systemctl: does not find some/most services

[thojDufour]

Current Behavior

The completer for systemctl command does not propose some or most .service files.
For example:

sudo systemctl status k                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     06/11/2025 08:11:31 AM
kexec.target                         Reboot via kexec
keyboxd@etc-pacman.d-gnupg.service   GnuPG public key management service for /etc/pacman.d/gnupg
keyboxd@etc-pacman.d-gnupg.socket    GnuPG public key management service for /etc/pacman.d/gnupg
kmod-static-nodes.service            Create List of Static Device Nodes

Despite:

sudo systemctl list-units --all | grep kea
● kea-dhcp4.service 

And:

sudo systemctl list-unit-files | grep kea
kea-ctrl-agent.service                       disabled        disabled
kea-dhcp-ddns.service                        disabled        disabled
kea-dhcp4.service                            enabled         disabled
kea-dhcp6.service                            disabled        disabled

Expected Behavior

Expected behavior:

sudo systemctl status k                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     06/11/2025 08:11:31 AM
kea-ctrl-agent.service               <description>
kea-dhcp-ddns.service                <description>
kea-dhcp4.service                    <description>
kea-dhcp6.service                    <description>
kexec.target                         Reboot via kexec
keyboxd@etc-pacman.d-gnupg.service   GnuPG public key management service for /etc/pacman.d/gnupg
keyboxd@etc-pacman.d-gnupg.socket    GnuPG public key management service for /etc/pacman.d/gnupg
kmod-static-nodes.service            Create List of Static Device Nodes

Steps To Reproduce

                  -`                     
                 .o+`                    --------------------
                `ooo/                    OS: Arch Linux x86_64
               `+oooo:                   Kernel: Linux 6.15.1-arch1-2
              `+oooooo:                  Uptime: 2 hours, 14 mins
              -+oooooo+:                 Packages: 1351 (pacman)
            `/:-:++oooo+:                Shell: nushell 0.105.1
           `/++++/+++++++:               Display (U34G3XM): 3440x1440 @ 144 Hz in 34" [External] *
          `/++++++++++++++:              Display (P27h-20): 2560x1440 @ 60 Hz in 28" [External]
         `/+++ooooooooooooo/`            DE: KDE Plasma 6.3.5
        ./ooosssso++osssssso+`           WM: KWin (Wayland)
       .oossssso-````/ossssss+`          WM Theme: Breeze
      -osssssso.      :ssssssso.         Theme: Breeze (Dark) [Qt], Breeze-Dark [GTK2], Breeze [GTK3]
     :osssssss/        osssso+++.        Icons: breeze-dark [Qt], breeze-dark [GTK2/3/4]
    /ossssssss/        +ssssooo/-        Font: Noto Sans (10pt) [Qt], Noto Sans (10pt) [GTK2/3/4]
  `/ossssso+/:-        -:/+osssso+-      Cursor: breeze (24px)
 `+sso+:-`                 `.-/+oso:     Terminal: konsole 25.4.2
`++:.                           `-/+/    CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900X (24) @ 5.74 GHz
.`                                 `/    GPU: AMD Raphael [Integrated]
                                         Memory: 9.36 GiB / 61.94 GiB (15%)
                                         Swap: 0 B / 4.00 GiB (0%)
                                         Disk (/): 25.52 GiB / 71.80 GiB (36%) - ext4
                                         Disk (/home): 1.36 TiB / 3.44 TiB (40%) - ext4
                                         Local IP (eno1): 192.168.178.68/24
                                         Locale: en_US.UTF-8

                                                                 
                                                                 

Version

1.3.2

OS

• Darwin
• Linux
• Termux
• Windows

Shell

• Bash
• Elvish
• Fish
• Nushell
• Oil
• Powershell
• Xonsh
• Zsh

Anything else?

It might help to use systemctl list-unit-files instead of systemctl list-units --all.

Edit:
systemctl list-unit-files --type=service might be even more suited.

[iandol]

zsh has nice completion for systemctl services, but though I do have the zsh bridge enabled I think carapace overwrites it? Anyway a +1, I currently find myself just opening zsh instead of elvish+carapace as doing lots of dev stuff with services start/stop etc poor complete adds up

[iandol]

One complication is that system and user services are separated, so systemctl --user start<tab> and sudo systemctl start<tab> have different completions...

[iandol]

OK, reading https://carapace-sh.github.io/carapace-bin/setup/environment.html#carapace_excludes and set-env CARAPACE_EXCLUDES systemctl allows the zsh completion to work, which does work with service name completion...

[rsteube]

Carapace has no privilege elevation if that is the issue here (executing sth. as another user).

One complication is that system and user services are separated, so systemctl --user start and sudo systemctl start have different completions...

Yes, systemctl differentiates between those depending on flags.

[rsteube]

related
https://github.com/systemd/systemd/blob/4d05a19c957737da0664004b16b3718ae417a1b2/shell-completion/zsh/_systemctl.in#L259
https://github.com/systemd/systemd/blob/4d05a19c957737da0664004b16b3718ae417a1b2/shell-completion/zsh/_systemctl.in#L180

seems to use the mentioned list-unit-files (just not for every case)

[iandol]

Carapace has no privilege elevation if that is the issue here (executing sth. as another user).

I do not think that is an issue, in zsh systemctl status ss<tab> works the same with and without sudo. But if you add a --user flag the result is different.

The --user flag works with list-unit-files and provides the same results as the zsh completions. The command itself returns much faster than zsh completes so perhaps zsh is doing something else...

ε ◎ systemctl --user list-unit-files "ss*"
UNIT FILE         STATE  PRESET
ssh-agent.service static -     

1 unit files listed.
                                                                                                                                 
ε ➪ systemctl list-unit-files "ss*"
UNIT FILE            STATE    PRESET 
ssh.service          enabled  enabled
sshd.service         alias    -      
ssl-cert.service     enabled  enabled
sssd-autofs.service  indirect enabled
sssd-nss.service     indirect enabled
sssd-pac.service     indirect enabled
sssd-pam.service     indirect enabled
sssd-ssh.service     indirect enabled
sssd-sudo.service    indirect enabled
sssd.service         enabled  enabled
ssh.socket           enabled  enabled
sssd-autofs.socket   enabled  enabled
sssd-nss.socket      enabled  enabled
sssd-pac.socket      enabled  enabled
sssd-pam-priv.socket enabled  enabled
sssd-pam.socket      enabled  enabled
sssd-ssh.socket      enabled  enabled
sssd-sudo.socket     enabled  enabled

18 unit files listed.

[rsteube]

Updated the status completion, but there's more to do.
E.g startable units which is a combination of units and unit files with a specific state.