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Rich Shepard | 4 Mar 2012 01:09
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Allowing User to Shut Down System

   Same Sony Vaio laptop running -13.37/x86_64 and Xfce4.

   I've somehow managed to set the system so that a user cannot shut down the
system. Selecting the Xfce4 'Quit' button brings up an icon box with
choices; selecting 'Logout' brings up a box asking for the user's passwword,
then responds by saying that either the password is bad (which it's not) or
users are not allowed to shut down the system. Haven't seen this behavior
before with Slackware on any of the boxes here.

   How do I fix this?

Rich
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Bradley D. Thornton | 4 Mar 2012 01:19
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Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System


On 03/03/2012 04:09 PM, Rich Shepard wrote:

>   I've somehow managed to set the system so that a user cannot shut down
> the
> system. Selecting the Xfce4 'Quit' button brings up an icon box with
> choices; selecting 'Logout' brings up a box asking for the user's
> passwword,
> then responds by saying that either the password is bad (which it's not) or
> users are not allowed to shut down the system. Haven't seen this behavior
> before with Slackware on any of the boxes here.
> 
>   How do I fix this?

What were the last [few/several] changes you made to the system before
you noticed this behaviour?

Typically, I don't boot to run-level 4, choosing instead to boot into
run-level 3 and then invoking 'startx' once the user logs in at a console.

running 'xwmconfig' as a non-privileged user sets the default for that
user (i.e., KDE, Xfce, etc..), while running it as the root sets the
default for all new users on the system.

I see no reason to boot into X, taking up all those resources, when one
can merely log in at the console and invoke X. In the meantime, in the
machine's role as a server while no one is logged in, you're using up
considerably less resources of the machine.

Kindest regards,
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Rich Shepard | 4 Mar 2012 16:06
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Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System

On Sat, 3 Mar 2012, Bradley D. Thornton wrote:

> I see no reason to boot into X, taking up all those resources, when one
> can merely log in at the console and invoke X. In the meantime, in the
> machine's role as a server while no one is logged in, you're using up
> considerably less resources of the machine.

   This is a laptop used by a comparatively computer-naive user. It's not a
server. And the user is not a linux geek although her portables have run
only linux the past dozen years. It makes life easier for her to have Xfce4
come up upon login, but the immediate issue is why, after creating .xinitrc
for her account, she can no longer shut down the system when she's finished.

   Have not before seen this behavior with Xfce, and I've used that since
1997.

Rich
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Srdjan Todorovic | 4 Mar 2012 16:17

Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System

On 4 March 2012 15:06, Rich Shepard <rshepard <at> appl-ecosys.com> wrote:

> come up upon login, but the immediate issue is why, after creating .xinitrc
> for her account, she can no longer shut down the system when she's finished.
>
>  Have not before seen this behavior with Xfce, and I've used that since
> 1997.

I thought .xinitrc is something that only ancient systems needed :-P
I think I've only ever seen this file on machines running twm nearly
10 years ago.

In any case, I'd review what's in .xinitrc and see how much of it is necessary.
You could move that file somewhere else and see if xfce4 still has trouble.

Regards,
Srdjan

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John Crowhurst | 4 Mar 2012 16:23
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Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System

On 04/03/2012 15:17, Srdjan Todorovic wrote:
> On 4 March 2012 15:06, Rich Shepard<rshepard <at> appl-ecosys.com>  wrote:
>
>> come up upon login, but the immediate issue is why, after creating .xinitrc
>> for her account, she can no longer shut down the system when she's finished.
>>
>>   Have not before seen this behavior with Xfce, and I've used that since
>> 1997.
> I thought .xinitrc is something that only ancient systems needed :-P
> I think I've only ever seen this file on machines running twm nearly
> 10 years ago.
>
> In any case, I'd review what's in .xinitrc and see how much of it is necessary.
> You could move that file somewhere else and see if xfce4 still has trouble.
.xinitrc tells X what display manager you are using (KDE, xfce4, etc) 
and overrides the default.

Run visudo and add:
%users ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/libexec/xfsm-shutdown-helper

That may be the solution you are looking for.

Best,

John
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Srdjan Todorovic | 4 Mar 2012 16:34

Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System

On 4 March 2012 15:23, John Crowhurst <info <at> johnscomputersupport.co.uk> wrote:
> On 04/03/2012 15:17, Srdjan Todorovic wrote:

>> I thought .xinitrc is something that only ancient systems needed :-P
>> I think I've only ever seen this file on machines running twm nearly
>> 10 years ago.
>
> .xinitrc tells X what display manager you are using (KDE, xfce4, etc) and
> overrides the default.

Isn't that selected by the graphical login manager?

Regards,
Srdjan
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Rich Shepard | 4 Mar 2012 18:22
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Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System [RESOLVED]

On Sun, 4 Mar 2012, John Crowhurst wrote:

> Run visudo and add:

John,

   I use vi only under duress. :-) For SysAdmin tasks I use 'joe' since it
has the same key bindings as emacs and the ol' WordStar that I used in the
late 1970s - early 1980s. And I use emacs for all serious text editing.

> %users ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/libexec/xfsm-shutdown-helper

   Yep. It brings back a vague memory from the last time her portable ran
Slackware that I had to add a line to /etc/sudoers, too.

Thanks,

Rich
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Morten Juhl-Johansen Zölde-Fejér | 5 Mar 2012 05:14
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Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System

On Sun, 04 Mar 2012 15:23:52 +0000
John Crowhurst <info <at> johnscomputersupport.co.uk> wrote:

> On 04/03/2012 15:17, Srdjan Todorovic wrote:
> > On 4 March 2012 15:06, Rich Shepard<rshepard <at> appl-ecosys.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> come up upon login, but the immediate issue is why, after
> >> creating .xinitrc for her account, she can no longer shut down the
> >> system when she's finished.
> >>
> >>   Have not before seen this behavior with Xfce, and I've used that
> >> since 1997.
> > I thought .xinitrc is something that only ancient systems needed :-P
> > I think I've only ever seen this file on machines running twm nearly
> > 10 years ago.
> >
> > In any case, I'd review what's in .xinitrc and see how much of it
> > is necessary. You could move that file somewhere else and see if
> > xfce4 still has trouble.
> .xinitrc tells X what display manager you are using (KDE, xfce4, etc) 
> and overrides the default.
> 
> Run visudo and add:
> %users ALL=(root) NOPASSWD: /usr/libexec/xfsm-shutdown-helper
> 
> That may be the solution you are looking for.

It used to be, at least. The last couple of times I have not needed to
put it in when I have had Slim log me in.
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Rich Shepard | 4 Mar 2012 16:32
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Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System

On Sun, 4 Mar 2012, Srdjan Todorovic wrote:

> In any case, I'd review what's in .xinitrc and see how much of it is
> necessary. You could move that file somewhere else and see if xfce4 still
> has trouble.

Srdjan,

   When that file did not exist in the user's ~/, X would not load. I saw the
error that the fbdev module was not found. Copying .xinitrc from /root to
her ~/ solved that.

   When I get back to work on her Sony later today I'll copy .xinitrc to a
flash drive, and attach it to another response. You more knowledgeable folks
may be able to suggest what to eliminate in there.

Thanks again,

Rich
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Srdjan Todorovic | 4 Mar 2012 02:16

Re: Allowing User to Shut Down System

On 4 March 2012 00:09, Rich Shepard <rshepard <at> appl-ecosys.com> wrote:
>  I've somehow managed to set the system so that a user cannot shut down the
> system. Selecting the Xfce4 'Quit' button brings up an icon box with
> choices; selecting 'Logout' brings up a box asking for the user's passwword,
> then responds by saying that either the password is bad (which it's not) or
> users are not allowed to shut down the system. Haven't seen this behavior

Is this behaviour specific to xfce, the login manager or some other
"system" problem?
You could try a different windowmanger / desktop environment to see if
that has the same problem (fluxbox is light but I think will only let
you exit to the login manager; KDE will let you shutdown).

If you quit xfce to the login manager, does {xdm, gdm, kdm} let you shutdown?

I dont know if this is relevant, but might be worth just double-checking:

http://forum.xfce.org/viewtopic.php?pid=21331

https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=31898

Regards,
Srdjan

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