Configure linux laptop to switch off screen but otherwise remain running when lid closed












3















Hi i'm trying to set up an old laptop as a 'server' for testing purposes.



As such, I don't want the screen on all day, however i do want the cpu running 24x7.



Can the 'lid close' switch be configured somehow to simply turn off the screen but otherwise the laptop is running as normal?



FYI: I'm running coreos, but i'm willing to switch to another docker container OS if it makes life easier.










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migrated from serverfault.com Dec 8 '15 at 1:24


This question came from our site for system and network administrators.



















  • I looked in freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/logind.conf.html and it doesn't appear that there's the option that I want in the HandleLidSwitch possibilities.

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:33











  • Might be something possible by running scripts on lid switch events: ubuntuforums.org/…

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:37
















3















Hi i'm trying to set up an old laptop as a 'server' for testing purposes.



As such, I don't want the screen on all day, however i do want the cpu running 24x7.



Can the 'lid close' switch be configured somehow to simply turn off the screen but otherwise the laptop is running as normal?



FYI: I'm running coreos, but i'm willing to switch to another docker container OS if it makes life easier.










share|improve this question













migrated from serverfault.com Dec 8 '15 at 1:24


This question came from our site for system and network administrators.



















  • I looked in freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/logind.conf.html and it doesn't appear that there's the option that I want in the HandleLidSwitch possibilities.

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:33











  • Might be something possible by running scripts on lid switch events: ubuntuforums.org/…

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:37














3












3








3








Hi i'm trying to set up an old laptop as a 'server' for testing purposes.



As such, I don't want the screen on all day, however i do want the cpu running 24x7.



Can the 'lid close' switch be configured somehow to simply turn off the screen but otherwise the laptop is running as normal?



FYI: I'm running coreos, but i'm willing to switch to another docker container OS if it makes life easier.










share|improve this question














Hi i'm trying to set up an old laptop as a 'server' for testing purposes.



As such, I don't want the screen on all day, however i do want the cpu running 24x7.



Can the 'lid close' switch be configured somehow to simply turn off the screen but otherwise the laptop is running as normal?



FYI: I'm running coreos, but i'm willing to switch to another docker container OS if it makes life easier.







linux systemd laptop






share|improve this question













share|improve this question











share|improve this question




share|improve this question










asked Dec 6 '15 at 10:28









ChrisChris

17617




17617




migrated from serverfault.com Dec 8 '15 at 1:24


This question came from our site for system and network administrators.









migrated from serverfault.com Dec 8 '15 at 1:24


This question came from our site for system and network administrators.















  • I looked in freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/logind.conf.html and it doesn't appear that there's the option that I want in the HandleLidSwitch possibilities.

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:33











  • Might be something possible by running scripts on lid switch events: ubuntuforums.org/…

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:37



















  • I looked in freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/logind.conf.html and it doesn't appear that there's the option that I want in the HandleLidSwitch possibilities.

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:33











  • Might be something possible by running scripts on lid switch events: ubuntuforums.org/…

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 10:37

















I looked in freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/logind.conf.html and it doesn't appear that there's the option that I want in the HandleLidSwitch possibilities.

– Chris
Dec 6 '15 at 10:33





I looked in freedesktop.org/software/systemd/man/logind.conf.html and it doesn't appear that there's the option that I want in the HandleLidSwitch possibilities.

– Chris
Dec 6 '15 at 10:33













Might be something possible by running scripts on lid switch events: ubuntuforums.org/…

– Chris
Dec 6 '15 at 10:37





Might be something possible by running scripts on lid switch events: ubuntuforums.org/…

– Chris
Dec 6 '15 at 10:37










4 Answers
4






active

oldest

votes


















7














I'm not sure how you missed it in the docs, because when I looked it was plainly there.



Place this in logind.conf:



HandleLidSwitch=ignore





share|improve this answer



















  • 2





    Ah yes but I'd like the screen to still turn off

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 12:00






  • 1





    Did it not turn off?

    – Michael Hampton
    Dec 6 '15 at 12:08











  • You're right! Thanks so much. Sorry for wasting your time.

    – Chris
    Dec 6 '15 at 12:19






  • 3





    I've done this, but my screen is on while the lid is closed :(

    – Hubro
    Sep 18 '17 at 21:07






  • 1





    I've done this, too, but my screen is still on while the lid is closed.

    – Limited Atonement
    Jun 10 '18 at 0:46



















1














According to the documentation at this url, the HandleLidSwitch can be set to lock which locks your session and normally causes the screen to turn off either immediately of a few seconds later. This works well on my Ubuntu-Gnome 17.10. The only downside is you'll have to input your password again when you reopen the lid.



Just add the following line in your /etc/systemd/logind.conf



HandleLidSwitch=lock



Note that there is also a HandleLidSwitchExternalPower if you want different behavior when plugged.



The full set of possible values for HandleLidSwitch and HandleLidSwitchExternalPower is:ignore, poweroff, reboot, halt, kexec, suspend, hibernate, hybrid-sleep, suspend-then-hibernate, and lock






share|improve this answer
























  • Welcome to posting on U&L! A Core OS server doesn't run X (graphics), unless you're very determined to do so. So for the original asker there won't be any graphical session to lock. Since you bumped this, I've suggested an alternative answer :). If you're writing your answer because it solved a related but different problem which you had, it might be worth writing your problem as a question. You are allowed and indeed encouraged to specify your own answer when you write a question :). I'm not saying this post is a big problem, but if the thread did get too cluttered it might be off-topic

    – sourcejedi
    Jul 7 '18 at 18:10













  • (If you wanted to post a separate question, you could always include a link, saying "similar to this other question, but I have Ubuntu Gnome installed and using =ignore leaves my screen on, is there some other approach that lets me trigger the normal screen lock?" or whatever).

    – sourcejedi
    Jul 7 '18 at 18:15





















1














Several people have commented that they can stop their laptop from suspending when closed, but the screen stays on. Maybe this is due to differences in firmware? There is an alternative feature that might work.



At one point, the Linux kernel text console had a default setting that blanked itself after a period of inactivity. An equivalent to the screensaver in your favourite graphical environment :).



Some people like to set the blank time using the kernel boot option consoleblank=, which takes a value in seconds. However, the documentation I find does not say this is sufficient to achieve full power saving, or any real level of power saving. Maybe it does what they want it to on their system! Or maybe it doesn't. The documentation is unhelpful on this point.



Remember the original function of a screensaver, was to avoid burning-in a permanent ghost image on your CRT display. It does not necessarily save power. When full power saving was introduced, it was used after a longer delay. Bringing the display back up and running could take a few seconds, which would be much more annoying to the user.





http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/setterm.1.html



Apparently it is possible to enable console blanking at runtime, using setterm --consoleblank [1-60]. And then setterm has another option --powerdown [1-60], to eventually enable "powerdown mode" after a timeout.



If I'm reading it correctly, there's a sequence. First the console blank timeout applies. Then after one powerdown timeout, it applies "vsync suspend mode". Finally after a second powerdown timeout, it applies "powerdown mode". These timeouts are all specified in minutes, not seconds.



So I think you can use a command like this:



 /bin/setterm -term linux -blank 10 -powerdown 5 </dev/tty1 >/dev/tty1


I'm not sure whether CoreOS lets you add arbitrary commands to the boot process (as in rc.local on other distributions, for example). I imagine you can always use a privileged container :).





setterm --blank says that blanking uses APM if available. Narrator voice: APM is not available on modern hardware. I don't know if blanking will use any modern power saving scheme.



"powerdown" mentions "VESA" display power saving. "VESA" power saving is still a thing. I don't know if "powerdown" is necessary or even sufficient to work for modern stuff.



setterm does not say what the default "powerdown" settings are. If I had to guess, I would say it is not enabled by default.






share|improve this answer

































    0














    The steps at this article worked great for me:
    https://mensfeld.pl/2018/08/ubuntu-18-04-disable-screen-on-lid-close/



    It's like a refrigerator light though; how are we going to test this? ;-)






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      4 Answers
      4






      active

      oldest

      votes








      4 Answers
      4






      active

      oldest

      votes









      active

      oldest

      votes






      active

      oldest

      votes









      7














      I'm not sure how you missed it in the docs, because when I looked it was plainly there.



      Place this in logind.conf:



      HandleLidSwitch=ignore





      share|improve this answer



















      • 2





        Ah yes but I'd like the screen to still turn off

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:00






      • 1





        Did it not turn off?

        – Michael Hampton
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:08











      • You're right! Thanks so much. Sorry for wasting your time.

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:19






      • 3





        I've done this, but my screen is on while the lid is closed :(

        – Hubro
        Sep 18 '17 at 21:07






      • 1





        I've done this, too, but my screen is still on while the lid is closed.

        – Limited Atonement
        Jun 10 '18 at 0:46
















      7














      I'm not sure how you missed it in the docs, because when I looked it was plainly there.



      Place this in logind.conf:



      HandleLidSwitch=ignore





      share|improve this answer



















      • 2





        Ah yes but I'd like the screen to still turn off

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:00






      • 1





        Did it not turn off?

        – Michael Hampton
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:08











      • You're right! Thanks so much. Sorry for wasting your time.

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:19






      • 3





        I've done this, but my screen is on while the lid is closed :(

        – Hubro
        Sep 18 '17 at 21:07






      • 1





        I've done this, too, but my screen is still on while the lid is closed.

        – Limited Atonement
        Jun 10 '18 at 0:46














      7












      7








      7







      I'm not sure how you missed it in the docs, because when I looked it was plainly there.



      Place this in logind.conf:



      HandleLidSwitch=ignore





      share|improve this answer













      I'm not sure how you missed it in the docs, because when I looked it was plainly there.



      Place this in logind.conf:



      HandleLidSwitch=ignore






      share|improve this answer












      share|improve this answer



      share|improve this answer










      answered Dec 6 '15 at 11:08









      Michael HamptonMichael Hampton

      5,81911944




      5,81911944








      • 2





        Ah yes but I'd like the screen to still turn off

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:00






      • 1





        Did it not turn off?

        – Michael Hampton
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:08











      • You're right! Thanks so much. Sorry for wasting your time.

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:19






      • 3





        I've done this, but my screen is on while the lid is closed :(

        – Hubro
        Sep 18 '17 at 21:07






      • 1





        I've done this, too, but my screen is still on while the lid is closed.

        – Limited Atonement
        Jun 10 '18 at 0:46














      • 2





        Ah yes but I'd like the screen to still turn off

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:00






      • 1





        Did it not turn off?

        – Michael Hampton
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:08











      • You're right! Thanks so much. Sorry for wasting your time.

        – Chris
        Dec 6 '15 at 12:19






      • 3





        I've done this, but my screen is on while the lid is closed :(

        – Hubro
        Sep 18 '17 at 21:07






      • 1





        I've done this, too, but my screen is still on while the lid is closed.

        – Limited Atonement
        Jun 10 '18 at 0:46








      2




      2





      Ah yes but I'd like the screen to still turn off

      – Chris
      Dec 6 '15 at 12:00





      Ah yes but I'd like the screen to still turn off

      – Chris
      Dec 6 '15 at 12:00




      1




      1





      Did it not turn off?

      – Michael Hampton
      Dec 6 '15 at 12:08





      Did it not turn off?

      – Michael Hampton
      Dec 6 '15 at 12:08













      You're right! Thanks so much. Sorry for wasting your time.

      – Chris
      Dec 6 '15 at 12:19





      You're right! Thanks so much. Sorry for wasting your time.

      – Chris
      Dec 6 '15 at 12:19




      3




      3





      I've done this, but my screen is on while the lid is closed :(

      – Hubro
      Sep 18 '17 at 21:07





      I've done this, but my screen is on while the lid is closed :(

      – Hubro
      Sep 18 '17 at 21:07




      1




      1





      I've done this, too, but my screen is still on while the lid is closed.

      – Limited Atonement
      Jun 10 '18 at 0:46





      I've done this, too, but my screen is still on while the lid is closed.

      – Limited Atonement
      Jun 10 '18 at 0:46













      1














      According to the documentation at this url, the HandleLidSwitch can be set to lock which locks your session and normally causes the screen to turn off either immediately of a few seconds later. This works well on my Ubuntu-Gnome 17.10. The only downside is you'll have to input your password again when you reopen the lid.



      Just add the following line in your /etc/systemd/logind.conf



      HandleLidSwitch=lock



      Note that there is also a HandleLidSwitchExternalPower if you want different behavior when plugged.



      The full set of possible values for HandleLidSwitch and HandleLidSwitchExternalPower is:ignore, poweroff, reboot, halt, kexec, suspend, hibernate, hybrid-sleep, suspend-then-hibernate, and lock






      share|improve this answer
























      • Welcome to posting on U&L! A Core OS server doesn't run X (graphics), unless you're very determined to do so. So for the original asker there won't be any graphical session to lock. Since you bumped this, I've suggested an alternative answer :). If you're writing your answer because it solved a related but different problem which you had, it might be worth writing your problem as a question. You are allowed and indeed encouraged to specify your own answer when you write a question :). I'm not saying this post is a big problem, but if the thread did get too cluttered it might be off-topic

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:10













      • (If you wanted to post a separate question, you could always include a link, saying "similar to this other question, but I have Ubuntu Gnome installed and using =ignore leaves my screen on, is there some other approach that lets me trigger the normal screen lock?" or whatever).

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:15


















      1














      According to the documentation at this url, the HandleLidSwitch can be set to lock which locks your session and normally causes the screen to turn off either immediately of a few seconds later. This works well on my Ubuntu-Gnome 17.10. The only downside is you'll have to input your password again when you reopen the lid.



      Just add the following line in your /etc/systemd/logind.conf



      HandleLidSwitch=lock



      Note that there is also a HandleLidSwitchExternalPower if you want different behavior when plugged.



      The full set of possible values for HandleLidSwitch and HandleLidSwitchExternalPower is:ignore, poweroff, reboot, halt, kexec, suspend, hibernate, hybrid-sleep, suspend-then-hibernate, and lock






      share|improve this answer
























      • Welcome to posting on U&L! A Core OS server doesn't run X (graphics), unless you're very determined to do so. So for the original asker there won't be any graphical session to lock. Since you bumped this, I've suggested an alternative answer :). If you're writing your answer because it solved a related but different problem which you had, it might be worth writing your problem as a question. You are allowed and indeed encouraged to specify your own answer when you write a question :). I'm not saying this post is a big problem, but if the thread did get too cluttered it might be off-topic

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:10













      • (If you wanted to post a separate question, you could always include a link, saying "similar to this other question, but I have Ubuntu Gnome installed and using =ignore leaves my screen on, is there some other approach that lets me trigger the normal screen lock?" or whatever).

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:15
















      1












      1








      1







      According to the documentation at this url, the HandleLidSwitch can be set to lock which locks your session and normally causes the screen to turn off either immediately of a few seconds later. This works well on my Ubuntu-Gnome 17.10. The only downside is you'll have to input your password again when you reopen the lid.



      Just add the following line in your /etc/systemd/logind.conf



      HandleLidSwitch=lock



      Note that there is also a HandleLidSwitchExternalPower if you want different behavior when plugged.



      The full set of possible values for HandleLidSwitch and HandleLidSwitchExternalPower is:ignore, poweroff, reboot, halt, kexec, suspend, hibernate, hybrid-sleep, suspend-then-hibernate, and lock






      share|improve this answer













      According to the documentation at this url, the HandleLidSwitch can be set to lock which locks your session and normally causes the screen to turn off either immediately of a few seconds later. This works well on my Ubuntu-Gnome 17.10. The only downside is you'll have to input your password again when you reopen the lid.



      Just add the following line in your /etc/systemd/logind.conf



      HandleLidSwitch=lock



      Note that there is also a HandleLidSwitchExternalPower if you want different behavior when plugged.



      The full set of possible values for HandleLidSwitch and HandleLidSwitchExternalPower is:ignore, poweroff, reboot, halt, kexec, suspend, hibernate, hybrid-sleep, suspend-then-hibernate, and lock







      share|improve this answer












      share|improve this answer



      share|improve this answer










      answered Jul 7 '18 at 12:44









      AnthonyAnthony

      1112




      1112













      • Welcome to posting on U&L! A Core OS server doesn't run X (graphics), unless you're very determined to do so. So for the original asker there won't be any graphical session to lock. Since you bumped this, I've suggested an alternative answer :). If you're writing your answer because it solved a related but different problem which you had, it might be worth writing your problem as a question. You are allowed and indeed encouraged to specify your own answer when you write a question :). I'm not saying this post is a big problem, but if the thread did get too cluttered it might be off-topic

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:10













      • (If you wanted to post a separate question, you could always include a link, saying "similar to this other question, but I have Ubuntu Gnome installed and using =ignore leaves my screen on, is there some other approach that lets me trigger the normal screen lock?" or whatever).

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:15





















      • Welcome to posting on U&L! A Core OS server doesn't run X (graphics), unless you're very determined to do so. So for the original asker there won't be any graphical session to lock. Since you bumped this, I've suggested an alternative answer :). If you're writing your answer because it solved a related but different problem which you had, it might be worth writing your problem as a question. You are allowed and indeed encouraged to specify your own answer when you write a question :). I'm not saying this post is a big problem, but if the thread did get too cluttered it might be off-topic

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:10













      • (If you wanted to post a separate question, you could always include a link, saying "similar to this other question, but I have Ubuntu Gnome installed and using =ignore leaves my screen on, is there some other approach that lets me trigger the normal screen lock?" or whatever).

        – sourcejedi
        Jul 7 '18 at 18:15



















      Welcome to posting on U&L! A Core OS server doesn't run X (graphics), unless you're very determined to do so. So for the original asker there won't be any graphical session to lock. Since you bumped this, I've suggested an alternative answer :). If you're writing your answer because it solved a related but different problem which you had, it might be worth writing your problem as a question. You are allowed and indeed encouraged to specify your own answer when you write a question :). I'm not saying this post is a big problem, but if the thread did get too cluttered it might be off-topic

      – sourcejedi
      Jul 7 '18 at 18:10







      Welcome to posting on U&L! A Core OS server doesn't run X (graphics), unless you're very determined to do so. So for the original asker there won't be any graphical session to lock. Since you bumped this, I've suggested an alternative answer :). If you're writing your answer because it solved a related but different problem which you had, it might be worth writing your problem as a question. You are allowed and indeed encouraged to specify your own answer when you write a question :). I'm not saying this post is a big problem, but if the thread did get too cluttered it might be off-topic

      – sourcejedi
      Jul 7 '18 at 18:10















      (If you wanted to post a separate question, you could always include a link, saying "similar to this other question, but I have Ubuntu Gnome installed and using =ignore leaves my screen on, is there some other approach that lets me trigger the normal screen lock?" or whatever).

      – sourcejedi
      Jul 7 '18 at 18:15







      (If you wanted to post a separate question, you could always include a link, saying "similar to this other question, but I have Ubuntu Gnome installed and using =ignore leaves my screen on, is there some other approach that lets me trigger the normal screen lock?" or whatever).

      – sourcejedi
      Jul 7 '18 at 18:15













      1














      Several people have commented that they can stop their laptop from suspending when closed, but the screen stays on. Maybe this is due to differences in firmware? There is an alternative feature that might work.



      At one point, the Linux kernel text console had a default setting that blanked itself after a period of inactivity. An equivalent to the screensaver in your favourite graphical environment :).



      Some people like to set the blank time using the kernel boot option consoleblank=, which takes a value in seconds. However, the documentation I find does not say this is sufficient to achieve full power saving, or any real level of power saving. Maybe it does what they want it to on their system! Or maybe it doesn't. The documentation is unhelpful on this point.



      Remember the original function of a screensaver, was to avoid burning-in a permanent ghost image on your CRT display. It does not necessarily save power. When full power saving was introduced, it was used after a longer delay. Bringing the display back up and running could take a few seconds, which would be much more annoying to the user.





      http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/setterm.1.html



      Apparently it is possible to enable console blanking at runtime, using setterm --consoleblank [1-60]. And then setterm has another option --powerdown [1-60], to eventually enable "powerdown mode" after a timeout.



      If I'm reading it correctly, there's a sequence. First the console blank timeout applies. Then after one powerdown timeout, it applies "vsync suspend mode". Finally after a second powerdown timeout, it applies "powerdown mode". These timeouts are all specified in minutes, not seconds.



      So I think you can use a command like this:



       /bin/setterm -term linux -blank 10 -powerdown 5 </dev/tty1 >/dev/tty1


      I'm not sure whether CoreOS lets you add arbitrary commands to the boot process (as in rc.local on other distributions, for example). I imagine you can always use a privileged container :).





      setterm --blank says that blanking uses APM if available. Narrator voice: APM is not available on modern hardware. I don't know if blanking will use any modern power saving scheme.



      "powerdown" mentions "VESA" display power saving. "VESA" power saving is still a thing. I don't know if "powerdown" is necessary or even sufficient to work for modern stuff.



      setterm does not say what the default "powerdown" settings are. If I had to guess, I would say it is not enabled by default.






      share|improve this answer






























        1














        Several people have commented that they can stop their laptop from suspending when closed, but the screen stays on. Maybe this is due to differences in firmware? There is an alternative feature that might work.



        At one point, the Linux kernel text console had a default setting that blanked itself after a period of inactivity. An equivalent to the screensaver in your favourite graphical environment :).



        Some people like to set the blank time using the kernel boot option consoleblank=, which takes a value in seconds. However, the documentation I find does not say this is sufficient to achieve full power saving, or any real level of power saving. Maybe it does what they want it to on their system! Or maybe it doesn't. The documentation is unhelpful on this point.



        Remember the original function of a screensaver, was to avoid burning-in a permanent ghost image on your CRT display. It does not necessarily save power. When full power saving was introduced, it was used after a longer delay. Bringing the display back up and running could take a few seconds, which would be much more annoying to the user.





        http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/setterm.1.html



        Apparently it is possible to enable console blanking at runtime, using setterm --consoleblank [1-60]. And then setterm has another option --powerdown [1-60], to eventually enable "powerdown mode" after a timeout.



        If I'm reading it correctly, there's a sequence. First the console blank timeout applies. Then after one powerdown timeout, it applies "vsync suspend mode". Finally after a second powerdown timeout, it applies "powerdown mode". These timeouts are all specified in minutes, not seconds.



        So I think you can use a command like this:



         /bin/setterm -term linux -blank 10 -powerdown 5 </dev/tty1 >/dev/tty1


        I'm not sure whether CoreOS lets you add arbitrary commands to the boot process (as in rc.local on other distributions, for example). I imagine you can always use a privileged container :).





        setterm --blank says that blanking uses APM if available. Narrator voice: APM is not available on modern hardware. I don't know if blanking will use any modern power saving scheme.



        "powerdown" mentions "VESA" display power saving. "VESA" power saving is still a thing. I don't know if "powerdown" is necessary or even sufficient to work for modern stuff.



        setterm does not say what the default "powerdown" settings are. If I had to guess, I would say it is not enabled by default.






        share|improve this answer




























          1












          1








          1







          Several people have commented that they can stop their laptop from suspending when closed, but the screen stays on. Maybe this is due to differences in firmware? There is an alternative feature that might work.



          At one point, the Linux kernel text console had a default setting that blanked itself after a period of inactivity. An equivalent to the screensaver in your favourite graphical environment :).



          Some people like to set the blank time using the kernel boot option consoleblank=, which takes a value in seconds. However, the documentation I find does not say this is sufficient to achieve full power saving, or any real level of power saving. Maybe it does what they want it to on their system! Or maybe it doesn't. The documentation is unhelpful on this point.



          Remember the original function of a screensaver, was to avoid burning-in a permanent ghost image on your CRT display. It does not necessarily save power. When full power saving was introduced, it was used after a longer delay. Bringing the display back up and running could take a few seconds, which would be much more annoying to the user.





          http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/setterm.1.html



          Apparently it is possible to enable console blanking at runtime, using setterm --consoleblank [1-60]. And then setterm has another option --powerdown [1-60], to eventually enable "powerdown mode" after a timeout.



          If I'm reading it correctly, there's a sequence. First the console blank timeout applies. Then after one powerdown timeout, it applies "vsync suspend mode". Finally after a second powerdown timeout, it applies "powerdown mode". These timeouts are all specified in minutes, not seconds.



          So I think you can use a command like this:



           /bin/setterm -term linux -blank 10 -powerdown 5 </dev/tty1 >/dev/tty1


          I'm not sure whether CoreOS lets you add arbitrary commands to the boot process (as in rc.local on other distributions, for example). I imagine you can always use a privileged container :).





          setterm --blank says that blanking uses APM if available. Narrator voice: APM is not available on modern hardware. I don't know if blanking will use any modern power saving scheme.



          "powerdown" mentions "VESA" display power saving. "VESA" power saving is still a thing. I don't know if "powerdown" is necessary or even sufficient to work for modern stuff.



          setterm does not say what the default "powerdown" settings are. If I had to guess, I would say it is not enabled by default.






          share|improve this answer















          Several people have commented that they can stop their laptop from suspending when closed, but the screen stays on. Maybe this is due to differences in firmware? There is an alternative feature that might work.



          At one point, the Linux kernel text console had a default setting that blanked itself after a period of inactivity. An equivalent to the screensaver in your favourite graphical environment :).



          Some people like to set the blank time using the kernel boot option consoleblank=, which takes a value in seconds. However, the documentation I find does not say this is sufficient to achieve full power saving, or any real level of power saving. Maybe it does what they want it to on their system! Or maybe it doesn't. The documentation is unhelpful on this point.



          Remember the original function of a screensaver, was to avoid burning-in a permanent ghost image on your CRT display. It does not necessarily save power. When full power saving was introduced, it was used after a longer delay. Bringing the display back up and running could take a few seconds, which would be much more annoying to the user.





          http://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/setterm.1.html



          Apparently it is possible to enable console blanking at runtime, using setterm --consoleblank [1-60]. And then setterm has another option --powerdown [1-60], to eventually enable "powerdown mode" after a timeout.



          If I'm reading it correctly, there's a sequence. First the console blank timeout applies. Then after one powerdown timeout, it applies "vsync suspend mode". Finally after a second powerdown timeout, it applies "powerdown mode". These timeouts are all specified in minutes, not seconds.



          So I think you can use a command like this:



           /bin/setterm -term linux -blank 10 -powerdown 5 </dev/tty1 >/dev/tty1


          I'm not sure whether CoreOS lets you add arbitrary commands to the boot process (as in rc.local on other distributions, for example). I imagine you can always use a privileged container :).





          setterm --blank says that blanking uses APM if available. Narrator voice: APM is not available on modern hardware. I don't know if blanking will use any modern power saving scheme.



          "powerdown" mentions "VESA" display power saving. "VESA" power saving is still a thing. I don't know if "powerdown" is necessary or even sufficient to work for modern stuff.



          setterm does not say what the default "powerdown" settings are. If I had to guess, I would say it is not enabled by default.







          share|improve this answer














          share|improve this answer



          share|improve this answer








          edited Nov 12 '18 at 16:38

























          answered Jul 7 '18 at 17:50









          sourcejedisourcejedi

          24.5k440107




          24.5k440107























              0














              The steps at this article worked great for me:
              https://mensfeld.pl/2018/08/ubuntu-18-04-disable-screen-on-lid-close/



              It's like a refrigerator light though; how are we going to test this? ;-)






              share|improve this answer








              New contributor




              Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
              Check out our Code of Conduct.

























                0














                The steps at this article worked great for me:
                https://mensfeld.pl/2018/08/ubuntu-18-04-disable-screen-on-lid-close/



                It's like a refrigerator light though; how are we going to test this? ;-)






                share|improve this answer








                New contributor




                Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                Check out our Code of Conduct.























                  0












                  0








                  0







                  The steps at this article worked great for me:
                  https://mensfeld.pl/2018/08/ubuntu-18-04-disable-screen-on-lid-close/



                  It's like a refrigerator light though; how are we going to test this? ;-)






                  share|improve this answer








                  New contributor




                  Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.










                  The steps at this article worked great for me:
                  https://mensfeld.pl/2018/08/ubuntu-18-04-disable-screen-on-lid-close/



                  It's like a refrigerator light though; how are we going to test this? ;-)







                  share|improve this answer








                  New contributor




                  Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.









                  share|improve this answer



                  share|improve this answer






                  New contributor




                  Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.









                  answered 17 mins ago









                  Randy HoodRandy Hood

                  1




                  1




                  New contributor




                  Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.





                  New contributor





                  Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.






                  Randy Hood is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                  Check out our Code of Conduct.






























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