<para>DOCUMENT AND MODIFIED VERSIONS OF THE DOCUMENT ARE PROVIDED UNDER THE TERMS OF THE GNU FREE DOCUMENTATION LICENSE WITH THE FURTHER UNDERSTANDING THAT: <orderedlist>
<listitem>
<para>DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES THAT THE DOCUMENT OR MODIFIED VERSION OF THE DOCUMENT IS FREE OF DEFECTS MERCHANTABLE, FIT FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGING. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE QUALITY, ACCURACY, AND PERFORMANCE OF THE DOCUMENT OR MODIFIED VERSION OF THE DOCUMENT IS WITH YOU. SHOULD ANY DOCUMENT OR MODIFIED VERSION PROVE DEFECTIVE IN ANY RESPECT, YOU (NOT THE INITIAL WRITER, AUTHOR OR ANY CONTRIBUTOR) ASSUME THE COST OF ANY NECESSARY SERVICING, REPAIR OR CORRECTION. THIS DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY CONSTITUTES AN ESSENTIAL PART OF THIS LICENSE. NO USE OF ANY DOCUMENT OR MODIFIED VERSION OF THE DOCUMENT IS AUTHORIZED HEREUNDER EXCEPT UNDER THIS DISCLAIMER; AND</para>
</listitem>
<listitem>
<para>UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES AND UNDER NO LEGAL THEORY, WHETHER IN TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), CONTRACT, OR OTHERWISE, SHALL THE AUTHOR, INITIAL WRITER, ANY CONTRIBUTOR, OR ANY DISTRIBUTOR OF THE DOCUMENT OR MODIFIED VERSION OF THE DOCUMENT, OR ANY SUPPLIER OF ANY OF SUCH PARTIES, BE LIABLE TO ANY PERSON FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OF ANY CHARACTER INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF GOODWILL, WORK STOPPAGE, COMPUTER FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION, OR ANY AND ALL OTHER DAMAGES OR LOSSES ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO USE OF THE DOCUMENT AND MODIFIED VERSIONS OF THE DOCUMENT, EVEN IF SUCH PARTY SHALL HAVE BEEN INFORMED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES.</para>
</listitem>
</orderedlist></para>
</legalnotice>
<!-- This file contains link to license for the documentation (GNU FDL), and
other legal stuff such as "NO WARRANTY" statement. Please do not change
To add <application>User Switcher</application> to your <application>Panel</application>, simply right-click on the <application>Panel</application> to which you wish to add <application>User Switcher</application>, select <guimenuitem>Add to Panel...</guimenuitem>, and then select <guilabel>User Switcher</guilabel> from the list of items presented to you, and click <guibutton>OK</guibutton>.
</para>
<para>
The exact appearance of the <application>User Switcher</application> depends on the size and type of the panel in which it resides, but you should now be able to use the <application>User Switcher</application> by clicking on the word <guilabel>Users</guilabel>.
When you left-click on the <application>User Switcher</application>, a menu will pop up. This menu contains a list of users to which you can switch, as well as the option to simply go to the login screen.
</para>
<para>
To either log in as another user, or to resume another user's session, simply click on that user's name. If the user is already logged in, then you will switch to that user's session and you will have to unlock the screen. If the user hasn't logged in, then you will be sent to the login screen. Simply enter the user's name and password as requested, just as you do to log in normally.
As with any other GNOME applet, you can use the middle mousebutton to easily move an applet around on the <application>Panel</application>. Simply move your mouse over the <application>User Switcher</application>, and then press and hold the middle mousebutton. While holding the middle mousebutton, move your mouse. You should also move the applet. If the applet does not move, you will need to unlock the applet by releasing the middle mousebutton, and then using the right mousebutton to bring up applet options, as described in the next section.
</para>
<para>
Once you are satisfied with the applet's location on the <application>Panel</application>, release the middle mousebutton, and you're done! You may optionally lock the applet to this location, as described in the next section. Middle-clicking on the applet allows you to move it within the panel. See
<ulink type="help" url="ghelp:user-guide?gospanel-32">Moving a panel object</ulink> for more information.
This option is a shortcut into the GNOME system utilites' user management system. In order to run the tool, you must have administrator privileges. When you are finished, click <guibutton>OK</guibutton>, and you can continue into the GNOME system utilities' user management system. Please refer to that manual for further information on managing users and groups. To exit the password request, click <guibutton>Cancel</guibutton>.
This item, like the <guimenuitem>Edit Users and Groups</guimenuitem> menu item, requires administrator privileges, and lets you modify the appearance of the login screen. See the <guimenuitem>Edit Users and Groups</guimenuitem> and the login screen settings information in the GNOME system utilities manual for more information.
The <guimenuitem>About</guimenuitem> menu item will bring up a new window which will tell you a little bit more about the <application>User Switcher</application>. Here you can find out what version of the <application>User Switcher</application> you have, who made it, and where its home website is located. Additionally, by selecting the <guibutton>Credits</guibutton> and <guibutton>License</guibutton> buttons, you can find out who helped create it, and under what license it is distributed. Click the <guibutton>Close</guibutton> button to close this window when you are done.
The <guimenuitem>Move</guimenuitem> menu item provides another common way to move applets on the <application>Panel</application>. When you select this option, the applet may be moved simply by moving your mouse. Your cursor will change to illustrate the fact that you are moving the applet. When you have the applet where you want it on the <application>Panel</application>, press any mousebutton to drop the applet into place. Your cursor will change back, reflecting the fact that you are no longer moving the applet.
The <guimenuitem>Lock To Panel</guimenuitem> menu item lets you lock the applet into its position on the <application>Panel</application>. Once an applet is Locked, it cannot be moved accidentally. The <guimenuitem>Move</guimenuitem> menu item (discussed next) will be "greyed" and you will no longer be able to select it. To move the applet again, you must first unlock the applet by selecting the <guimenuitem>Lock To Panel</guimenuitem> menu item again. The <guimenuitem>Move</guimenuitem> menu item will once again be selectable.
The "Preferences" menu item brings up window where you may change the <application>User Switcher</application>'s behavior and appearance. There are two major sections in it: "Appearance" and "Options".
The <guilabel>Appearance</guilabel> option group changes the way the <application>User Switcher</application> applet is displayed on the panel to match the selected option.
</para>
<para>
The first option, which should appear as your name, will make the applet appear as your name on the Panel. That is, the word <guilabel>Users</guilabel> will be replaced by your username. In the example above, the user's name is "Tyler Durden". If the name which appears here is not your name, you may change it using the <guimenuitem>Edit Personal Information</guimenuitem> item in the context menu.
The second option is the word <guilabel>Users</guilabel> and is what is in use if you don't change your Preferences. The word <guilabel>Users</guilabel> will appear on the <application>Panel</application> to represent the <application>User Switcher</application>.
The third and final option is a picture (see the example above). If you select this option, this picture will appear on the Panel to represent the <application>User Switcher</application>.
The <guilabel>Options</guilabel> preference section provides options which control the behavior (as opposed to the appearance) of the <application>User Switcher</application>.
This option determines whether the <application>User Switcher</application> will attempt to lock the screen after switching to another user or login screen. If this option is enabled, your password must be entered to regain access to your desktop. If this option is disabled, then anyone on your computer may access your desktop without any passwords by switching back to your desktop.
</para>
<para>
When disabled, this option will disable security when switching users, so unless you explicitly trust everyone with access to the computer, it's better to leave it enabled.
When this option is active, you will not actually switch screens when you log in as another user with the <application>User Switcher</application>. Instead, each new login will appear inside a window on your current screen. For obvious reasons, the current screen will not be locked when creating a new logins inside windows.
In order for user faces to be visible, they must be readable by all users. Currently, faces are stored in image format in the file called <filename>~/.face</filename>. As a result, the <filename>~/.face</filename> file must have permissions which allow other users to read it (typically, a permissions mask of <computeroutput>0644</computeroutput> or <computeroutput>-rw-r--r--</computeroutput> will suffice), and the users home directories must allow listing by others (at minimum, <computeroutput>0711</computeroutput>, or <computeroutput>drwx--x--x</computeroutput> will suffice).
The <application>User Switcher</application> must be installed to the same prefix as the <application>Panel</application>. That is, if the <application>Panel</application> is at <command>/usr/bin/panel</command>, the applet should be installed to the /usr prefix. If the applet was installed properly (for example, via your distribution), then try logging out and back in to refresh the <guilabel>Add to Panel</guilabel> list.
The <application>User Switcher</application> applet contains some useful hidden options for geeks, nerds, administrators, and other misfits. These options require modifying the configuration using special tools like the <application>Configuration Editor</application> or <command>gconftool-2</command>, but they can cause some unexpected or undesired behavior. These options affect every instance of the <application>User Switcher</application> for a particular user, and can be locked by administrators.
This key, in <filename>/apps/fast-user-switch-applet/show_screen_item</filename> determines whether to show the <guimenuitem>Login Screen</guimenuitem> menu item at the bottom of the left-click menu (see <xref linkend="fusa-usage-left"/> for more information on this menu). This item is used to create a new, empty login screen. If this option is set to <computeroutput>always</computeroutput>, the item will always be shown. If this option is set to <computeroutput>auto</computeroutput>, then the item will be shown if the applet is configured to not use nested logins (see <xref linkend="fusa-config-options-nested"/> for more information). If this option is set to <computeroutput>never</computeroutput>, then the item will never be shown.
This key, in <filename>/apps/fast-user-switch-applet/show_window_item</filename> determines whether to show the <guimenuitem>Login Window</guimenuitem> menu item at the bottom of the left-click menu (see <xref linkend="fusa-usage-left"/> for more information on this menu). This item is used to create a new empty login screen inside a window on the current screen. If this option is set to <computeroutput>always</computeroutput>, the item will always be shown. If this option is set to <computeroutput>auto</computeroutput>, then the item will be shown if the applet is configured to use nested logins (see <xref linkend="fusa-config-options-nested"/> for more information). If this option is set to <computeroutput>never</computeroutput>, then the item will never be shown.