[ale] Running like a thin client after boot up in Xubuntu

[Brian Pitts]

Brian Pitts wrote:
> Daniel Howard wrote:
>> I have an older laptop, also recently donated to GOSEF, that works 
>> reasonably well with Xubuntu using a PCMCIA card for Ethernet, so I went 
>> ahead and installed it.  I'd really like to use it as a thin client 
>> since one of the schools I did recently had a break-in and lost 4 of the 
>> laptops I'd set up previously there as thin clients.  Is there an easy 
>> way for me to have this laptop fully boot in Xubuntu while hanging off 
>> the network switch that the K12LTSP server uses to feed the thin 
>> clients, and then automatically launch a remote X session on the server 
>> so it can run apps off the server like the other thin clients?

I can't resist a few more answers:

#3. This lets you run local apps as well as apps on the thin client's
server simultaneously.

Configure XDMCP on the machine that acts as the server for the thin
clients like in answer #1. Install Xnest on Xubuntu. Instead of logging
in to the thin client server via gdm, just log in locally. Run "Xnest
-query the_server :1", replacing the_server with the fqdn or ip address
of the thin client server, of course. You'll now see a window with a
login screen for the thin client server.

You could set the Xnest command to run on login via gnome's session
preferences. If you want to make it run for every user who logs in, you
could setup an entry for it in /etc/xdg/autostart.

#4. Like #3, but with encryption.

Configure XDMCP on the thin client server like in answer #1. Install
Xnest on the thin client server. Log in locally on Xubuntu. Connect to
the thin client server with "ssh -X".  Run "Xnest :1 -query localhost"

If you set up key-based authentication for ssh you could add this to the
session as explained in #3.

#5. It should be possible to remove XDMCP from the picture in #4 and run
something like "xinit -- Xnest :1" after sshing to the thin client
server. Trying this led to frustration for me, but someone with more X
experience could doubtless get it working.

#6 Instead of having the user run a full-desktop off the thin-client
server in its own window, create shortcuts of the form "ssh -fX
the_server the_program" for each program you want them to run off the
thin client server.

I'm through spouting off for the night; I'm sure the list can come up
with even more variations.

-Brian