Fun with Ubuntu: Resetting the GNOME Panels in Ubuntu 11.04

Recently we post a video on how to install AWN in the  Ubuntu Classic Desktop using Ubuntu 11.04 'Natty Narwhal'.  In this video, we also covered how to reset the GNOME Panels back to default should you decide you didn't like AWN after installation (if you had deleted one of them).  This post is for the fed up Ubuntu user who just needs to bring back default GNOME and doesn't have the time to go through a whole video.


It's actually a funny story how I learned to do this.  Several years ago when I was new to Linux, Ubuntu was the first distribution I really tried to get into.  And I accidentally deleted one of the GNOME Panels when trying to customize it's look and feel (as a friend suggested I try to do).  So, I immediately rebooted the computer and reinstalled that version of Ubuntu to get my panels back.  Only afterwards did I learn I could have save myself some time and trouble by resetting GNOME (of course I was using my only computer at the time to try Ubuntu so I had no other way to look up how to reset GNOME).  So maybe this will help someone.


So, let's say you accidentally delete one of the GNOME Panels?  How do you get it back?  Easy, you simply launch the Terminal (Click Applications, drop to the 'Accessories' menu and click on Terminal).


Once terminal launches we need to type in three commands to resurrect our missing GNOME Panel.












Those commands are (hit the Enter key after each line) :
gconftool-2 --recursive-unset /apps/panel
rm -rf ~/.gconf/apps/panel
pkill gnome-panel


Now simply log off of your computer (by clicking the Power button in the top right corner of the screen). And log back into Ubuntu.  Now your panel's are back to their default settings and positions.


Great!  But sometimes you may be in a position where you can't get into the menu.  What is another way to launch the Terminal?


Simply press: Ctrl + Alt + T to launch the Terminal with the default Ubuntu shortcut.