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After making changes to /etc/default/locale, is it possible to reload/active the new settings without a reboot?

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  • 1
    Which distribution? Console or GUI? But often reloading /etc/profile or logging in again helps. You usually do not need to reboot a linux system for anything but a kernel update.
    – ThiefMaster
    Jan 9, 2014 at 9:01
  • centos version 5.7
    – ohho
    Jan 9, 2014 at 9:07

2 Answers 2

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Locale settings are set as environment variables by the login process (which reads /etc/default/locale) and inherited by child processes. If you log in to a new session, the new settings take effect in the new session.

You can make the settings take effect immediately in a shell by issuing the command

. /etc/default/locale

(note the leading dot). If you've added a category that wasn't set before, you'll need to export it. If you've removed a category, you'll need to unset it.

Changing the settings in a shell affects all the applications subsequently started by that shell (as long as they're using the system locale settings and not their own configuration method).

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  • What does the dot does? I there any other uses of it?
    – lepe
    Aug 31, 2017 at 2:25
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    @lepe It's a shell builtin to read and interpret the given file. The file is interpreted in the current shell, as opposed to just writing /etc/default/locale which would execute that file as a separate program, which is pointless when all the file does is set variables.
    – Gilles 'SO- stop being evil'
    Aug 31, 2017 at 6:53
  • Synonymous with source /etc/default/locale.
    – Константин Ван
    Jun 26, 2021 at 7:52
  • Sourcing the locale file will not reset existing environment variables unless they are explicitly given in /etc/default/locale. Furthermore, variables given will not be exported, so this does not work correctly unless the current and new configuration is very similar.
    – Remember Monica
    yesterday
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If your are using a shell, then just start a new login eg. su youruserid -

test it then exit back to your original login shell

If you are using a gui, logout and login again.

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  • su youruserid - - really?! Why not simply exit the shell and restart it?!
    – ThiefMaster
    Jan 9, 2014 at 10:10
  • Because I would loose my "context", say I was developing a program, then starting a sub shell allows me to test then exit, I am still in the development directory, ready to try again. Of course logout and login will work, but starting a sub shell is quicker in my opinion.
    – X Tian
    Jan 9, 2014 at 10:17

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