Ubuntu 17.10执行poweroff被阻止：原因、修复必要性咨询

Hey, this is a super common quirk when jumping from Ubuntu 16.04 to 17.10—let’s break down exactly what’s happening, whether you can fix it, and if you even should.

The Root Cause #

Ubuntu 17.10 ramped up its use of systemd inhibitor locks, a safety feature that prevents accidental shutdowns or restarts while critical processes are running. When you’re logged into a graphical session (like the default GNOME desktop), your desktop’s session manager (think gnome-session) holds an inhibitor lock that blocks direct poweroff calls from your regular user terminal.

The "inhibited by myself" message just means the lock is tied to your own user session—not some random background process. Back in 16.04, this check was way more relaxed, so you never saw the warning. The goal here is to stop you from accidentally nuking unsaved work by typing poweroff on a whim while you’re actively using the desktop.

Can You Fix This? #

Absolutely—you’ve got a few options depending on how much control you want:

• Quick workaround (most popular): Use sudo systemctl poweroff instead of plain poweroff. Root privileges bypass the inhibitor lock entirely, so this will shut down the system immediately without the warning.
• Tweak the system-wide settings: Edit /etc/systemd/logind.conf to adjust how inhibitor locks work. Look for the line starting with #InhibitDelayMaxPoweroff, uncomment it, and set a value (like 0 to disable the delay/lock entirely). Just keep in mind this affects all users and removes that safety net against accidental shutdowns.
• Release the lock manually: Run systemd-inhibit --list to see all active locks, find the one linked to your desktop session, then use systemd-inhibit --remove <lock-ID> to release it. This is temporary though—the lock will come back when you log out and back in.

Is Fixing It Necessary? #

For most users? Probably not. The inhibitor lock is a useful safety feature—it’s there to save you from losing hours of unsaved work if you fat-finger poweroff while working. The sudo systemctl poweroff workaround is simple, safe, and doesn’t disable the protection for when you might need it.

If you’re dead set on keeping your old poweroff habit, you can even add an alias to your shell config (like ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc):

alias poweroff='sudo systemctl poweroff'

This lets you type poweroff like before, but it quietly runs the privileged command under the hood.

内容的提问来源于stack exchange，提问作者Aaron Franke