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Questions tagged [switch-user]

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136 votes
6 answers
227k views

What is the purpose of the 'nobody' user?

After I read List all human users I noticed that there is a user account named 'nobody' in my Ubuntu system. Also I noticed that I can login in this account from terminal using the following command ...
Radu Rădeanu's user avatar
31 votes
3 answers
109k views

Cannot login to newly created user account

Trying to switch accounts to my newly created account I get a black screen and then it takes me back to the main login screen after entering the correct password. Upon logging into my previously ...
penner's user avatar
  • 581
25 votes
0 answers
24k views

Ubuntu 18.04 stuck at purple screen after login [closed]

Sometimes, when logging in after rebooting or when switching between users, after typing the password and confirming, I get stuck at a purple screen. Sometimes I can escape it with ctrl+alt+F3 ...
Qerubin's user avatar
  • 616
16 votes
2 answers
5k views

Can I switch between two users in a single click?

I share my home computer with my wife, and we often switch between our two accounts. I'm considering using Ubuntu on my next computer, and I'm evaluation different desktop environments (E.g. Gnome, ...
Kobi's user avatar
  • 315
15 votes
2 answers
10k views

How can I invoke a user switch from the command line?

In 11.10 I used 'gdmflexiserver -xnest' to switch users without logging out however I think gdm has now been completely removed. I'm trying to bind a keyboard shortcut to do the equivalent of 'Me ...
edm's user avatar
  • 4,015
11 votes
5 answers
5k views

Why does switching users completely hang my system every time?

I have a fresh install of 11.04 64bit, with 2 administrator accounts and 4 normal accounts. The 4 normal accounts (the kids' accounts) don't have passwords, they can login simply by clicking on their ...
Stéphane's user avatar
  • 2,536
10 votes
1 answer
5k views

Unable to switch users at lock screen. Unity, Ubuntu 18.04

If I am logged in as a user or at the lock screen, I am unable to switch accounts to another user. When I click on the symbol in the top right and click on the name of another user to switch to, ...
Jeff's user avatar
  • 151
10 votes
1 answer
3k views

Switching between two opened X sessions without reauthenticating

Need: quick switch between pairs of users. On a system there is a pair of user accounts that are somehow equivalent. More concretely, for a given pair: Both account are regular Unix accounts, they ...
Stéphane Gourichon's user avatar
8 votes
1 answer
3k views

Screen turning black after switching users

I've create three users on my computer (admin + standard users), and whenever I switch between users, my screen is turned off. I have Ubuntu 16.10, and I switch users using the account menu on the ...
Kobi's user avatar
  • 315
7 votes
3 answers
3k views

No more 'switch user' from sddm

I've searched extensively and there are many mentions of this problem but it seems only a few disparate users have had it over the last few months. But the 3 Kubuntu systems I upgraded to 20.10 all ...
dargaud's user avatar
  • 948
5 votes
4 answers
14k views

How do I switch users?

How does one switch users in Unity? (i.e., in the GUI, not sudo.) I really want to launch another X session using a different WM, without abandoning the current one.
Thanatos's user avatar
  • 262
5 votes
1 answer
731 views

Ubuntu 18.04 does not switch between users after upgrade

I have upgraded Ubuntu 16.04 to Ubuntu 18.04. I do not intend to make a further upgrade to Ubuntu 20.xx for the moment. All looks to have gone well except the switching of users from within the ...
XavierStuvw's user avatar
  • 1,451
4 votes
1 answer
3k views

How can I enable user switching in Xubuntu?

I've just installed Xubuntu 14.04 in my desktop PC but I just cannot get user switching working. It's funny because in the session menu on top right it does appear but in gray and unclickable just ...
user277342's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
395 views

User switching broken in 14.04

I just upgraded to 14.04. I have an nVidia graphics card and am using the nVidia driver (proprietary, tested). I am using gdm as I don't light the look of lightdm (also, I have two monitors and it ...
user234017's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
605 views

How to prevent "Switch User Account" in Ubuntu 12.04 from logging me out?

The title of the feature, "Switch User Account", suggests that the current user's information is safe and can be restored. However, when I log back in to my account after a "Switch User Account", my ...
wsaleem's user avatar
  • 333
3 votes
2 answers
3k views

Problem changing users in Ubuntu 13.10

I got problem with changing users. I got two user accounts, one root and one normal user. When normal user login and after a while lock screen appears or you try to change user and you press change ...
Lauri's user avatar
  • 49
3 votes
1 answer
2k views

How to set keyboard shortcut for "switch user" in Xubuntu?

I am trying to create a keyboard shortcut in Xubuntu (13.04), but I have no idea what to put for the command. What is the command for invoking switch user?
Ryan Farley's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
663 views

Cannot login second user after "switch user", but can if using Ctrl+Alt+F1

For at least a year or so I have had problems with the "switch user" function on Ubuntu. If I log in (whether as "user1" or "user2") and click "switch user" I ...
Stian Øby Johansen's user avatar
3 votes
0 answers
123 views

Unable to switch user since 21.10 upgrade

Since upgrading to Ubuntu 21.10 I'm not able to switch users. I can log in as either user fine to begin with, but if I select switch user once logged in I get the user login screen as normal, then ...
Ludo's user avatar
  • 313
3 votes
1 answer
953 views

18.04 Switch users stops working after a while

After a reboot, I am generally able to switch users, and this works for a while. However, after some time the switch user option returns me to the password dialogue for the current user, and clicking ...
crafter's user avatar
  • 649
3 votes
0 answers
1k views

switch user leads to black screen

I'm on the latest 14.04 with nvidia-331 drivers installed. Everything runs smoothly just when I try to switch user I get a black screen. Suspend and logout works with no problems. Somehow I managed ...
smrt28's user avatar
  • 294
3 votes
1 answer
1k views

Unable to switch users in Ubuntu 12.04

Whenever I try to switch users in Ubuntu 12.04 it goes to a black screen with a cursor and hangs. If I do the ctrl-alt-F6 (or any F1-6 button for that matter) it will switch to a command prompt and ...
theFisher86's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
584 views

Ubuntu 13.04 users switching without password [duplicate]

My wife and I share the same PC, we only use two different users for easier switching between each other's task without interrupting anything. We're not concerned about privacy nor security. Whatever ...
TuxSax's user avatar
  • 193
2 votes
1 answer
187 views

Should switching users switch TTY as well?

In trying to troubleshoot user switching hangs and irregularity's I noticed if I log in as user A then switch to user B, and then press, (TTY7) will take me directly back to the unlock prompt for ...
dginsd's user avatar
  • 601
2 votes
1 answer
982 views

GNOME (GDM) equivalent to LightDM's "dm-tool"

In my old Ubuntu 16.04 installation, I had the command dm-tool switch-to-user <spouseusername> mapped to F1 so that my wife could easily jump onto her account on the family computer. Now ...
Torben Gundtofte-Bruun's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
1k views

Screen goes black when trying to switch users on Ubuntu 13.10 [closed]

I just installed Ubuntu 13.10 on my Dell XPS L502X laptop last night. I set it up as a dual boot with Windows 8.1. I was testing the GUI to make sure all features work. Examples: Software Updater ...
danich23's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
2k views

Multiple User Account bit-torrent client

So I recently setup Ubuntu 12.04, and currently looking for a bit-torrent client where I can create multiple user accounts. The plan is to have more than 1 user accounts, and each user can monitor ...
Jeremy's user avatar
  • 121
2 votes
0 answers
94 views

Unable to switch user after upgrade to 24.04

I just upgraded from 23.10 to 24.04, after the upgrade dialog popped up. Since the upgrade, I'm unable to switch users. At the login screen (lightdm), I can select any user, but once a session for the ...
Alexander Klauer's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
111 views

18.10 Switch User Closes Running Applications

I couldn't find a thread properly addresses the issue that I am seeing, so I am asking here. Ubuntu Gnome 18.10 fresh install less than 24 hours ago. Updated the system. Installed various ...
Timm Zahn's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
998 views

Cannot enter password in lock screen dialog after long suspend

I am currently using Ubuntu 13.10 and recently I've noticed that after my ASUS K56CB laptop goes into suspend mode, and is left like that for a long time (about an hour or more), the password input ...
XonXor's user avatar
  • 21
2 votes
0 answers
452 views

Ubuntu 12.04 black-screen and totally freezes switch user [closed]

How to troubleshoot this issue is my question. I don't know how to go about this. I set up an account for my wife to use the computer for her homework. I log in automatically. She logs in and ...
AdamOutler's user avatar
1 vote
4 answers
4k views

How to disable password prompt for switching users in graphical session?

In 14.04, how can I switch between users on the console without entering a password? This has been asked by others many times over the years (such as here), and it seems it always gets redirected to ...
laubster's user avatar
  • 101
1 vote
2 answers
1k views

Unable to switch users in 13.10

Since I upgraded to ubuntu 13.10 (from 13.04), it's not always possible to switch users: a black screen and an arrow are displayed when an attempt is made to switch from a logged-in account to another ...
epsicot's user avatar
  • 225
1 vote
2 answers
173 views

Missing mouse after switching account

I have an old Acer Aspire 6920G with Ubuntu 14.04 and lightdm installed keeping the existing /home partition and two working users. When I switch from a user to the other I miss the mouse on the ...
Alienhunter3010's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
312 views

First user logs in using X11, switch user logs in using Wayland

I would like to use X11 for all user logins on my Ubuntu 22.04 setup so I uncommented WaylandEnable=false in /etc/gdm3/custom.conf. After a reboot, the first user logs in and echo $XDG_SESSION_TYPE is ...
zakak's user avatar
  • 11
1 vote
0 answers
147 views

Ubuntu 19.04 lacks Switch User option in Non-Admin account

The introductory procedure is: Click on down pointer in the upper right hand corner Click on user-id For a Standard Account the options are: Log Out Account Settings The Switch User option is ...
Rod Horning's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

19.04 Switch user option is gone

As a logged in user I no longer have the option in the righthand menu to switch users. Why was this removed? Is there anyway to get it back?
Arnold Rimmer's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
143 views

Switching terminals with `Ctrl`+ `Alt`+`Fn` does not require password

Users on my computer have all password requesting options enabled, i.e. password is required on waking from suspend, and on returning from blank screen. The screen turns off after few minutes of ...
user244413's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
594 views

Running a bash script on "Switch User"?

I've had my first dabble with bash and got a working script going for each user on session start which checks if a NAS share is mounted and if it is unmounts it and mounts as the current user. This ...
Tom Rhodes's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
2k views

Removal of the Lock/Switch Account menu in gnome desktop Ubuntu 14.04 LTS [duplicate]

We are looking for a way to remove the list of previously logged on users from the shutdown menu in Ubuntu 14.04 LTS running Gnome Classic Desktop. We have lots of computers in a lab environment where ...
jnlickey's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
199 views

New install and I can't get Ubuntu to work

First of all what happened > I made an Ubuntu live USB to install Ubuntu Raring Ringtail. After Ubuntu said that "it has installed successfully and you need to restart your computer" (Why it doesn't ...
rainlover's user avatar
  • 576
1 vote
1 answer
647 views

How to fix Ubuntu 12.04 display artefacts/freezes after switching users?

Some time ago I noticed a strange behaviour on my computer running Ubuntu 12.04. Here's a detailed description of the problem: I log into my account, work for some time, and then somebody else wants ...
ch.bailey's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
321 views

Run script after switching user account "to the same account"

In Ubuntu, when I click on Switch User Account... and then choose the same account to log in (for example if my name is John Smith, I click on switch user account and then log into the John Smith ...
Peter Sivák's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
800 views

How to remove 'system settings' from title bar of Ubuntu 12.04 LTS

I want to remove System settings, Displays, software up to Date from the unity bar (title bar) of the new Ubuntu 12.04 LTS.
Yash's user avatar
  • 31
0 votes
2 answers
6k views

How to switch user in gnome shell?

I am using gnome-shell on Ubuntu 12.04. On the guest account, I have this handy option switch user, but when I am logged into my own account it is not there for some reason. Why isn't it there ...
wim's user avatar
  • 12.8k
0 votes
1 answer
74 views

Can I substitute Win 10 with Ubuntu desktop, without losing my data?

I'm thinking about switching from Win 10 to Ubuntu desktop. The primary concern is the safety of my data, of course. Can I simply substitute Win 10 with Ubuntu, erase everything in the C drive, and ...
Paw in Data's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
372 views

access to guest for internal drive partitions

In ubuntu guest user can access internal drive partitions only after entering the password of admin but after that guest have access to all drives. Is their is any way to set system in such a way ...
Maninderpal Singh's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
551 views

Switch User, Logout, Lock Screen--All Broken

At various times, which I can't pin down exactly, my 12.10 with Unity fails to lock the screen after timeout, fails to log me out when I click Log Out, fails to switch users when I command it, fails ...
swalker2001's user avatar
0 votes
0 answers
35 views

How to stop sound when I switch user

When I switch users on my ubuntu 20.04 LTS laptop I get a very loud sound. It sounds like a very quick trio of medium-pitched bells. It's loud enough to wake my spouse up in the next room, and is ...
KenFar's user avatar
  • 101
0 votes
1 answer
492 views

Switching between users in XFCE / LightDM without locking session

When I was using KDE with KDM it was very simple to switch users. After I logged in multiple sessions I could easily switch by pressing ctrl+alt+f7 and ctrl+alt+f8 and so on. It was seamless because: ...
ghostshell's user avatar