__/ [ BearItAll ] on Monday 05 June 2006 14:16 \__
> Roy Schestowitz wrote:
>
>>
>
http://dizwell.com/main/index2.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=72&Itemid=95&pop=1&page=0
>>
>> ,----[ Quote ]
>> | what I need is a physical Linux server I can turn to in a few seconds,
>> | just like the Windows physical PC. But there's poor old Sibelius to
>> | worry about still... so what I need is a Linux server hidden in the
>> | spare room, but which I can control remotely so that it is just as much
>> | "right there", at my fingertips, as my physical Windows machine is.
>> `----
>
> VNC is a good solution, not only for this farmer, but for any IT and many
> home users.
Linux can do both -- shall we call them -- paradigms. Windows, on the other
hand, with old software such as Norton PCAnywhere, or Citrix clients, or VNC
*cannot*, unless you SSH /RLogin to a *nix server with X-forwarding enabled
(X-Server or Cygwin would do the trick).
> But the trick is to Not send the whole desktop down the line. Instead setup
> a directory with links to those things you use, the actual applications. A
> directory of links is as good as a menu.
I believe you might be missing something here. Decide on a virtual desktop
for each remote computer. Then, launch 'gnome-panel' for GNOME or 'kicker'
for KDE. You will be working locally as if you were there (on the remote
machine/s). Only your wallpaper will vary and a simple CTRL+<NUM> will have
you jump from one machine (virtual desktop) to another. All in all, it is
far more flexible (and thus powerful) as a working framework. It is also
less bandwidth-intensive, especially if you reduce the colour depth (X acts
as a server with this free paramater).
> I often work on my linux server at home via my suse laptop. The server is a
> much more powerfull machine, so dealing with large databases etc is a
> breeze for it. The only problem is that you have to remember which
> applications you are running local and which are on the server. I have got
> to work a few times to discover my work is actually on the server at home.
Back when I was working on some applications, I found it useful to program
them in such a way so that the hostname is displayed in the titlebar (window
heading). With SUSE 9.3 at home, this seems to already be indicated whenever
I work with a remote applications. I suppose that change to the window
decorations would make this more prominent, but I don't think that's
possible, yet. In fact, the window decorations are determined locally and
you can only use one at a time, unless I'm missing something.
> I even did a trip to Germany like that once, laptop tucked under my arm,
> database safely at home, and I couldn't even VPN in to home because I was
> going to be away for a couple of weeks and in my wisdom I had shut
> everything down. I was just lucky that the Germans had a major server fault
> so it gave me a few days to mail a key to work, get someone to go to my
> house and turn the server on.
The other thing to mind is this factor which is stability. A flaky system
could, in principle, be reboot remotely (sudo reboot), shall it be needed,
and work resumed within a couple of minutes (reconnection only requires
bootsrapping). If the system fails completely (e.g. BSoD in Windows), all
hope is lost as you have no physical contact with the server/host.
Therefore, never rely on a remote Windows box. It may become inaccessible
while you're away, probably needing to do the most urgent thing in the world
(Luck by a Lady).
Best wishes,
Roy
--
Roy S. Schestowitz
http://Schestowitz.com | SuSE Linux ¦ PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
3:05pm up 38 days 20:38, 11 users, load average: 2.83, 2.63, 2.33
http://iuron.com - Open Source knowledge engine project
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