Ubuntu Desktop removal and reinstallation

Question

I noticed that Nautilus (the file explorer) was missing from my ubuntu system, i checked if the ubuntu desktop was still installed but it was actually removed in the background from my system. Triggering the reinstall made it so that ZScaler got removed. Running Intune triggered the ZScaler reinstall, but it is odd that the Ubuntu Desktop was removed from my system. Had i restarted in the meantime i would only have been greeted by a terminal login screen without any desktop environment. Installation of the Ubuntu Desktop Environment would have been possible through the terminal and everything would have been fixed, but this is still somewhat annoying and weird that it is happening, and in the past browsers etc were removed within a session, extensions and the browsers themselves, Edge still doesnt work

Answer 1

@scooby, Thanks for posting in Q&A. From your description, it seems Intune trigger the ZScaler reinstall. Please check if we have this app deployed via Intune. Which app type we use to deploy it and which assignment type we added?

The unexplained removal of the Ubuntu desktop environment, including Nautilus. This is not a typical occurrence and suggests a potential underlying problem. Examine the system logs for any error messages or clues that might indicate the cause of the problem. You can find the logs in /var/log.

Meanwhile, we can check the following information to know it better:

1, Is it works previously? Check if any recent system updates might have caused the issue. Sometimes, updates can introduce unforeseen problems. D

2, Check if the issue occurs on multiple devices or it only occurs on one device.

3, It's possible that there are conflicting software packages or dependencies that are causing the Ubuntu desktop environment to be removed. If the issue can always repo, we can remove ZScaler, or other software to identify.

4, Unenroll the device from Intune to check if the issue still persists.

Please check the above information and if there's any update, feel free to let us know.

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