Screen off and tap to wake on an Ubuntu Nintendo Switch

This guide gives an L4T Ubuntu Switch tablet-like display controls:

• Press the power key to open a touch-friendly menu.
• Choose Screen Off to disable the LCD without suspending Linux.
• Tap the dark touchscreen once to restore the display.
• Keep Suspend, Shutdown, and Reboot in the same menu.

The setup uses X11, xrandr, evtest, YAD, and two systemd user services. It was verified on Ubuntu 24.04 with the Switch panel exposed as DSI-0.

1. Download this project

git clone https://github.com/Ozdotdotdot/switch-tablet-screenctl.git
cd switch-tablet-screenctl

2. Install packages and input permissions

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y evtest yad zenity x11-xserver-utils xinput
sudo usermod -aG input "$USER"

Log out and back in after adding the group. Confirm it with:

id | grep input

3. Confirm the panel and input devices

xrandr --query
./scripts/find-powerkey
./scripts/find-touch

The tested Switch reports:

• Panel: DSI-0, 1280x720, 60 Hz, normal rotation
• Power key: max77620_onoff
• Touchscreen: touchscreen

The event numbers may change. The included finder scripts discover them instead of relying on fixed /dev/input/eventN paths.

4. Install the scripts and display configuration

sudo install -m 755 scripts/screenctl scripts/find-powerkey scripts/find-touch \
  scripts/powerkey-listener.sh scripts/tapwake.sh /usr/local/bin/
sudo install -m 644 config/screenctl.conf /etc/screenctl.conf

Edit /etc/screenctl.conf if xrandr --query reports a different panel or mode:

PANEL="DSI-0"
MODE="1280x720"
RATE="60"
ROTATE="normal"
DISPLAY=":0"

Test the controller before continuing:

screenctl status
screenctl off
sleep 2
screenctl on

If the screen does not return, connect over SSH and run screenctl on after correcting /etc/screenctl.conf.

5. Stop logind from handling a short power-key press

Install the included logind drop-in:

sudo install -d /etc/systemd/logind.conf.d
sudo install -m 644 config/powerkey-menu.conf \
  /etc/systemd/logind.conf.d/powerkey-menu.conf

It keeps a long press as the emergency power-off fallback:

[Login]
HandlePowerKey=ignore
HandlePowerKeyLongPress=poweroff

Restarting logind can close the graphical session. Save your work first, then run:

sudo systemctl restart systemd-logind

6. Install and enable the user services

mkdir -p ~/.config/systemd/user
install -m 644 systemd/powerkey-listener.service systemd/tapwake.service \
  ~/.config/systemd/user/
systemctl --user daemon-reload
systemctl --user enable --now powerkey-listener.service tapwake.service
loginctl enable-linger "$USER"

Use these user services only. Do not also create a system-level tap-wake service with a fixed event number.

7. Test the complete flow

1. Run systemctl --user status powerkey-listener tapwake.
2. Press the physical power key.
3. Confirm that the YAD menu appears.
4. Tap Screen Off.
5. Confirm that the panel becomes dark while Linux continues running.
6. Tap the dark touchscreen once.
7. Confirm that the panel returns.

Watch logs in another terminal if anything fails:

journalctl --user -u powerkey-listener -u tapwake -f

How it works

power key -> evtest --grab -> YAD menu -> screenctl off
touch event -> tapwake.sh -> screenctl on

• screenctl off runs xrandr --output DSI-0 --off. This turns off the display output while the separate touchscreen input device stays active.
• powerkey-listener.sh finds and grabs the physical power key. A short press opens YAD instead of suspending the machine.
• tapwake.sh watches the discovered touchscreen. Its first event calls screenctl on, then the watcher restarts.
• Both services run as the desktop user so xrandr can use the active X11 display and ~/.Xauthority.

Touch alignment

The tested 1280x720 panel uses normal rotation and the identity touch matrix:

xinput set-prop "$(xinput list --id-only touchscreen)" \
  "Coordinate Transformation Matrix" 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1

If you rotate the display, update both ROTATE in /etc/screenctl.conf and the touchscreen matrix.

Troubleshooting

• Permission denied for /dev/input/eventN: confirm id lists the input group, then log out and back in.
• Cannot open display: confirm the desktop is X11, DISPLAY=:0 is correct, and ~/.Xauthority exists.
• Panel not found: replace DSI-0 in /etc/screenctl.conf with the connected output from xrandr --query.
• Power key still suspends: run systemd-analyze cat-config systemd/logind.conf and confirm HandlePowerKey=ignore is effective.
• Touch is rotated: apply the matching XInput transformation matrix for the selected display rotation.

Verified against the running Switch on 2026-08-20.