11.4 Identifying and Configuring the Default Target

The current default target for an Ubuntu system can be identified using the systemctl command as follows:

# systemctl get-default

multi-user.target

In the above case, the system is configured to boot using the multi-user target by default. The default setting can be changed at any time using the systemctl command with the set-default option. The following example changes the default target to start the graphical user interface the next time the system boots:

# systemctl set-default graphical.target

Removed /etc/systemd/system/default.target.

Created symlink /etc/systemd/system/default.target → /usr/lib/systemd/system/graphical.target.

The output from the default change operation reveals the steps performed in the background by the systemctl command to implement the change. The current default is configured by establishing a symbolic link from the default.target file located in /etc/systemd/system to point...