https://bugs.kde.org/show_bug.cgi?id=523475
Bug ID: 523475
Summary: KDE Plasma: Add an option to force-quit an application
from the Task Manager context menu
Classification: Plasma
Product: plasmashell
Version First master
Reported In:
Platform: KDE Linux
OS: Linux
Status: REPORTED
Severity: wishlist
Priority: NOR
Component: Task Manager and Icons-Only Task Manager widgets
Assignee: [email protected]
Reporter: [email protected]
CC: [email protected]
Target Milestone: 1.0
It would be useful to have an optional way to force-quit an unresponsive
application directly from the Task Manager context menu, without having to open
System Monitor or use xkill.
I propose adding an option to the settings of the Task Manager and Icons-Only
Task Manager widgets. When enabled, it would add an End Task or Force Quit
action before the existing Close action in the application context menu.
Selecting this action should display a warning that unsaved data may be lost.
Similar proposals have previously been discussed on KDE Discuss:
https://discuss.kde.org/t/additional-end-task-or-force-close-button-in-the-right-click-context-menu-of-an-app-for-task-manager/46677
https://discuss.kde.org/t/qml-changing-the-taskbar-context-menu-close-button-to-kill-the-app/43752
I could not find an equivalent report in bugs.kde or an existing open or
closed merge request implementing this functionality.
Motivation
KWin already detects unresponsive windows and can eventually show KillPrompt.
However, this requires waiting for the application to fail the ping check.
The current timeout is five seconds: KWin performs two 2.5-second stages
controlled by KillPingTimeout. During the first stage, the window is marked as
unresponsive. After the second stage, the termination dialog is shown.
The proposed Force Quit action would allow the user to open the termination
confirmation dialog immediately, without waiting for automatic unresponsiveness
detection.
This would mainly improve the speed and predictability of terminating an
application that is already known to be stuck. It is also a familiar
interaction pattern: Windows Task Manager and GNOME System Monitor expose End
Task or Force Quit as a separate action rather than only as a consequence of a
failed normal close request.
There also appear to be cases where an application becomes stuck in a way that
the normal Close action does not lead to a visible termination prompt, while
terminating it through xkill or a system monitor still works.
Possible implementation
The most reliable implementation may require coordinated changes in four KDE
repositories:
- plasma-wayland-protocols;
- kwin;
- plasma-workspace;
- plasma-desktop.
A new request could be added to org_kde_plasma_window in
plasma-window-management.xml, similar to the existing request used to close a
window.
In plasma-workspace, the new request could be exposed through the task model
hierarchy in the same way as the existing requestClose() method.
In plasma-desktop, the Task Manager applet would add the configuration option
and the context-menu action that invokes the new model method.
The request itself should be handled by KWin because KWin owns the current
window object and already contains the infrastructure used to terminate
unresponsive applications.
I would like to get feedback on the feature itself and on the proposed
protocol-based approach before preparing several related merge requests across
the upstream KDE repositories.
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