in the ubuntu instaler busybox, 
chroot /target (the new system)

mkdir -p /etc/dconf/profile
cd /etc/dconf/profile
echo user > user
echo site >> user
mkdir -p /etc/dconf/db/site.d/
cd /etc/dconf/db/site.d/
wget http://$SHAZ/local.dconf
dconf update

Then was trying to see if the settings took, had some issues, started trying to work around... 

# gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.screensaver idle-activation-enabled        
** ERROR **: Unable to open '/etc/dconf/db/site', specified in dconf profile
Trace/breakpoint trap


# pwd
/etc/dconf/db/site.d
# cd /etc/dconf/db/site
cd: 60: can't cd to /etc/dconf/db/site
# cd /etc/dconf/db/    
# ls
local.d  site.d
# ls -l
total 8
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root 4096 2011-10-18 14:17 local.d
drwxr-xr-x 2 root root 4096 2011-10-18 15:34 site.d
# mkdir site

# gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.screensaver idle-activation-enabled
** ERROR **: Unable to open '/etc/dconf/db/site', specified in dconf profile
Trace/breakpoint trap

# touch /etc/dconf/db/site
# gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.screensaver idle-activation-enabled
** ERROR **: Unable to open '/etc/dconf/db/site', specified in dconf profile
Trace/breakpoint trap

# rmdir site
# ls    
local.d  site.d
# pwd
/etc/dconf/db
# touch site

# gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.screensaver idle-activation-enabled
Segmentation fault


# gdb -args gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.screensaver idle-activation-enabled

GNU gdb (Ubuntu/Linaro 7.3-0ubuntu2) 7.3-2011.08
Copyright (C) 2011 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
License GPLv3+: GNU GPL version 3 or later <http://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html>
This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.
There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.  Type "show copying"
and "show warranty" for details.
This GDB was configured as "x86_64-linux-gnu".
For bug reporting instructions, please see:
<http://bugs.launchpad.net/gdb-linaro/>...

Reading symbols from /usr/bin/gsettings...(no debugging symbols found)...done.
(gdb) run
Starting program: /usr/bin/gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.screensaver idle-activation-enabled
[Thread debugging using libthread_db enabled]

Program received signal SIGSEGV, Segmentation fault.

0x00007ffff581f744 in gvdb_table_is_valid (table=0x6085e0)
    at ../gvdb/gvdb-reader.c:572
572	../gvdb/gvdb-reader.c: No such file or directory.
	in ../gvdb/gvdb-reader.c

(gdb) bt full

+ Trace 228845

(gdb)