module-updater crashes silently on Debian "Jessie"

[dibl]

On a 64-bit 3.9-0 kernel, running Debian Sid, KDE desktop, VMware Player 5.0.2 build 1031769, patched with the vmware9.k3.8rc4.patch builds all the modules perfectly.  On the same hardware (and a couple of others), on a 3.9-1 kernel, the module updater crashes silently after I choose "Install".  When run from a terminal, you see only this, after choosing "Install" on the updater GUI:

don@delle6500:~$ vmplayer

Logging to /tmp/vmware-don/vmware-modconfig-5155.log

don@delle6500:~$

The request for root password did not appear on screen, so the vmware-gksu call apparently failed.

In the user's log file, everything looks normal/successful, except here:

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2013-05-10T13:23:53.038-05:00| vthread-3| I120: Trying to find a suitable PBM set for kernel "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64".       

2013-05-10T13:23:53.038-05:00| vthread-3| I120: No matching PBM set was found for kernel "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64".

2013-05-10T13:23:53.038-05:00| vthread-3| I120: Validating path "/lib/modules/3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64/build/include" for kernel release "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64".

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The user's log file ends here:

2013-05-10T13:23:53.045-05:00| vthread-3| I120: Preprocessed UTS_RELEASE, got value "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64".

2013-05-10T13:23:53.045-05:00| vthread-3| I120: The header path "/lib/modules/3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64/build/include" for the kernel "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64" is valid.  Whoohoo!

2013-05-10T13:23:53.045-05:00| vthread-3| I120: The GCC version matches the kernel GCC minor version like a glove.

2013-05-10T13:23:56.033-05:00| vthread-3| I120: Validating path "/lib/modules/3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64/build/include" for kernel release "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64".

2013-05-10T13:23:56.041-05:00| vthread-3| I120: Preprocessed UTS_RELEASE, got value "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64".

2013-05-10T13:23:56.041-05:00| vthread-3| I120: The header path "/lib/modules/3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64/build/include" for the kernel "3.9-1.towo-siduction-amd64" is valid.  Whoohoo!

2013-05-10T13:23:56.041-05:00| vthread-3| I120: The GCC version matches the kernel GCC minor version like a glove.

2013-05-10T13:23:56.041-05:00| vthread-3| I120: Relaunching with /usr/bin/vmware-gksu '/usr/bin/vmware-modconfig' --icon='vmware-player' --appname='VMware'

don@delle6500:/tmp/vmware-don$

I checked the three root logs and found nothing unusual.  The linux-header files for the kernel are installed, and were found by the module updater as indicated above -- so why the "no PBM set" error?  Based on previous forum comments regarding the ".h" files in the header package under /include/linux, I did a side-by-side comparison of the 3.9-0 files to the 3.9-1 files, and they look the same when viewed with dolphin.

I'm outta gas on this -- hopefully someone else can confirm the problem, or offer a theory, and thanks in advance.

[dibl]

Learning experience here -- the problem is NOT the new kernel. With a "workaround", the modules will compile for 3.9.1.  I had forgotten that a couple of things changed earlier in the week:

(1) new kernel released, and

(2) major sid upgrades after Wheezy release.

Observing that the problem occurs prior to, or in conjunction with calling /usr/bin/vmware-gksu, resulting in no gksu request for the root password, I tried running the module-updater directly, as root, and the modules built with no problem.

I don't think the problem is in KDE -- I used my E-17 desktop to do this workaround.  There is something in the Debian sid aka "Jessie" upgrades that is interfering with the gksu call -- that's the end of my ability to find the root cause.

Workaround:

Open a root terminal and issue

/usr/bin/vmware-modconfig --icon=vmware-player --appname=VMware

EDIT 11 MAY: On one system, the workaround did not run successfully in a root terminal. It was necessary to go to the tty console, as root, cd to the /usr/bin directory, and issue:

      Code:

vmware-modconfig --console --install-all --icon=vmware-player --appname=VMware

I am changing the thread title to better reflect the nature of the problem.