HOWTO: Disable Ctrl-Alt-Backspace

[Amaranth]

I'm sure everyone has hit these three buttons before. So annoying! Here is how to disable them:

Open xorg.conf for editing
sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf
Add these 3 lines to the end:Section "Serverflags"
Option "DontZap" "yes"
EndSection
Save the file and close gedit

Now all you have to do is run 'sudo invoke-rc.d gdm restart', hit ctrl-alt-backspace (last time it will work), or log out and ctrl-alt-backscape will be dead! \\:D/

[Keymaster]

Actually I've discovered that ServerFlags is not the right section (at least not on the 2 Ubuntu 8.04 Desktop systems I just installed)

On both my systems putting that in ServerFlags caused X to go into 640x480 and get stuck there. Not sure why, but putting it in ServerLayout worked perfectly. ;) Now my users can't kick each other off when they lock the screen.

BTW: If you want to prevent use switching from a locked screen I'd suggest changing the permissions on /usr/bin/gdmflexiserver to 750. User switching can still occur from unlocked sessions though. ;)

[marcus0263]

I'm sure everyone has hit these three buttons before. So annoying! Here is how to disable them:

Open xorg.conf for editing
sudo gedit /etc/X11/xorg.conf
Add these 3 lines to the end:Section "Serverflags"
Option "DontZap" "yes"
EndSection
Save the file and close gedit

Now all you have to do is run 'sudo invoke-rc.d gdm restart', hit ctrl-alt-backspace (last time it will work), or log out and ctrl-alt-backscape will be dead! \\:D/
Can you please not have this as a default setting?
users "accidently" hitting ctl-alt-backspace is laughable. :rolleyes: This is a "core" function in linux and essential when X locks up your system.

[Npl]

Can you please not have this as a default setting?
users "accidently" hitting ctl-alt-backspace is laughable. :rolleyes: This is a "core" function in linux and essential when X locks up your system.essential as X locks up all the time?
why dont you just hit reset on your PC-Case if X locks up, for users this is pretty much the same as anything running on X will be killed and lost anyway if you hit Ctrl-Alt-Del.

[marcus0263]

essential as X locks up all the time?
why dont you just hit reset on your PC-Case if X locks up, for users this is pretty much the same as anything running on X will be killed and lost anyway if you hit Ctrl-Alt-Del.
Why reboot the system and do a hard reset, therefore increasing chances of file corruption when all you have to do is kill X?

Serously the lame excuse of "accidently hitting ctrl-alt-backspace" is laughable.

[Amaranth]

This is an Xorg upstream default change, not an Ubuntu-specific change. We just agree with their decision so did not override it.

If you want Ctrl-Alt-Backspace to work you are not a regular user (they have no idea what it is anyway) so you should have no problem turning it back on.

Section "Serverflags"
Option "DontZap" "no"
EndSection

[marcus0263]

This is an Xorg upstream default change, not an Ubuntu-specific change. We just agree with their decision so did not override it.

If you want Ctrl-Alt-Backspace to work you are not a regular user (they have no idea what it is anyway) so you should have no problem turning it back on.

Section "Serverflags"
Option "DontZap" "no"
EndSection
Yeah I'll take this upstream, this is idiotic IMO. As to the "regular user", people I've converted over to Linux use this, why? If they've had X lock up on them I've told them just hit ctrl-alt-backspace and log back in. Just because a "newb" doesn't know how to use a feature doesn't mean it's useless let alone remove it. ;)

I've read the upstream thread on this, this change was brought about because "some" Emac's users hit it by mistake. So an extremely small (and shrinking BTW) group is behind this change? :rolleyes::rolleyes:

Anyway, thanks for responding

Cheers

[Amaranth]

No, it has almost nothing at all to do with emacs users. One person mentioned that and everyone kind of jumped on it.

[Bodsda]

I also agree that this is a bad change but whats done is done so instead I offer a quick-fire way of enabling/disabling this, install the package dontzap

sudo apt-get install dontzap

Then to enable ctrl+alt+backspace issue this command

dontzap -d

To disable it, run

dontzap -e

Hope this helps,

Bodsda

[hyperdude111]

I also agree that this is a bad change but whats done is done so instead I offer a quick-fire way of enabling/disabling this, install the package dontzap

sudo apt-get install dontzap

Then to enable ctrl+alt+backspace issue this command

dontzap -d

To disable it, run

dontzap -e

Hope this helps,

Bodsda

Brilliant advice.

This has been disabled as default in jaunty and it is more useful installed. I used it on the occasion x froze and i did not want to manual re-boot. I have never hit those three keys by accident. This is like saying they should remove terminal because you *could* rm your whole system. This link proves the vast majority think the same way http://ubuntu-virginia.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=6645669

[monsterstack]

This command has got me out of more than a few tight spots before.

[lwwalker]

Can you please not have this as a default setting?
users "accidently" hitting ctl-alt-backspace is laughable. :rolleyes: This is a "core" function in linux and essential when X locks up your system.

Well . . . not entirely laughable. I'm an intermediate user, and I've accidentally hit ctl-alt-backspace far more times than X has borked. My laptop's backspace key is a hair's breadth from the PageDn key. I've had a good handful of cuss-fests when aiming for ctl-alt-PageDn (change tab in gedit) and hit ctl-alt-backspace. So, accidental X11 restarts can happen.

[oomingmak]

Well . . . not entirely laughable. I'm an intermediate user, and I've accidentally hit ctl-alt-backspace far more times than X has borked. My laptop's backspace key is a hair's breadth from the PageDn key. I've had a good handful of cuss-fests when aiming for ctl-alt-PageDn (change tab in gedit) and hit ctl-alt-backspace. So, accidental X11 restarts can happen.
So then surely you should disable it on your system, rather than it being forced onto the majority of users who have never had such a problem.

But as was said earlier; "what's done is done".

[thahir1986]

i tried to install the dontzap like u mentioned it

sudo apt-get install dontzap

but it returns ,

Counldn't find package dontzap

[ronnielsen1]

tried to install the dontzap like u mentioned it

sudo apt-get install dontzap

but it returns ,

Counldn't find package dontzap


Actually I wondered why Ubuntu didn't have this enabled by default. It's a very useful feature.

Ubuntu Karmic 9.10 or Higher

Ctrl+Alt+Backspace (i.e. the shortcut which was used to restart the X server) has to be enabled or disabled in a different way with respect to previous releases of Ubuntu.
This is due to the fact that "DontZap (https://wiki.ubuntu.com/DontZap)" is no longer an option in the X server and has become an option in XKB instead.
As a result, now it's very easy to use your Desktop environment of choice (e.g. GNOME, KDE) to enable or to disable the Ctrl+Alt+Backspace shortcut. It is also possible to do it without KDE or GNOME.
It is recommended that you do it from your desktop environment of choice (as you may find it easier to do so).

Using GNOME

* Get to the System->Preferences->Keyboard menu.
* Select the "Layouts" tab and click on the "Layout Options" button.
* Then select "Key sequence to kill the X server" and enable "Control + Alt + Backspace".
If this doesn't work (e.g. the option is unchecked but the key sequence still works), you can edit your /etc/X11/xorg.conf as explained below, #Ubuntu Jaunty 9.04 (https://wiki.ubuntu.com/X/Config/DontZap#Ubuntu+Jaunty+9.04).

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/X/Config/DontZap

[serialband]

Actually I wondered why Ubuntu didn't have this enabled by default. It's a very useful feature.



https://wiki.ubuntu.com/X/Config/DontZap


Where is DontZap? I can't seem to get it for Lucid Lynx. I want CTRL-ALT-Backspace turned on for numerous systems and I don't want to have to go sit down at each gnome or KDE desktop to do it.


apt-get install dontzap
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree
Reading state information... Done
E: Couldn't find package dontzap


setxkbmap -option terminate:ctrl_alt_bksp doesn't work for me. It gives

Error loading new keyboard description
I don't want to have to set this for each an every user. I want it on the system.