Some may wonder why gvfs is included in Whonix xfce. The reason is that Thunar file manager, which comes with xfce, recommends using gvfs and it serves two essential purposes:
- GUI trashcan icon.
- Automounting for USB drives, hard disks, and other devices, displayed in the Thunar GUI.
Therefore, I believe this is the only essential Gnome component (I’m not aware of any alternatives) that is necessary to have in combined with xfce.