x11vnc

[redge]

x11vnc: a VNC server for real X displays
http://www.karlrunge.com/x11vnc/

x11vnc allows one to view remotely and interact with real X displays (i.e. a display corresponding to a physical monitor, keyboard, and mouse) with any VNC viewer. In this way it plays the role for Unix/X11 that WinVNC plays for Windows.

It has built-in SSL encryption and RSA authentication, UNIX account and password support, server-side scaling, single port HTTPS and VNC, mDNS service advertising, and TightVNC and UltraVNC file-transfer. It has also been extended to work with non-X devices: webcams and TV tuner capture devices, embedded Linux systems such as Qtopia Core, and natively on Mac OS X Aqua/Quartz.

It also provides an encrypted Terminal Services mode (-create, -svc, or -xdmsvc options) based on Unix usernames and Unix passwords where the user does not need to memorize his VNC display/port number. See also the tsvnc terminal services mode of the SSVNC viewer.



SSVNC: An x11vnc side-project provides an Enhanced TightVNC Viewer package (SSVNC) for Unix, Windows, and Mac OS X with automatic SSL and/or SSH tunnelling support, SSL Certificate creation, saved connection profiles, and built-in Proxy support. And for the Unix viewer: NewFBSize, ZRLE, cursor alphablending, and low color modes. Also on Unix the UltraVNC File Transfer, Text Chat, Single Window, Server Input, and 1/n Scaling extensions are supported. This bundle could be placed on, say, a USB memory stick for SSL/SSH VNC viewing from nearly any networked computer. Please help test out some recently added features: automatic service tunnelling via SSH for: CUPS and SMB Printing, ESD/ARTSD Audio, and SMB (Windows/Samba) filesystem mounting; Port Knocking; and the sshvnc/tsvnc modes.
http://www.karlrunge.com/x11vnc/ssvnc.html
[topic=13693][/topic]

[redge]

Would be very happy for an install/update of heard excellence of x11vnc on Unix but would be on a macos.x 10.6 snow leopard like x11vnc.dmg that just need to drag for install/update would be amazing like modern and simple application on a mac os.x universal

I want to try OpenGL to OpenGL via ssvnc direct to x11vnc

The MacOSX native server can now use OpenGL for the screen capture. In nearly all cases this is faster than the raw framebuffer capture method.

I would give donation to anyone, but need someone can check before me if there no backdoor hack.
just tell me how much before start work for sure if success

[B]

redge, Karl has multiple OSX ready binaries linked off his site (hosted at SourceForge) but they're CPU dependent. No universal binaries as far as I know!

http://www.karlrunge.com/x11vnc/bins/

I've tested but found, only by elimination and frustration, that none of the builds work with OSX 10.3. The "competing" Vines OSX server has a universal binary (PPC/Intel).

[redge]

i see but is not simple like just drag and drop app from x11vmc.dmg to application folder.

[B]

Actually, redge, it's (arguably) even more simple. The application binary is a single executable. You can drag it directly to Applications if you want. You might want to rename it to "x11vnc.app" in the OSX Finder, which should automatically make it executable, and the short name is easier to type.

Then you have to run it at the command line in a Terminal session.

But I would agree that a "GUIfied" version would be easier for most people. Chunk includes a quickie wrapper in a DMG around x11vnc, but it's single-purpose.

Edit: x11vnc <b>does</b> include a GUI mode. You just start it from the command line (or via an Applescript) with "x11vnc -gui".

I see I can create a shell script (in AppleScript's Script Editor) that contains:

do shell script "/path/x11vnc.app' -gui"

Double clicking that script will automatically launch x11vnc in GUI mode. You can include other parameters as well (e.g. listening port).

[krunge]

I want to try OpenGL to OpenGL via ssvnc direct to x11vnc

The MacOSX native server can now use OpenGL for the screen capture. In nearly all cases this is faster than the raw framebuffer capture method.

Redge, this isn't what you think it is. It is not sending OpenGL commands to the viewer side. It just uses OpenGL to read pixels locally from the display into memory. On recent macs this OpenGL read pixels method can be about 100X faster (think DMA) than the old pixel reading method (think PIO.) This can make a noticable difference in interactive response (on some macs the old way can take 1-2 secs to read the full screen into memory vs. 0.01-0.02 secs for the OpenGL way)

[B]

Hi Karl! Is there a way for x11vnc to continue listening after a remote server has disconnected when x11vnc is running in repeater mode? (In my first tests it doesn't allow automatic reconnects but rather ends after the remote reverse-connecting server disconnects.) Because if it can, then it makes for a great VNC-agnostic repeater...

[redge]

krunge, thank you for your clarification
so is this way ... OpenGL --> TurboVNC --> x11vnc ---> ssvnc --> turboVNC --> OpenGL , correct ?

[krunge]

krunge, thank you for your clarification
so is this way ... OpenGL --> TurboVNC --> x11vnc ---> ssvnc --> turboVNC --> OpenGL , correct ?

No, that's not what is going on.

On macosx x11vnc now happens to use OpenGL's interface 'glReadPixels' to read pixels from the screen into its copy in RAM. This has nothing to do with TurboVNC.

x11vnc (if compiled to) can support TurboVNC. All TurboVNC is is a JPEG-only implementation of TightVNC with a fast JPEG compression library (proprietary from Intel) and, if I remember correctly, some tweaking parameters for the tight encoding.

You are perhaps confused by the fact that TurboVNC/TurboJPEG comes from the VirtualGL project that tries to export GL rendering to remote viewers (in one case the viewer is VNC based TurboVNC, in the other case the viewer uses VirtualGL's own special, non-VNC protocol.) If I understand VirtualGL correctly, the sending of 'frames' to remote viewers is always just 2D snapshots compressed with JPEG. There is no 3D or OpenGL stuff sent out on the network wire to the viewer in either VirtualGL or TurboVNC.

On the SSVNC side, if it is compiled to, it can support TurboVNC and uses the same fast JPEG library. That's it. Nothing related to OpenGL is involved.

So there is nothing really fancy going on. To be honest I don't see a noticeable speedup in interactive response using TurboVNC/TurboJPEG for the type of remote viewing that I do. Do you?

[redge]

thank you Karl for the clarification about OpenGL et TurboVNC

my test failed to run x11vnc, i'm not friendly of macosx/unix command
i should stick on basic usage of remote desktop

[kassah]

If I start x11vnc before a VNC repeater is available for connection (for -connect) it seems to fall back to listening for VNC connections locally.

Is there a way to have it retry to the VNC Repeater periodically (and to control that frequency)? I have been having trouble with keep the connection to the repeater alive and recovering after ISP outages.

Thanks,
Will