[K12OSN] Remote client desktop

[Jeff Siddall]

Robert Arkiletian wrote:
> On Mon, May 25, 2009 at 6:52 PM, Jeff Siddall <news at siddall.name> wrote:
>> I am trying to find a way to remotely connect to a thin client desktop
>> for support purposes.  In LTSP4 this appeared to be done with x11vnc, or
>> an equivalent integrated VNC module.  Although I installed x11vnc in my
>> Fedora 10 K12Linux client chroot, neither it nor I can find an X server
>> running, and I cannot find any mention of a VNC module in LTSP5 either.
>>  Can someone explain where the client's X server is, and how I can
>> remotely connect to it?
>>
> 
> This is the main reason why I did not finish fl_teachertool for Fedora
> LTSP 5. I got stuck trying to get x11vnc working on the client.
> 
> If I can get x11vnc to work on the client then I should be able to get
> everything working. BTW does anyone know how to get the vnc.so module
> of X running? That's how Eric did it in K12LTSP. Then we wouldn't need
> x11vnc. Also what would be nice is if xinetd started Xvnc server so
> you can just vncviewer localhost and boom up pops a login window.
> That's how it was by default in K12LTSP. My program fl_teachertool
> came to rely on these features.
> 
> I saw Jeff's perl script and can add these links.
> 
> http://doc.edubuntu-fr.org/clientleger_x11vnc
> https://wiki.edubuntu.org/InstallX11VncOnLtspClients
> 
> I am sure we should be able to get this working.

It turned out to be easier than I thought.  The trick in Fedora appeared
to be just using the xauthority stuff.  I am aware of the edubuntu links
but it appears the edubuntu client doesn't use xauthority since their
procedure doesn't work on K12Linux (F10 based) -- I tried!

I don't see any reason that some script (could even be the one I wrote)
couldn't go somewhere where it would be started after X was running on
the client.  It would need to be modified to work a bit differently when
it starts the server (ie: using -forever and some kind of password file,
and definitely not -localhost) but that all seems pretty easy.

Jeff