How to keep a Linux laptop on when the lid is closed

This is specifically for headless Linux on a laptop, meaning there is no GUI or desktop environment.

Edit configuration file

Run the following command to edit the login configuration file:

sudo nano /etc/systemd/logind.conf

Look for the following commented lines in the file:

#HandleLidSwitch=suspend
#HandleLidSwitchExternalPower=suspend
#HandleLidSwitchDocked=ignore

What they do:

• HandleLidSwitch: Lid close behavior while not plugged in.
• HandleLidSwitchExternalPower: Lid close behavior while plugged in.
• HandleLidSwitchDocked: Lid close behavior while docked.

Let’s assume you want the laptop to stay on no matter what when the lid is closed, we’ll uncomment and edit all three lines, telling Linux to ignore these events:

HandleLidSwitch=ignore
HandleLidSwitchExternalPower=ignore
HandleLidSwitchDocked=ignore

Save the file and restart the service for changes to take effect.

sudo systemctl restart systemd-logind

If even after these changes the laptop does not stay on when closed, you probably need to disable Sleep and Suspend states. Do so with this command:

sudo systemctl mask sleep.target suspend.target hibernate.target hybrid-sleep.target

Shutdown the display when lid is closed (optional)

Doing the above, the display will stay on when the lid is closed. To make the display shut down when the lid is closed and save some power, we’ll need to do some additional work.

We’ll need to install the packages vbetool (to control the display) and acpid (a daemon to monitor hardware power events).

sudo apt install vbetool acpid

Now we’re going to create a super simple shell script that will trigger when the lid is closed and shut down the display.

Create the script in the necessary directory with sudo nano /etc/acpi/lid.sh and copy/paste in the below:

#!/bin/bash

grep -q close /proc/acpi/button/lid/*/state
if [ $? = 0 ]; then
    vbetool dpms off
fi

grep -q open /proc/acpi/button/lid/*/state
if [ $? = 0 ]; then
    vbetool dpms on
fi

The first block of code will detect when the lid is closed and use vbetool to turn off the display, while the second detects the lid is open and turns the display on. That’s it.

Use the below command to make the script executable:

sudo chmod +x /etc/acpi/lid.sh

Now we have to tell the system to run this script whenever a lid event (opening/closing) occurs.

Create this file sudo nano /etc/acpi/events/lid-button and copy/paste the below:

event=button/lid.*
action=/etc/acpi/lid.sh

Finally, restart the acpi service so it will pick up the new event file.

sudo service acpid restart

[warning] Note

vbetool requires root privileges to interact with video hardware. If you encounter Real mode call failed errors, your hardware may not support vbetool.

Consider instead using xset dpms force off (for X11) or setterm --blank 1 (for TTY).

Reference

• Man page for logind.conf