Conference turris::digital_unix

8803.0. "Configuring a NULL Xserver ?" by NETRIX::"[email protected]" (John McNulty) Wed Feb 12 1997 05:48

A customer has raised the following:

They have a strange request. They are running Applix on an OSF system which
doesn't have a graphics card or display, and they're displaying it to an MLS+
system.  I believe MLS+ is not relevant to their particular problem at this
stage.  Applix has the ability to run  Macro's in the background without
opening up any windows, and they are using this feature to perform some tasks.

However, even though no windows are displayed, Applix still expects to open a
connection to a running, live X session somewhere.  They can get round this by
directing the DISPLAY to another system, but in order for this to work someone
must always be logged in.  What they would like to do is setup some kind of
dummy X session which doesn't require a user controlled login.  Either on the
OSF server, or on the target workstation.   Sort of like a /dev/null
equivalent
to an X session. 

I've never heard of anyone attempting something like this before, but then
I don't know everything.  So has anyone got any ideas on how they might 
accomplish this?   Or are they flogging a dead horse?

John

[Posted by WWW Notes gateway]

S'ok, forget it folks, I've just discovered the existance of Xvfb and 
answered my own question:


  Xvfb - virtual framebuffer X server

  Xvfb is an X server that can run on machines with no display hardware and
  no physical input devices.  It emulates a dumb framebuffer using virtual
  memory.


John
[Posted by WWW Notes gateway]