Package: wireplumber Version: 1.4.2 Severity: important Dear Debian Maintainers,
I am reporting a critical audio regression in Debian 13 "Trixie" (stable) that has persisted since the initial 13.0 release through the current 13.2 version. SUMMARY ------- WirePlumber consistently fails to initialize the Intel HDA audio device on system boot, leaving users without any audio output. The system falls back to "Dummy Output" instead of the actual hardware audio device. AFFECTED SYSTEMS ---------------- - Debian version: 13.2 "Trixie" (stable) - Desktop environment: KDE Plasma on Wayland - Test hardware: Lenovo IdeaPad 1 15IJL7 (Intel Celeron N4500) - Audio controller: Intel HDA PCH with Realtek ALC257 codec - WirePlumber version: 1.4.2-1 - PipeWire version: 1.4.2-1 This issue likely affects any fresh Debian 13 installation using Intel HDA audio hardware with the default PipeWire/WirePlumber audio stack. REPRODUCTION STEPS ------------------ 1. Perform a clean installation of Debian 13.x with KDE desktop 2. Complete installation and reboot the system 3. Log into the desktop session 4. Execute: wpctl status 5. Observe that only "Dummy Output" is listed under Sinks 6. Execute: aplay -l 7. Note that ALSA correctly detects the Intel HDA PCH device The bug is 100% reproducible on every cold boot. EXPECTED BEHAVIOR ----------------- WirePlumber should automatically detect and activate the Intel HDA audio device (alsa_output.pci-0000_00_1f.3.analog-stereo) on system startup, providing immediate audio functionality. ACTUAL BEHAVIOR --------------- WirePlumber fails to create the audio device node. The journalctl logs show: s-monitors: Failed to create alsa_output.pci-0000_00_1f.3.analog-stereo: Object activation aborted: PipeWire proxy destroyed wp-pw-obj-mixin: <WpNode:0x5598c0065410> ignoring set_param on already destroyed objects The audio device proxy is created but immediately destroyed before activation completes, indicating a race condition or improper initialization sequence in WirePlumber. VERIFICATION ------------ ALSA layer functions correctly: $ aplay -l card 0: PCH [HDA Intel PCH], device 0: ALC257 Analog [ALC257 Analog] $ cat /proc/asound/cards 0 [PCH]: HDA-Intel - HDA Intel PCH $ speaker-test -c 2 -t wav [Audio output works when bypassing PipeWire] This confirms the hardware and ALSA driver are functioning properly. The issue is isolated to WirePlumber's device initialization logic. WORKAROUND ---------- The following steps restore audio functionality until the next reboot: $ rm -rf ~/.local/state/wireplumber $ sudo apt install --reinstall alsa-ucm-conf \ pipewire-audio-client-libraries wireplumber $ systemctl --user restart pipewire pipewire-pulse wireplumber $ reboot After applying this workaround, audio works normally until the next cold boot, where the issue reoccurs. IMPACT ASSESSMENT ----------------- Severity: Important This bug severely degrades the out-of-box experience for Debian 13 users: - New users installing Debian 13 have no audio after installation - Affects basic desktop functionality (notifications, media playback, video calls) - Requires technical knowledge to diagnose and work around - Persists across multiple stable releases (13.0, 13.1, 13.2) - Damages Debian's reputation for stability and reliability The bug has existed for several months (since Debian 13.0 release in 2025) without resolution, affecting an unknown number of users who may have abandoned Debian or reverted to PulseAudio. ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS ------------------- Based on the logs and symptoms, this appears to be a timing/synchronization issue where: 1. WirePlumber enumerates the ALSA device correctly 2. Creates a PipeWire proxy for the device node 3. The proxy is destroyed prematurely (possibly due to timeout or async operation failure) 4. WirePlumber gives up and never retries the activation The issue may be related to: - Incorrect startup ordering between PipeWire and WirePlumber - Missing or incorrect ALSA UCM configuration for Intel HDA - Race condition in WirePlumber's device monitor - Insufficient timeout values for device initialization ADDITIONAL CONTEXT ------------------ Similar issues have been reported in the upstream WirePlumber/PipeWire projects for various hardware configurations, suggesting this is not isolated to Debian's packaging but may require upstream fixes. The workaround (removing WirePlumber state and reinstalling) suggests corrupted or incompatible state files may contribute to the issue. REQUESTED ACTION ---------------- 1. Investigate the device initialization sequence in WirePlumber 2. Consider increasing timeout values for device proxy creation 3. Implement retry logic for failed device activations 4. Test fix across multiple Intel HDA hardware configurations 5. Backport fix to stable updates for Debian 13.x If this requires upstream changes, please coordinate with the PipeWire/WirePlumber projects and expedite the fix given the severity and duration of the issue. Thank you for your attention to this matter. I am available to provide additional debugging information, test patches, or assist with reproduction if needed. Best regards
