, wayland, opengl) is not connected, manually connect it:

sudo snap connect <snap-app-name>:opengl
sudo snap connect <snap-app-name>:wayland

5. Update Snap and Affected Applications

Make sure Snap and the applications are up to date:

sudo snap refresh

6. Try Running Snap Applications in X11 Mode

If Wayland support is causing issues, force Snap apps to use X11:

env QT_QPA_PLATFORM=xcb snap run <snap-app-name>

If this works, consider setting it permanently:

echo 'export QT_QPA_PLATFORM=xcb' >> ~/.profile
source ~/.profile

7. Check GPU Acceleration Issues

Some Snap applications may have problems with hardware acceleration. Try disabling it:

snap set system experimental.refresh-app-awareness=true

Then restart Snap applications and test again.

8. Reinstall the Affected Snap Applications

If none of the above works, reinstalling the affected Snap applications may help:

snap remove <snap-app-name>
snap install <snap-app-name>

9. Try Running with LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1

To test if the issue is related to OpenGL rendering, try:

LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1 snap run <snap-app-name>

If this works, the problem may be related to the OpenGL driver or Snap’s interaction with it.

Let me know which steps you’ve tried and their results!

6 Likes

I've tried switching window managers before and it didn't work. Furthermore, as mentioned in this thread earlier, I've turned my compositors off and the behaviour doesn't occur anymore. Personally though, I wouldn't want to keep my compositors disabled since it results in terrible video playback.

Second, I'm not using Wayland. Everything is running on X11 and updated to their latest versions. All connections are properly configured. I've tried disabling my hardware acceleration to no avail. Not even reinstalling the Snap Store works.

Finally, I've run snap-store with LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1 and the behaviour doesn't occur anymore. However, there is quite the noticeable lag when interacting with the app... which can range from mild and just really frustrating.

3 Likes

I guess this is tolerable. I've changed my desktop file command to the following:

env LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1 BAMF_DESKTOP_FILE_HINT=/var/lib/snapd/desktop/applications/snap-store_snap-store.desktop /snap/bin/snap-store %U

Is there any further action we can do on this matter? Could this be a bug?

3 Likes

Since running snap-store with LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1 resolves the issue (albeit with performance degradation), this strongly suggests that the problem is related to OpenGL hardware acceleration—possibly due to a bug in the interaction between the Snap environment, the GPU driver, and libGL.

Next Steps for Further Investigation:

Try Forcing MESA to Use a Different OpenGL Driver

If you are using an AMD or Intel GPU, try setting:

env MESA_LOADER_DRIVER_OVERRIDE=i965 snap run snap-store

For NVIDIA, try:

env __GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=nvidia snap run snap-store

If any of these work, you could set them permanently in the desktop file.

Check Logs for Errors

Run:

journalctl -xe | grep snap-store

Also, check if launching with LIBGL_DEBUG=verbose provides more clues:

LIBGL_DEBUG=verbose snap run snap-store

If you see errors related to missing libraries or failed hardware acceleration, that might indicate where the problem lies.

Could This Be a Bug?

Yes, this does seem like a bug, likely related to:

  • Mesa within Snap not properly detecting the GPU driver.
  • A conflict between libGL inside the Snap and the system’s Mesa installation.
  • Snap’s handling of OpenGL acceleration.

You can check if a similar issue has been reported:

snap info snap-store

And then visit the bug tracker (e.g., https://bugs.launchpad.net/snapd) to see if there are related reports.

If no similar issue is found, you might want to report the bug to the Snap maintainers:

ubuntu-bug snapd

Or directly file a report at:

Workaround Until a Fix is Found

Since disabling hardware acceleration causes lag, you might try forcing a software GL driver only for Snap apps by modifying ~/.profile:

if [[ "$(basename $SHELL)" != "snap" ]]; then
    export LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1
fi

This way, only Snap applications will use software rendering, leaving native applications unaffected.

Let me know what the logs show and if any of the steps improve the situation!

7 Likes

Launching with LIBGL_DEBUG=verbose gives this output. I wish I could understand that, but I'm pretty sleepy for now :smile:

keiaa@Latitude-5300:~$ LIBGL_DEBUG=verbose snap run snap-store
Gtk-Message: 23:05:50.768: Failed to load module "xapp-gtk3-module"
Gtk-Message: 23:05:50.770: Failed to load module "appmenu-gtk-module"
Gtk-Message: 23:05:50.771: Not loading module "atk-bridge": The functionality is provided by GTK natively. Please try to not load it.

(snap-store:45253): Gtk-WARNING **: 23:05:50.804: GTK+ module /snap/snap-store/1248/gnome-platform/usr/lib/gtk-2.0/modules/libcanberra-gtk-module.so cannot be loaded.
GTK+ 2.x symbols detected. Using GTK+ 2.x and GTK+ 3 in the same process is not supported.
Gtk-Message: 23:05:50.804: Failed to load module "canberra-gtk-module"
libGL: Can't open configuration file /etc/drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Can't open configuration file /home/keiaa/snap/snap-store/1248/.drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: using driver i915 for 10
libGL: Can't open configuration file /etc/drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Can't open configuration file /home/keiaa/snap/snap-store/1248/.drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: using driver i915 for 10
libGL: pci id for fd 10: 8086:3ea0, driver iris
libGL: MESA-LOADER: dlopen(/snap/snap-store/1248/gnome-platform/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/iris_dri.so)
libGL: Can't open configuration file /etc/drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Can't open configuration file /home/keiaa/snap/snap-store/1248/.drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Can't open configuration file /etc/drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Can't open configuration file /home/keiaa/snap/snap-store/1248/.drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Can't open configuration file /etc/drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Can't open configuration file /home/keiaa/snap/snap-store/1248/.drirc: No such file or directory.
libGL: Using DRI3 for screen 0

(snap-store:45253): IBUS-WARNING **: 23:05:51.048: Failed to mkdir /home/keiaa/snap/snap-store/1248/.config/ibus/bus: Not a directory
flutter: INFO snap-store: Logging to /home/keiaa/snap/snap-store/1248/.local/share/snap-store/snap-store.log

(snap-store:45253): GLib-GObject-CRITICAL **: 23:05:55.411: ../src/gobject/gsignal.c:2777: instance '0x625de6390e50' has no handler with id '166'

** (snap-store:45253): WARNING **: 23:05:55.549: Attempted to set message handler on an FlBinaryMessenger without an engine

** (snap-store:45253): WARNING **: 23:05:55.549: Attempted to set message handler on an FlBinaryMessenger without an engine
keiaa@Latitude-5300:~$ 
3 Likes

Forcing the i965 drivers gives this output. (This is an excerpt.)

libGL error: failed to load driver: i965
libGL error: MESA-LOADER: failed to open i965: /snap/snap-store/1248/gnome-platform/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri/i965_dri.so: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory (search paths /snap/snap-store/1248/gnome-platform/usr/lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/dri, suffix _dri)
libGL error: failed to load driver: i965
2 Likes

Here are the snap-store logs. I'm not sure what to make of it either.

Mar 01 23:05:50 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: Started snap.snap-store.snap-store-5418107b-ad3f-4974-bb98-fdd2a28e1588.scope.
Mar 01 23:05:50 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841550.991:206): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=203 compat=0 ip=0x700d39c9b531 code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:50 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841550.991:207): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x700d39d1a78b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:50 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841550.991:208): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=203 compat=0 ip=0x700d39c9b531 code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:50 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841550.991:209): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=203 compat=0 ip=0x700d39c9b531 code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:50 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841550.991:210): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=203 compat=0 ip=0x700d39c9b531 code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:51 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841551.013:211): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x700d39d1a78b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:51 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841551.015:212): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x700d39d1a78b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:51 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841551.016:213): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x700d39d1a78b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:51 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841551.021:214): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45253 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x700d39d1a78b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:05:51 Latitude-5300 dbus-daemon[10084]: [session uid=1000 pid=10084] Activating service name='io.snapcraft.Launcher' requested by ':1.145' (uid=1000 pid=45253 comm="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" label="snap.snap-store.snap-store (enforce)")
Mar 01 23:05:53 Latitude-5300 snapd[902]: storehelpers.go:954: cannot refresh: snap has no updates available: "bare", "core18", "core20", "core22", "cups", "firmware-updater", "gnome-3-28-1804", "gnome-42-2204", "gtk-common-themes", "lunacy", "netbeans", "onlyoffice-desktopeditors", "snap-store", "snapd", "snapd-desktop-integration", "sublime-merge", "sublime-text"
Mar 01 23:05:55 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: snap.snap-store.snap-store-5418107b-ad3f-4974-bb98-fdd2a28e1588.scope: Consumed 9.385s CPU time.
Mar 01 23:08:04 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: Started snap.snap-store.snap-store-4308112c-6f90-4a2b-9b2f-5bbb37b82955.scope.
Mar 01 23:08:04 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841684.502:219): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45574 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=203 compat=0 ip=0x774467062531 code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:08:04 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841684.502:220): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45574 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x7744670e178b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:08:04 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841684.536:221): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/proc/sys/vm/max_map_count" pid=45574 comm="snap-store" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:04 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841684.597:222): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/lib/swcatalog/" pid=45574 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:04 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841684.601:223): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/cache/swcatalog/" pid=45574 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:04 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841684.748:224): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/cache/app-info/" pid=45574 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:06 Latitude-5300 snapd[902]: storehelpers.go:954: cannot refresh: snap has no updates available: "bare", "core18", "core20", "core22", "cups", "firmware-updater", "gnome-3-28-1804", "gnome-42-2204", "gtk-common-themes", "lunacy", "netbeans", "onlyoffice-desktopeditors", "snap-store", "snapd", "snapd-desktop-integration", "sublime-merge", "sublime-text"
Mar 01 23:08:21 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: snap.snap-store.snap-store-4308112c-6f90-4a2b-9b2f-5bbb37b82955.scope: Consumed 28.400s CPU time.
Mar 01 23:08:38 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: Started snap.snap-store.snap-store-2727cf4f-70e1-4842-a95b-45b53e879285.scope.
Mar 01 23:08:38 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841718.850:225): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45748 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=203 compat=0 ip=0x72b02efaa531 code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:08:38 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841718.851:226): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=45748 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x72b02f02978b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:08:38 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841718.884:227): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/proc/sys/vm/max_map_count" pid=45748 comm="snap-store" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:38 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841718.977:228): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/lib/swcatalog/" pid=45748 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:38 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841718.984:229): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/cache/swcatalog/" pid=45748 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:39 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841719.374:230): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/cache/app-info/" pid=45748 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:08:40 Latitude-5300 snapd[902]: storehelpers.go:954: cannot refresh: snap has no updates available: "bare", "core18", "core20", "core22", "cups", "firmware-updater", "gnome-3-28-1804", "gnome-42-2204", "gtk-common-themes", "lunacy", "netbeans", "onlyoffice-desktopeditors", "snap-store", "snapd", "snapd-desktop-integration", "sublime-merge", "sublime-text"
Mar 01 23:08:53 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: snap.snap-store.snap-store-2727cf4f-70e1-4842-a95b-45b53e879285.scope: Consumed 28.368s CPU time.
Mar 01 23:10:43 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: Started snap.snap-store.snap-store-44cc92ad-a669-42dd-883a-9c8126d7ee3d.scope.
Mar 01 23:10:43 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841843.815:231): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=46153 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=203 compat=0 ip=0x7419417dd531 code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:10:43 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1326 audit(1740841843.815:232): auid=4294967295 uid=1000 gid=1000 ses=4294967295 subj=snap.snap-store.snap-store pid=46153 comm="snap-store" exe="/snap/snap-store/1248/bin/snap-store" sig=0 arch=c000003e syscall=141 compat=0 ip=0x74194185c78b code=0x50000
Mar 01 23:10:43 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841843.844:233): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/proc/sys/vm/max_map_count" pid=46153 comm="snap-store" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:10:43 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841843.909:234): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/lib/swcatalog/" pid=46153 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:10:43 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841843.922:235): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/cache/swcatalog/" pid=46153 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:10:44 Latitude-5300 kernel: audit: type=1400 audit(1740841844.251:236): apparmor="DENIED" operation="open" class="file" profile="snap.snap-store.snap-store" name="/var/cache/app-info/" pid=46153 comm="DartWorker" requested_mask="r" denied_mask="r" fsuid=1000 ouid=0
Mar 01 23:10:45 Latitude-5300 snapd[902]: storehelpers.go:954: cannot refresh: snap has no updates available: "bare", "core18", "core20", "core22", "cups", "firmware-updater", "gnome-3-28-1804", "gnome-42-2204", "gtk-common-themes", "lunacy", "netbeans", "onlyoffice-desktopeditors", "snap-store", "snapd", "snapd-desktop-integration", "sublime-merge", "sublime-text"
Mar 01 23:11:03 Latitude-5300 systemd[10058]: snap.snap-store.snap-store-44cc92ad-a669-42dd-883a-9c8126d7ee3d.scope: Consumed 36.926s CPU time.
2 Likes

Nothing wrong I see in your logs.
Post out:
snap list
What about the test of workaround to force software GL driver?

2 Likes

Thanks for that Philippe. Here are all of my installed snaps.

Name                       Version                     Rev    Tracking         Publisher         Notes
bare                       1.0                         5      latest/stable    canonical✓        base
core18                     20250123                    2855   latest/stable    canonical✓        base
core20                     20241206                    2496   latest/stable    canonical✓        base
core22                     20250110                    1748   latest/stable    canonical✓        base
cups                       2.4.11-2                    1067   latest/stable    openprinting✓     -
firmware-updater           0+git.22198be               167    latest/stable/
  canonical✓        -
gnome-3-28-1804            3.28.0-19-g98f9e67.98f9e67  198    latest/stable    canonical✓        -
gnome-42-2204              0+git.38ea591               202    latest/stable/
  canonical✓        -
gtk-common-themes          0.1-81-g442e511             1535   latest/stable/
  canonical✓        -
lunacy                     10.11                       91     latest/stable    icons8            -
netbeans                   25                          127    latest/stable    apache-netbeans✓  classic
onlyoffice-desktopeditors  8.3.0                       332    latest/stable    onlyoffice✓       -
snap-store                 0+git.7a3a49a6              1248   2/stable         canonical✓        -
snapd                      2.67                        23545  latest/stable    canonical✓        snapd
snapd-desktop-integration  0.9                         253    latest/stable/
  canonical✓        -
sublime-merge              2102                        95     latest/stable    snapcraftersâœȘ     classic
sublime-text               4192                        196    latest/stable    snapcraftersâœȘ     classic

Like I've said earlier, I did force OpenGL software rendering by using this command for my desktop entry, and it did work. I didn't apply the modification for ~/.profile because the rest of my Snap apps are fine.

env LIBGL_ALWAYS_SOFTWARE=1 BAMF_DESKTOP_FILE_HINT=/var/lib/snapd/desktop/applications/snap-store_snap-store.desktop /snap/bin/snap-store %U

Cheers!

3 Likes

No, have to leave it off