rxchoose - Remote X chooser

What's this?

rxchoose is a simple bash script that automates all steps required to connect from your local linux machine to another server in your Lan that's offering XDMCP service.

Prerrequisites

Only the bash interpeter and gdm package that comes with all Gnome Desktop. Rxchoose uses gdmchooser ( included in the gdm package), that's a graphical tool to query and select XDMCPS servers. To be able to connect from/to XDMCPS servers, care attention to your local/remote firewall, a lot of times, the default configuration blocks X traffic Be sure to enable acces from your workstation to the remote servers where you wanna connect to, usually this is done executing from an xterminal the command xhost + ip_remote_server

IMPORTANT: Be sure to do this in a secure LAN!. Open X ports are dangerous in untrusted Lans.

Use

Download and untar the software packet from here.

You will get a directory called rxchoose. Inside you can see the rxchoose.sh bash script. Assuming that all prerequisites has been acomplied, executing the script you should be able to see the gdmchooser showing all XDMCP servers in your LAN. Select one of them, and in few seconds you should be presented with the graphical login screen of the remote machine. Log in as normal and enjoy ;). You can switch between your local workstation screen and remote screen with Ctrl+Alt+Fn key combination To close the session, once you have been logout from the remote session and have again the login screen, simply kill the X session with Ctrl+Alt+Backspace keys.

Note: When a remote login is presentd, in your local session you will see a xterminal session, if you close this, the remote session will be lost. I'm working on how to avoid this xterm

Testing it

To test rxchoose is not necessary to be in a LAN, with another machines giving XDMCPS service. Only follow the next steps to see what makes: First of all, I recomend to be sure that your machine is not connected to any type of network ( ADSL, PPP, etc...) 'cause we will to stop the firewall while you test rxchoose, ok?

Ok, here we go

This test is based on RedHat Linux 9, but it's applicable to all distros Make your gdm/kdm/xdm daemon to be able to offer XDMCP. Main Menu->System Settings->Login Screen ( aka GDM Setup ) select Remote = Graphical Greeter. Go to XDMCP label. Enable XDMCP and enable Honour Indirect Requests. Accept changes ( Accept button ). Stop your local firewall. Execute from an xterminal : service iptables stop Permit X connections to all. Execute from an xterminal : xhost + Excute rxchoose. Yo will see your own machine as XDMCP server. If you select it, in a few seconds you should be presented with a new graphical login Log in as user, and you will see a normal graphical session. Can switch between your first session and this new with CTrl+Alt+F7 and Ctrl+Alt+F8 combination keys When you get tired, logout from the 'remote' session, once you will have the login screen again, simply kill it with Ctrl+Alt+Backspace combination keys

TODO

First of all, make this web more accurate, explaining more in deep all the process. Give me only two or three days! Make rxchoose to be avaliable to work with chooser ( KDE XDMCP chooser )

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