[SLUG] Optimize remote X11 Session

From: btt@nethouse.com
Date: Tue Jan 21 2003 - 15:16:33 EST


Hello,

I'm trying to optimize a remote X11 session between a windows box
running cygwin (the display) and a linux box running XFree 4.2.0 (the
client?). I don't want to use ssh because I'm behind a nat'ing router
and am not concerned about evildoers. The main reason for not using
ssh is that I don't want to pay the performance hit (which seems
unnecessarily large in my situation, even with protocol 1, blowfish
enc.) So far, I've tried using two different ways: telnet and rsh.

In basic terms, here's what I think needs to happen in order for the
scenario to work:

 1. X server needs to start on cygwin
 2. something in .xinitrc needs to log me into gentoo box
 3. display needs to be set to cygwin:0.0 in gentoo environment
 4. command startkde need to be run on gentoo

At first I was using telnet... just starting the cygwin bash shell
shortcut (the one they give you on install), telnetting over to
gentoo, logging in manually and running startkde. It works pretty
well, but it is kind of a hassle to do all of that every time. One
good thing about this way is that when I log out, everything shuts
down nicely and cleanly.

The method I'm using now, is _very_ convienent. I feel so decadent
when I use it :). Here it is:

On cygwin:
1. A startx batch file chdirs to the cygwin root and:
   bash --login /usr/X11R6/bin/startx
   that starts the x server which then reads .xinitrc on cygwin...
2. .xinitrc on cygwin then xhosts +gentoo to allow the back
   connection, then runs 'rsh gentoo /home/me/.rsh_login' which, from
   (gentoo #2) below sets the display and starts kde.

On gentoo:
1. I have rshd set up, and /etc/hosts.equiv to allow me access from
   the cygwin machine.
2. I have a script called .rsh_login that uses a bash login shell
   (#!/bin/bash --login) to set $DISPLAY and then run startkde. If I
   don't use --login, then my environment is not set up properly and
   my $PATH ends up being something like '/bin:/usr/bin' which doesn't
   get me very far.

It works ok. I am a mere doubleclick away from having my gentoo box's
kde desktop in a window on my windows box. Life is good. Yet, when I
choose logout from kde, kde quits out, but the x11 server doesn't seem
to shut down properly. So I click and close that window. Then... I'm
left with the windows batchfile window, where the startx concoction is
still running. So I have to close manually... but not after being
reminded that I'm going to lose my unsaved work.

My question is... is there a better way without using ssh? I'm more
of a windows novice than a linux novice, but I've never used rsh, so
maybe I'm not understanding what's going on with that. The stuck
command does seems to be rsh, as the window's batchfile titlebar says,
"RSH"...

Thanks!



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