[FreeNX-kNX] ADVICE: How to try out FreeNX

[Terje Andersen]

On Thu, 22 Jan 2009 10:50:53 -0500
John Ford <jford at iup.edu> wrote:

> Mr. Franz:
> 
> I have been attempting to get FreeNX running on Debian Lenny, needing 
> more than two users allowed.  (Hence, the NoMachine server isn't 
> suitable for me.)
> 
> I went through an installation process involving downloading a number of 
> files and adding the directory of those files to my apt-sources, and 
> eventually installed FreeNX-0.6.  But it wouldn't work, always crashing 
> with "cannot stat /var/lib/nxserver/db/running/sessionID...." showing in 
> the client (NoMachine's client) window.

The version you are using is "ancient" - I would recommend you to upgrade
to the latest release (0.7.3). There are more reasons to this than the
obvious bug-fixes; new features, better support for client-->server file
/printer sharing, support for the latest NX-libraries, etc. One big problem
with the earlier versions of FreeNX, was all the misleading/incorrect
information sources that only brought confusion to new users of FreeNX - 
this is much better, or less a problem, with the latest versions.


> 
> I googled and found this error common, but few hints and no solution.
> 

Please, look at the projects homepage, or better, the project FAQ page first.

> Turns out (in my case, at least) it is because the default install 
> creates /var/log/nxserver.log - but apparently doesn't make it writeable 
> to the nx user.  I found out accidentally, when I changed the error 
> logging from "0" to "6" and decided it'd be good to change the log 
> permissions, just in case.
> 
> I'm telling you because I think SOMEBODY who understands how to 
> communicate this kind of information ought to know.  I'm new to Linux 
> and <think> this may be of use, but have absolutely no idea of the 
> "correct" place to share this.
> 

The projects wiki/FAQ would be the best place for this, but since this is
and old and unsupported version, I would again advice you to upgrade.
On the wiki/FAQ page, you can also find information on how to (really simple)
compile the NX libraries yourself, and install the FreeNX server - this is
what I would advice you on the Debian platform since the (current) nature of
the NX libraries doesn't allow it to enter the repositories. On *buntu, you
should do as others have replied with instructions for, or look at the 
wiki/FAQ page for information. Most platforms have a stable repository for
FreeNX, including (but not limited to): Gentoo, Fedora, CentOS, *buntu.

You can find the wiki/FAQ here:
http://openfacts2.berlios.de/wikien/index.php/BerliosProject:FreeNX_-_FAQ

PS! If you register for an account at berlios.de, remember that it can take
up to 24 hours for it to be activated.

> I apologize for the intrusion on your time.  Thank you for your efforts 
> at supporting open source software.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> John Ford
> Associate Professor of Chemistry
> 

Regards,
Terje