add new users that can login via X-windows

[RockMumbles]

probono,

Check out this thread about how to setup knoppix as a network X login server:

http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=6873#6873

rock

[true1ever]

Hi everyone,

I set up a script to do this automatically. It will set up kdm to accept sessions and makes the required changes to allow you to add new users to the system. Run this in a root shell (you can get a root terminal in the KNOPPIX menu).

On the client machine, boot knoppix up with "knoppix 2" cheatcode and then type "X -broadcast" when you get the # prompt.

Here's the script:

#!/bin/bash
cp /etc/kde3/kdm/Xaccess /ramdisk
cp /etc/kde3/kdm/kdmrc /ramdisk
rm -r /etc/kde3/kdm/Xaccess
rm -r /etc/kde3/kdm/kdmrc
sed 's/^#\*/\*/g' < /ramdisk/Xaccess > /ramdisk/Xaccess1
mv -f /ramdisk/Xaccess1 /ramdisk/Xaccess
sed 's/^Enable=false/Enable=true/g' < /ramdisk/kdmrc > /ramdisk/kdmrc1
mv -f /ramdisk/kdmrc1 /ramdisk/kdmrc
ln -s /ramdisk/Xaccess /etc/kde3/kdm/Xaccess
ln -s /ramdisk/kdmrc /etc/kde3/kdm/kdmrc
/etc/init.d/kdm restart
cp /etc/gshadow /etc/gshadow1
mv -f /etc/gshadow1 /etc/gshadow
echo To add users: adduser username

[true1ever]

Some strange behaviour (bugs?) I have encountered is that if you log in as knoppix on the client machine, when you log out it logs the server out and reboots it also.
The other thing I noticed is that if you create additional users using adduser, you can log in as them through remote kdm but the language on all the icons/programs is German. Anyone else have this happen?

regards,
Jim

[RockMumbles]

What knoppix version are you running on your server?

On my 3.1 1-20 (I think) I can log out of my X-terminal and get the kdm login window back. Did you boot your server in runlevel 5 or runlevel 2, maybe something else to do in your script is to:

chmod -x /etc/init.d/xsession

you will need to start in runlevel 2 then run your script, then everything should be OK, if xsession is ran at all you I would expect that you would reboot at logout.

as far as your language problem, after you do the adduser, delete all of the files in the users home directory, if you start with an empty directory you'll get the correct language or maybe the kde setup wizard and you can select the language from there. I just tried my system and "kontrolzentrum?" control center crashed so I had to delete the contents of /home/user then kde started up in english, /etc/skel is set up to be ran only by user knoppix and when you create another user the home directories get messed up, a very documented problem with hd installs.

rock

[probono]

Thanks a lot. That sholud bring some old 586s to life

[probono]

After a lot of fiddling I got it working. I am writing this from a "thin client" off my main computer. I think what would be useful is if in addition to the Knoppix Terminal Server menu entry, a new one was also created called Knoppix remote xdm (or some other fitting name) that would set up the proper configuration for connecting remotely via a thin-client. Jim

Great idea! Could you please adjust your script so that it's point-and-click and send it to Klaus Knopper? I'm confident he will include it.

[true1ever]

Rockmumbles,

The newest version 3.2 03-30. I booted the server up normally in level 5, then ran the script at a root prompt. I wanted to be able to run Xwindows on both the server and the thin-client. Your suggestion is to boot server in level 2 and then startx, right?

Thanks for your explanation of the language problem. Now that we know what it is, should be easy to fix...
Jim

[true1ever]

Probono,

Thanks for your vote of confidence ... Anyway, if you would like, feel free to suggest to Klaus about including something like this, I imagine he might write a script that might be a little bit better than the one I put together, I am still amazed at his insight and coding abilities in getting knoppix to where it is now.

regards,
Jim

[RockMumbles]

On the server machine boot up in runlevel 2 and run your script, the script line:

/etc/init.d/kdm start

(you have " restart " as long as kdm gets started that's all that matters) will start the kdm login screen on display :0

You don't need to run startx unless you want to run a local X session on that machine (server), then you will have to startx -- :1 ( startx space dash dash space colon one) to start the local server on vtt6 (your second virtual terminal) Note: if you log out of the remote machine you may also get logged out of your local session.

rock

[true1ever]

That gives me an idea... Perhaps it would be cool to also have cheatcodes to do this automatically, perhaps as:
knoppix thinclientserver
and
knoppix thinclient

that would start it as either a server or a client? what do you guys think?