"failed to suspend session"

[Kevin Chadwick]

previously on this list Greg Folkert contributed:

> > I am running xfce with xubuntu 12.04 on a Thinkpad T61 with xdm.
> > 
> > When I select "suspend" from the user/logout menu I get:
> > "failed to suspend session" "not authorized" 
> > 
> > In the Power Manger menu on "When laptop lid is closed" I can only choose
> > "nothing" or "Lock screen", there is no "suspend" or "hibernate".
> > 
> > Any ideas, what is wrong?   
> 
> Stop using XDM, I don't believe it is freedesktop compliant.
> 
> I begrudgingly use GDM3, I'd be surprised with XDM that any freedesktop
> services would work.
> 

I try not to stand for begrudgingly doing anything, personally.

> I know that if I use XDM and Network Manager I cannot manage *ANY*
> interfaces (WiFi, wired, VPN... others). Suspend doesn't work and
> neither does hibernate. Also, the power manager seems to choke and doing
> its job.
> 

How terrible, the aim should be for independent parts that even work
with startx. I see freedesktop as less and less of a standard and the
website is a terrible amalgamation of stuff. 

I use sudo for all these things. I just create the
buttons/launchers/menu and sometimes use yad or gxmessage, scripts etc.
to do whatever I need. For suspend don't forget a double select or are
you sure message to prevent accidental clicks. On xfce you can use arrow
button position -> inside on a panel launcher. I haven't the time but
have considered doing a distro just to show how easy it is to do what
99% of users need, better and much more securely.

There was however a time when I tried to play ball and added

/usr/lib/xfce4/session/xfsm-shutdown-helper

to sudoers which got suspend and hibernate back with the shipped
buttons. Not sure if that still works as I switched to fvwm and
actually prefer standard setups that work everywhere and with the bonus
of less code running as root

I used to use the mount plugin for xfce but now use gkrellm whose
config is far less annoying to port from system to system. I find *conf
systems trying to solve a non-existent problem and launchers without
names nauseating.

> Now switching to GDM3 or other freedesktop compliant Display managers...
> everything works.
> 
> I'm betting that is it.

I use fvwm1 and everything works. I use it mainly because it ships with
OpenBSD and is audited and simple for anyone to use but because
everything works and it's so fast and simple to lock down that I love
it. fvwm2, xfce and freedesktop compliant desktop systems do
pre-populate your menu which most users would want and works well but I
actually find a menu with only what you want on, not to mention all
sorts of new functions using yad and gxmessage to actually be far more
useful once done, not to mention rock solid from upgrade to
upgrade/install and yet easily changed. It would also be quite easy to
create a script to dynamically create a menu if needed, though I would
lock it down and use it as required personally.

-- 
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'Write programs that do one thing and do it well. Write programs to work
together. Write programs to handle text streams, because that is a
universal interface'

(Doug McIlroy)

In Other Words - Don't design like polkit or systemd
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