Sober crashes on startup due to corrupted config JSON

[BugsTheWascally]

Acknowledgement of checking existent issues

• I have checked if my issue has already been reported, and I am certain that my problem has not already been addressed.
• I have attached full logs, screenshots, and other relevant info, and understand that if I haven't, my issue will be closed and ignored.
• I agree that I just mindlessly checked every box without actually reading anything.

What problem did you encounter?

Hi team, I ran into a problem with Sober after updating it via Flatpak. The app launched fine once right after the update, but the next time I tried to open it, it immediately crashed. The error said it failed to parse the config JSON.

I checked the config file at ~/.var/app/org.vinegarhq.Sober/config/sober/config.json and it was completely corrupted, full of unreadable binary data instead of valid JSON.

What I did to fix it:

1. deleted the corrupted config file

2. Ran flatpak repair

Relaunched Sober and it recreated a fresh config, which worked fine

It seems like something went wrong when Sober tried to write the config after the update. Just wanted to report it in case this happens to others.

Environment:

Sober version: 1.6.5 (Flatpak stable)

Flatpak version: 1.14.6

OS: Linux Mint 22.2 Zara (base Ubuntu 24.04)

Device: Lenovo ThinkPad E14 (20RBS5P300)

CPU: Intel Core i3-10110U (dual core, 4 threads, 400 MHz – 4.1 GHz)

GPU: Intel UHD Graphics (CometLake-U GT2, i915 driver)

RAM: 8 GiB

Kernel: 6.14.0-36-generic

Desktop: Cinnamon 6.4.8

Here is the bad config:

SyntaxError: JSON.parse: unexpected character at line 1 column 1 of the JSON data

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here is the new config.

SyntaxError: JSON.parse: unexpected character at line 1 column 1 of the JSON data

// !!! STOP !!!
// This file is not meant to be edited by hand unless you know what you're doing. You are encouraged to use the settings menu instead (Right click Sober in your apps menu, then hit "Settings")
// You can prevent Sober from launching by improperly formatting this file's JSON, or possibly mess up the Roblox engine by toggling certain flags intended for Roblox engineers.
// If you got Fastflags from an FFlag guide, Reddit post, AI model, or a YouTuber, you shouldn't be here, and the FFlags provided are likely made up. We will not provide support for any bugs caused by Fastflag usage.
// Incase you mess up, you can reset this file by deleting it. It will be recreated the next time you launch Sober.
// -------------------------------------------
// Documentation is available at https://vinegarhq.org/Sober/Configuration/index.html - We encourage you to read it before toggling anything.
{
"allow_gamepad_permission": false,
"close_on_leave": false,
"discord_rpc_enabled": false,
"discord_rpc_show_join_button": false,
"enable_gamemode": false,
"enable_hidpi": true,
"fflags": {
"FFlagExample": true
},
"graphics_optimization_mode": "balanced",
"server_location_indicator_enabled": false,
"touch_mode": "off",
"use_console_experience": false,
"use_libsecret": false,
"use_opengl": true
}

hope this is enough information.

if you want to know what browser I use it's "Zen Browser"

[existentials]

Thanks for the extensive bug report. I think Sober may have exited unexpectedly while writing the config file, or a memory safety issue caused garbage data to be written. Improved handling of these rare edge cases is planned.

[github-actions]

This issue has been automatically closed due to inactivity. If this issue still applies to you, please comment.