If the VPN tab in Gnome Network Manager is greyed out or disabled, it could be due to a few different reasons:
- Gnome Network Manager VPN plugins are not installed: Gnome Network Manager requires specific VPN plugins to be installed in order to support different VPN protocols. If the VPN tab is greyed out, it’s possible that the required plugins are not installed on your system. You can install the plugins by running the following command:
sudo apt-get install network-manager-openvpn network-manager-pptp network-manager-vpnc
- Gnome Network Manager is not running: Gnome Network Manager must be running in order for the VPN tab to be available. If Gnome Network Manager is not running, you can start it by running the following command:
sudo service network-manager start
- PolicyKit permissions: Gnome Network Manager requires certain PolicyKit permissions in order to create and manage VPN connections. If the VPN tab is greyed out, it’s possible that the required permissions are not configured correctly. You can check the PolicyKit configuration by running the following command:
pkaction --action-id org.freedesktop.network-manager-settings.system.modify
If the output of the above command is “no”, then the required PolicyKit permissions are not set. You can set the permissions by running the following command:
pkaction --action-id org.freedesktop.network-manager-settings.system.modify --set-active yes
These are some of the most common reasons why the VPN tab in Gnome Network Manager may be greyed out or disabled. If these steps do not resolve the issue, you may need to consult the documentation or forums for your specific distribution for further guidance.