For administrators as well as power users, the Systemd init daemon [1] requires training due to its many options and innovations. However, if you are in a hurry – or if you are accustomed working within a GUI interface – you can speed up the learning curve by using one of Systemd's graphical frontends. Systemd has several GUI options, each with its own range of functions. Most of the Systemd GUIs are based on established desktop environments such as KDE Plasma or Gnome, but cross-desktop solutions are also available.

Kcmsystemd [2], Systemd-kcm [3], and SystemdGenie [4] are three powerful tools for managing Systemd in KDE and other Qt-based desktop environments. In addition to displaying current system status, these frontend tools serve as a convenient interface for viewing and modifying information stored in Systemd configuration files (see the box entitled "Background.")

Trilateral Test

Kcmsystemd and Systemd-kcm were originally developed for the KDE desktop. Kcmsystemd was designed for KDE SC 4.x interfaces, and Systemd-kcm was created for Plasma 5 environments. SystemdGenie is similar to Systemd-kcm in its scope of features, but it works as an individual application.

Functionally and visually, the two tools integrated in KDE differ only slightly, whereas SystemdGenie differs from both of the others. All three tools are also available for other desktop environments based on the Qt libraries, such as LXQt.

Kcmsystem

After launching, Kcmsystemd comes up with a simple and clear program window: In the main segment, all processes of the system appear in a multi-column tabular view in the Units tab, which is active by default. Use this tab to view the status of the individual processes (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Kcmsystemd summarizes process information in a well organized list.

To display only certain unit types, limit the display to the desired option by selecting an entry in the All unit types checkbox top-left in the program window. If you also want inactive units to appear in the list, check Show inactive. Inactive units now appear in red; all other processes are in green.

Info Center

Kcmsystemd shows detailed information about each unit as soon as you click on the process in the list view. The processes appear in the form of a table in the lower window segment. Below them are four switches, not all of which can be activated, depending on the selected process. The switches allow you to stop or start the relevant unit, initiate a restart of the process, or reload the configuration.

If you hover over a unit line for a while with your mouse pointer, a window opens, displaying information about the dependencies of the current process. The dialog lists dependencies for the current unit, as well as for units that require the selected process.

You can also edit the text files used for configuring the individual units. Right-click the unit, and a context menu appears. Select the first option Edit unit file. After entering the root password, KWrite, the default text editor under KDE, opens and lets you edit the configuration file (Figure 2). (BTW: This function failed under OpenSuse Leap 42.3 due to an incorrect path entry for the text editor, which cannot be changed manually.)

Figure 2: The Kcmsystemd editor lets you adapt individual configuration files.

Since incorrectly configured units can have considerable consequences for the system, it is a good idea to read the documentation [5] before editing a configuration. To enable the changes, restart the unit after editing.