I'd like to have a remote GUI connection to my Ubuntu linux slave, from my Windows machine. I've done this before with other means, but this time I'd like to give VNC a try.

So, VNC is setup and I can connect with TightVNC from my Windows machine, but all I end up with is a window with a grey-white pattern, X cursor, and x11 listed as the window's title. Any ideas how I'd get into Gnome and such?

Danke.

Open a terminal in Ubuntu, and type x11vnc -bg -many -forever -display :0 Then connect from Windows with vnc.

With Fedora theres some setting to share the main desktop. It gets shared as number 0. Usually number > 0 means its a new, independent desktop.

If you just want to change the WM of the independent desktop, thats a bit easier. You have to change the parameters to vncserver. No idea what config file Ubuntu stores parameters to vncserver.

I don't have an x11vnc command

sudo apt-get install x11vnc

Alright, x11vnc errors:
Xlib: connection to "0:0" refused by server
Xlib: No protocol specified

xhost +localhost

or xhost +hostnamehere

I usually just leave the hostname off, but thats "unsafe".

When executing apt-get or x11vnc? Do you have a desktop session running already at desk 0?

Freenx is better. Way better.

FreeNX doesnt attach to your running X though. least not till knx is finished (if it ever is...).

That "wait for knx" is getting old already Although that is actually why I don't use it at all.

xhost: unable to open display ""

When executing x11vnc, of course I don't believe there's a desktop session already running. The machine is headless, and there are no other remote connections to it.

I dunno, I'll be using it on my new "server".

Sorry, DISPLAY=:0 xhost +localhost

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX:~$ DISPLAY=:0 xhost +localhost
Xlib: connection to ":0.0" refused by server
Xlib: No protocol specified

xhost:  unable to open display ":0"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX:~$

EDIT:
If I use Display 1, it sits there and doesn't do anything (and connecting with VNC causes it to die).

well :0 is the default. if xhost can't connect, something is wrong.

Here, I used this guide (among others) to configure VNC on Ubuntu: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=122402.

He already said what is the problem: the Ubuntu did not launch a desktop, that is why display:0 does not exist. Either they deliberately don't boot the graphical interface, or there is a driver problem there.

Try this instead:

startx &
#or xinit &
DISPLAY=:0
xhost +localhost
x11vnc -bg -many -forever -display :0

Ah. if it doesn't have an already running desktop, just use NX. FreeNX or otherwise. Its much better.

FreeNX is like the MS RDP of Linux. VNC is inefficient because it just streams screenshots, but NX/RDP are more efficient/faster/better because they are lower level.

Is NX anything like remote X?
If so, I'm sticking with VNC, remote X is sloooooooow.

Uh, Remote X is normally faster than VNC for me, but NX is like remote X, but compressed and optimized at the protocol level. NX is as fast or faster than Windows Remote Desktop (RDP).

NX also supports forwarding audio, xrender, serial, parallel, USB, and other devices along.

No, NX is basically a proxy for remote X: in X, the client tells the server "move the mouse here", and the server returns "this happens" then "this also" and then "this also" (in other words, a single message sent by the client can generate three replies from the server). When using NX, your client tells the NX server "move the mouse here", and the NX server tells X "move the mouse here", the X server will tell NX "this happens" then "this also" and then "this also", and since NX is local, that communication is fast, with NX server communicating the client the result, effectively saving communication through internet.

The NX site has a better explanation for sure

(Edited: This is in reply to James!)

Yup, it saves all of the extra roundtrips X has (hence the optimized bit I put in), but its also compressed and encrypted via SSH