[mythtv-users] How can I get my monitorless backend to start up

[Yan Seiner]

On Fri, April 17, 2009 2:16 pm, Steve V wrote:
> I am trying to set up a backend which will be monitorless and also without
> keyboard and mouse. I have MythBuntu 8.10 installed.
>
> I am planning to use VNC to manage the backend. VNC works fine if I first
> boot the backend with a monitor attached.
>
> Problem is that the backend will not start up completely without a
> monitor. In this state I can ping the backend and I can connect via Putty,
> but, Mythfrontend cannot connect to the backend and VNC server has not
> started.
>
> When the the backend is started without a monitor and I then connect a
> monitor It looks like I am in an X window (newbie on Linux so hopefully
> that is the correct description) with warnings about no monitor and that
> resolution has been set to default, pushing Ok or cancel I get an error
> (from the monitor) that the frequency is out of range. Only choice is to
> reboot with the monitor connected.
>
> I expect there is some setting that I can set which tells system not to
> check for a monitor (and perhaps to set to last known good
> reolution/output).

You need to configure your bios to start up on all errors.

If you will be administering your box from another linux box, forget vnc;
it's a PITA unless you need what it offers, and if it dies you are SOL.

Use gdm; configure it to start up with no local sessions and allow remote
connections.  Then you can log in from any other terminal as if you were
local.  Lots faster than VNC, too.  google for gdm and XDMCP.

See

http://www.ltsp.org/twiki/bin/view/Ltsp/XDMCP-GDM

setting it up is a one-line change in /etc/gdm/gdm.conf

--Yan

-- 
Yan Seiner, PE

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