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Password protected auto login on Ubuntu : auto lock screen after login

If you have one single user on your Ubuntu box and want to allow auto login to speed up boot process and avoid typing your user name every time you boot, but feel concerned about security, this is for you.

In fact, if auto login is activated, everybody can turn on your box and use it. This is even more annoying when you have a laptop.

To prevent that, you can lock the screen as soon as gnome desktop gets started. This will lock your screen, but Ubuntu will load in background while you type in your pass, so there is no time loss.

Here we go :

• First activate auto login in Ubuntu :
  Go in Ubuntu Menu > System > Administration > Login Window and select a user for auto login
• Then add auto lock at Gnome start up :
  press Alt + F2
  type "gedit .profile"
  paste following lines at the end of the file :

  if [ !"$AUTOLOGINDONE" ]
  then
      export AUTOLOGINDONE=true
      gnome-screensaver
      gnome-screensaver-command --lock
      gnome-screensaver-command --poke
  fi

• Save the file and restart your computer, the system will auto login and ask for password while finishing loading Gnome.