15

While logged in as a sudo user, click the right top power icon, then select and click Shutdown menu, it comes up with a dialog asking if I want to close all programs. The dialog has two options: restart or shutdown. Choose either one logs me out. Syslog has the following line about restart:

WARNING: Unable to restart system: Authorization is required

This happened after I installed NTP and some OpenStack packages while working in a prototype project. My Ubuntu's software is up to date as of this writing.

Anyone encountered the same problem in 12.04?

4
  • 1
    What is logged in as sudo user? Apr 15, 2012 at 15:53
  • "While logged in as a sudo user" I mean the default user created by Ubuntu installation. This user can run commands like "sudo ....".
    – jenls
    Apr 15, 2012 at 16:17
  • 1
    Same problem here under 12.04 (Lenovo thinkpad x121e). Can only use command line to restart/shut down the computer. Side effect is that my wife considers me a geek now as I shut down my laptop like this.
    – HongboZhu
    Apr 18, 2012 at 11:58
  • very bad bug, exists from 10.10 until now
    – pylover
    Nov 18, 2013 at 2:57

7 Answers 7

8

Sadly this is a known bug in (probably) consolekit LP #838792

The workaround for the time is

sudo reboot

sudo shutdown now -P
3

This should solve your problem: https://www.grendelman.net/wp/policykit-adventures/

1

Following these websites information: http://www.freedesktop.org/software/polkit/docs/0.105/pklocalauthority.8.html and https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/policykit/+bug/1033305

Seems to have resolved our problems with the lightdm shutdown button not working for all users on Ubuntu 12.04.3 LTS (GNU/Linux 3.11.6-031106-generic x86_64)

vim /var/lib/polkit-1/localauthority/20-org.d/usershutdown.pkla

Then add the following lines to the file.

[Allow Shutdown]<br>
Identity=unix-user:\*;unix-group:*<br>
Action=org.freedesktop.consolekit.system.stop-multiple-users<br>
ResultAny=yes<br>
ResultInactive=yes<br>
ResultActive=yes<br>

[Allow Restart]<br>
Identity=unix-user:\*;unix-group:*<br>
Action=org.freedesktop.consolekit.system.restart-multiple-users<br>
ResultAny=yes<br>
ResultInactive=yes<br>
ResultActive=yes<br>

Then enter service lightdm restart and/or a reboot of the machine is needed. Tried before logging into the machine and then again after someone logged in.

0

My workaround for this annoying little bug is this, I create a launcher with the following:

To Shutdown:
sudo shutdown -h

To Restart:
sudo shutdown -r

You will then be asked your super user password. I put this launcher on the desktop and use that until the bug is sorted out.

1
  • 1
    its not a little bug, its a big bug
    – pylover
    Nov 18, 2013 at 2:57
0

Maybe the problem is caused by the HSQLDB Server. I just filled a bug about it:

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/hsqldb/+bug/1153856

Workaround:

sudo apt-get remove hsqldb-server
0

I had the same troubles - the guilty one was kalarm. After I disabled it, shutdown started to work properly again.

1
  • How do you disable this?
    – Tim
    Aug 19, 2014 at 21:27
0

A GUI resolution is to install Cairo-dock from the repository and click on the Shutdown button on that menu to shutdown or restart.

While using the terminal commands work. For some people, having to go to a terminal screen is at least, overly complicated, and also a lot of work.

I've been using this Gui workaround for the past 6 Ubuntu version releases.

This can be installed from the software center or cli:

$ sudo apt-get install cairo-dock

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