How do I force a shutdown even when there are other open sessions?

Question

Well, hello, this is my first time using ubuntu and I have seen that when I try to turn off the computer when other user sessiong is running it doesn't do nothing. Then I have to enter that user session and close it or turn off in it to do it work.

sorry if I use a bad english, it's because it isn't my native languaje.

thanks.

Solution

Assuming your account is an administrator on the computer (i.e. you have "root" or sudo privileges) this is very simple. Just open a terminal with Ctrl+Alt+T, and type:

sudo reboot

Enter your password when prompted, and the computer will shut down, regardless of what other sessions are open. Unsaved data in any applications open in the other sessions (or in yours) will be lost.

If you wish to only shutdown and not restart, the alternative is:

sudo shutdown -P now

Note: if you do not have sudo privileges, then you cannot do this. You can only shutdown when no other sessions are open; if they are, "shut down" will simply log you out.

Comments

[MarkovCh1]

This is a basic linux question, so I don't think it's relevant which version s/he's using.