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SyncPlay won't open media files when using VLC #787
Description
Describe the bug
When using VLC, dropdown Open Media File menu doesn't work, it returns with this message in the console:
builtins.OSError: [Errno 8] Exec format error: '/home/deck/Desktop/org.videolan.VLC.desktop'
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "/nix/store/nz71f9vjizmzrvd8jg2slpf4m64zdksl-syncplay-1.7.5/lib/syncplay/syncplay/ui/gui.py", line 465, in wrapper
return f(self, *args, **kwds)
File "/nix/store/nz71f9vjizmzrvd8jg2slpf4m64zdksl-syncplay-1.7.5/lib/syncplay/syncplay/ui/gui.py", line 1069, in browseMediapath
if self._syncplayClient._player.customOpenDialog == True:
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
AttributeError: 'NoneType' object has no attribute 'customOpenDialog'
To Reproduce
Steps to reproduce the behavior:
- Open SyncPlay, using VLC player
- Click on 'Open Media File'
- See error
Expected behavior
Media file is opened.
Version and platform:
- OS: SteamOS 3.8.14
- Syncplay version and build type: SyncPlay 1.7.5
- Media player and version: VLC 3.0.23
Additional context
Trying to open media file via shared playlists returns with the same message in the console. Media file doesn't open. Run via Determinate Nix, although same happens when SyncPlay is installed via pacman (for some reason it installs older version 1.7.4, the problem, however, is the same). Also see #786
Activity
Et0h commentedon Jul 31, 2026
I don't have SteamOS so unfortunately I can't be of much help. SteamOS is not on the list of supported platforms, so it is possible that changes would be needed to support this OS but I have no idea what they would be.
If you are having a problem with the GUI then you could try running Syncplat in CLI mode.
AlySerry0 commentedon Aug 11, 2026
The traceback here is a real bug independent of SteamOS: when the player fails to launch (as it did in your case with the VLC
.desktopfile), Syncplay's client leaves the player reference asNoneuntil it successfully connects back. The GUI's "Open Media File" / "Add files to playlist" handlers don't check for that, so they crash withAttributeError: 'NoneType' object has no attribute 'customOpenDialog'instead of showing an error - which is exactly the traceback in your log.Opened a fix: #794. It won't fix the underlying reason the player itself failed to start (that part does look SteamOS/path-specific), but it stops this from crashing and shows a proper message instead.
Guard against crash when opening a file before the media player is ready
Guard against crash when opening a file before the media player is ready
Guard against crash when opening a file before the media player is ready