running X-windows from a thin client

[Sander van der Linden]

Our new HP 9000/RP 3410 server came shipped with a Windows CE thin client. It enables you to set up a Telnet remote terminal.

I tried to start 'Startx' but it responds with: X server: Error in /etc/X11/X0screens (line 614)
Device name invalid or missing after keyword "Screen".
X server: Will try default "/dev/crt"
Failure to open default device file `/dev/crt`.
Please either specify the proper device filename in
your /etc/X11/X0screens file or fix `/dev/crt`. This filename is either
non-existent or is not a character special file.

How do I fix the '/dev/crt' file. As you might have noticed, I'm a Unix rookie....

[Steven E. Protter]

In general, you need some kind of third party application on the client to utilize X windows. On a regular windows box, that would be an X emulator like hummingbird.

In this case, you need to find a client that works with Windows CE.

That may or may not exist.

For X to work properly the file /etc/rc.config.d/xfs file must have its first variable set to 1.

That makes sure the font server is running at boot.

/sbin/init.d/xfs start

starts the font server at the command line as root user.

Next the client must have the varibale DISPLAY set as follows:

DISPLAY=ip_address_or_hostname:0.0


example

DISPLAY=192.168.0.10:0.0
export DISPLAY

I'm not sure however that any of this will yeild positive results.

SEP

[Chris Vail]

This is another excellent place to consider Citrix Metaframe for Unix. It allows thin clients (even REALLY thin clients) to run X without purchasing a dedicated X server such as Hummingbird or Reflection. It certainly uses few resources unlike these others. Fundamentally, it uses the standard Citrix client and connects through the MFU daemon to the X server on the Unix system. Since almost any unix system is more powerful than almost any Windows system, this moves the computing task of window management off the client and back to the server.
Its not expensive--a 3 user license is less than $2K USD. Additional licenses may be purchased OR it will share licensing with other citrix products on your network. \
They offer a 99 user, 120 day free evaluation if you'll just call 'em. It installs on Unix easily (HP, SUN, IBM). They offer the NFUSE option which web-enables MFU--you don't even have to install their (otherwise free) client.
It is the worst marketed software I've ever seen. I'm contemplating presenting a paper on it at Unix world next August.

Chris