VNC
TightVNC is a free remote control software package derived from the popular VNC software. With TightVNC, you can see the desktop of a remote computer and control it with your local mouse and keyboard, just like you would do sitting in front of that computer. TightVNC is available for different platforms as Unix/Linux and MS Windows.
We have installed the VNC server program on our GNU/Linux server triton.dsv.su.se. From home you will be able to connect your PC to the VNC server at triton with a VNC client, for example TightVNC. You will then be able to use the DSV GNU/Linux system as if you were using a GNU/Linux PC in the DSV computer rooms.
To avoid sending the password in clear text when using a VNC client to the server triton the connection must be tunneled with SSH. Below you will find how to setup the SSH tunnel.
Connect from a MS Windows PC
Start with installing a VNC client software on your MS Windows PC. You can find the TightVNC client program at http://tightvnc.org/.
Set up the SSH tunnel with for example the PuTTY program. Do it like this:
- Install the SSH client PuTTY if that is not already done. You can find PuTTY at www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/
- Start PuTTY.
- In the configuration window enter "triton.dsv.su.se" in the Host name field and mark SSH as protocol to use.
- Choose "Connections : SSH : Tunnels" in the Category menu to the left.
- Under "Add new forwarded port:", write "5900" in the Source port field and "localhost:5900" in the Destination field and click on Add.
- Choose Session in Category to the left and in the Saved session field write for example "vnc triton" and click on Save so the tunnel definition is saved for future PuTTY tunnel sessions.
- Click on Open and login on triton.dsv.su.se in the virtual terminal window which is opened.
- The tunnel has now been setup so you can minimize the virtual terminal window.
- Start the VNC client on the local PC.
- As VNC server write "localhost" and click on OK.
- Login on triton with your login ID and Kerberos password.
- Use the graphical environment on triton. Logout from triton when you are finished. Bring up the PuTTY window and logout from there as well with the exit command.
In future sessions you should start PuTTY and then double click on "vnc triton" under Saved sessions. Login on triton and run the VNC client as above.
VNC will use the resolution 800x600 as default. To use the resolution 1024x768 you must run PuTTY with Destination set to "localhost:5901". For the resolution 1280x1024 you should set "localhost:5902". Click on Option in TightVNC and choose Display "Full-screen mode".
Connect from a GNU/Linux PC
Install the TightVNC X viewer from http://tightvnc.org/.
XTightVNCviewer has built in support for SSH tunneling with the option "-via gateway", see "man xtightvncviewer". To connect to the DSV GNU/Linux server triton.dsv.su.se then give the following shell command:
xtightvncviewer -via username@triton.dsv.su.se localhost
To get the screen in a different resolution then give any of the following shell commands:
800x600:
xtightvncviewer -fullscreen -via username@triton.dsv.su.se localhost:0
1024x768:
xtightvncviewer -fullscreen -via username@triton.dsv.su.se localhost:1
1280x1024:
xtightvncviewer -fullscreen -via username@triton.dsv.su.se localhost:2
