NX Server on Mepis 6.0

Thanks Adrian for the howto. How does NoMachine server and client compare to something like vnc (server and client)? Or is it more like the Linux terminal server tools?

Jon

It's much faster than VNC and it's secure by default. Try it.
By the way the client can connect to VNC and Windows Remote Protocol too.
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Check out Mepis wiki: www.mepis.org/docs
Community site: www.mepislovers.com/forums

I guess one simply connects through the preloaded Remote Desktop Connection krdc ?

Mike P

Life may not be the party we thought, but while we're here, we may as well dance.
Break M$'s shackles from your feet and free yourself with Mepis

AdrianTM, I have just downloaded the stuff to my laptop. I haven't done extensive testing (only did a server and client connection to localhost), but it is still impressive!

I will try it at work this week and see how well it works on a few older systems. Plus I'll try it on my little (but old) backup server here.

But installation and configuration went without a hitch!

Very nice

Jon

For two weeks ago I posted a request without any responders:

http://www.mepis.org/node/11275

Your post is exactly what I need!

After reading the wiki I did the installation on two machines (Mepis6.0), when installing the server I got the following warnings on both machines:

Desempaquetando nxserver (de .../nxserver_2.1.0-7_i386.deb) ...
Configurando nxserver (2.1.0-7) ...
NX> 700 Installing: server at: dom oct 08 10:33:21 2006.
NX> 700 Autodetected system: debian.
NX> 700 Install log is: /usr/NX/var/log/install.
NX> 700 WARNING: Found file: /usr/NX/etc/keys/node.localhost.id_dsa.
NX> 700 WARNING: Skipping generation keys for NX users authentication.
NX> 700 Creating configuration file: /usr/NX/etc/server.cfg.
NX> 723 Cannot start NX statistics:
NX> 709 NX statistics are disabled for this server.
NX> 700 WARNING: Error when trying to connect to NX server, error is:
NX> 700 WARNING: NX> 203 NXSSH running with pid: 15041
.
NX> 700 WARNING: nxsetup cannot validate the sanity of the current installation:
NX> 700 WARNING: the current system or NX configuration could be broken.
NX> 700 WARNING: If difficulties arise (for example sessions cannot be started),
NX> 700 WARNING: it is advisable that you try to uninstall the NX server and the
NX> 700 WARNING: NX client packages then install them again.
NX> 700 WARNING: Search also the NoMachine Knowledge Base at the URL below:
NX> 700 WARNING: http://www.nomachine.com/kb
NX> 700 WARNING: for common errors encountered when performing a software update
NX> 700 WARNING: and the related hints on how to solve them..
NX> 700 Installation of NX server was completed with warnings.
NX> 700 Please review the install log '/usr/NX/var/log/install'
NX> 700 for further details.

When I try to connect to the server on localhost I got the following error:

NX> 203 NXSSH running with pid: 26066
NX> 285 Enabling check on switch command
NX> 285 Enabling skip of SSH config files
NX> 285 Setting the preferred NX options
ssh: connect to host localhost port 22: Connection refused

The same message appears with firewall (guarddog) disabeled

The problem is on the server side because connecting to 151.1.143.116 (testdrive.nomachine.com) works great.

What am I doing wrong?

I am now posting from nx-client on my laptop connected trough the server on my desktop-machine. I had to start the sshd-daemon before any connection was accepted.

The problem I was running into is described in:

http://www.mepis.org/node/8656

I did the following:

1) update-rc.d -f ssh remove
2) update-rc.d ssh defaults

It would be good including a howto for ssh.

The quality of what I am seeing is no good. The letters are somewhat "transparent" and all "l", "i" and "!"turns yellow. Do this have something to do with diferent screens on my laptop and my desktop? ¿any fixes?

Thanks

OK, for quality do this: go to "Configure" on the client -> select "use custom settings" -> Modify -> select "Disable the render extension"

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Thanks a lot, that did the trick! I really like this stuff!

Going back to the wiki I saw the instructions for quality. Did I oversee that earlier or did you just make a new entry?

I think I got control of the bitch on my local network. The only thing left is to learn the DynDNS stuff in order to connect to my machine from anywhere.

I just added that info after I saw your question (I also added something about SSH as requested)

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Check out Mepis wiki: www.mepis.org/docs
Community site: www.mepislovers.com/forums

I do not manage to connect to my machine from the internet.

I have a DynDNS dynamic DNS
I downloaded the client update software ddclient and run it as a daemon
I have firewall turned of
I have sshd running
I have no problems connecting from my locale network
I have a Zyxel Prestige 650HW ADSL router

When I try to connect from internet I got the following error:

NX> 203 NXSSH running with pid: 20744
NX> 285 Enabling check on switch command
NX> 285 Enabling skip of SSH config files
NX> 285 Setting the preferred NX options
ssh: connect to host "myaccount".gotdns.com port 22: Connection refused

I have also tried to use http:\\checkip.dyndns.org in order to find my IP and connect directly to that IP. The result is the same as above; Connection refused

Is this a ssh config problem? I do not manage to find your entries in the wiki regarding ssh. (When I go to the wiki I do not find the nx-entries you have done either)

It might be your router (do you use NAT or direct IP address?) if you use NAT you need to forward the port 22.

What is you IP if you type ifconfig is it the same as the one you get with checkip.dyndns.org?

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Check out Mepis wiki: www.mepis.org/docs
Community site: www.mepislovers.com/forums

I am using NAT (I believe...)

Doing ifconfig gives my local static ip, with checkip.dyndns.org the IP is different

My NAT-Edit SUA/NAT server set have two entries:

(all ports)-(all ports)-(0.0.0.0): Not entered by me

and

(22)-(22)-(My local static IP): Entered by me (forward 22?)

Hay Adrian, I have found one major difference (a good one) between NX Server and VNC Server. I like the various flavors of vnc and have used them for quite a few years on, and between, windows and Linux boxes. But vncserver needs to be set up as a particular user so that when I connect to the box remotely I must be that user and use that user's password. With NX server, it is started by root and is a separate server. So once it's started, I can remotely connect as any valid user! Very nice.

I have not played with it much yet. I'm back at work so I will try loading it on a couple of my older servers and see how it works there.

Thanks again for the tip on this tool Adrian

Jon

You are welcome, I never thought about this users issue since I have only one user (and root) on my box, but it sounds useful in case you need it.

I know though that some time ago NX users were not system users, even now you can set up to have the users in NX database by editing a config file.
--
Check out Mepis wiki: www.mepis.org/docs
Community site: www.mepislovers.com/forums

Hi all,

I have just completed some other tests of NX Server and Client. I loaded NX Server and Client onto my OLD boxes. The are running Simply Mepis 3.3.1-1. After I installed all of the applications from nomachine.com I thought I would have to throw in the towel because I could not get the clients to connect.

My mistake was in incorrectly modifying /usr/NX/etc/node.cfg. First, I did not include "-fp..." in the AGENT_EXTRA_OPTIONS_X line. I had left out the dash. Once I found that, I corrected it and put in the dash. I got further and received different error logs, but still no connection. So I took out the AGENT_EXTRA_OPTIONS_X = line entirely. That's what it needed! So for SM 3.3.1-1 (don't know about 3.3.2 or 3.4) you do not need to modify /usr/NX/etc/node.cfg at all.

Once I got the server and client configured on all three of my work boxes, I wanted to be clever and start up three "remote" sessions on all three machines. They are old, slow boxes and I wanted to see how many X sessions I could get running between them before all hell broke loose. I was surprised by the result.

On local-machine-1 I started three nxclients to remote-machine-2, remote-machine-3, as well as back to local-machine-1. Then I went over to remote-machine-2 and wanted to start nxclient to remote-machine-3. What was interesting is that it started the client, but it gave me a message "restoring suspended session" to remote-machine-3? It turns out that it suspended the nxclient link from local-machine-1 to remote-machine-3 and restarted it on remote-machine-2! This is all as one particular user.

I installed the nxclient for Windows too. Then I started up the same three links from one of my Mepis boxes. I popped over to my Windows system, and started an nxclient to one of the Mepis boxes. The client that had been started in and on Mepis was "suspended" and restarted on Windows! The only error I received was on the Windows side because I was missing some "fonts" from the Linux side. And I believe there are some patches at nomachine for this.

So the rule apparently is this: One and only one remote nx session can be established for a particular remoteuser@remotemachine. If another session, from another machine is attempted for that same remote user and machine, the original link will be suspended from the old session and restored to the new session.

So in that one, minor regard, vncserver is slightly more flexible, in that multiple sessions can be established (as long as one knows how to "tweak" the port numbers).

Otherwise, a very slick tool. I have already put the "shortcuts" on my Windows box so I can administer the Mepis boxes. It never hurts to have multiple tools

Jon