Subject: FVWM: Display Manager for FVWM

From: Roman <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 08 Feb 2005 21:54:11 +0100

Hello,
I'm using FVWM since a few months now. First I started the easiest way 
and used the .xinitrc to start fvwm. That works fine, but as soon as I 
want to switch over to an other user without shutting down all running 
programs it isn't a good solution. So i tried xdm, but that was not what 
a really wanted.
I'd like to have a somewhat more sophisticated display manager like gdm 
or kdm. Are there any other display manager who are capable of managing 
different sessions at a time, ...? Or has anybody some experience with 
setting up gdm or kdm for fvwm - I mean without installing the whole kde 
or gnome packages?

Thanks in advance for your advice.
Roman
--
Visit the official FVWM web page at <URL: http://www.fvwm.org/>.
To unsubscribe from the list, send "unsubscribe fvwm" in the body of a
message to [email-masked].
To report problems, send mail to [email-masked].

---

From: Michelle Konzack <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2005 22:48:56 +0100

> setting up gdm or kdm for fvwm - I mean without installing the whole kde 

Try "wdm" which is a bug-compatible enhanced xdm :-)

> Thanks in advance for your advice.

Greetings
Michelle

-- 
Linux-User #280138 with the Linux Counter, http://counter.li.org/ 
Michelle Konzack   Apt. 917                  ICQ #328449886
                   50, rue de Soultz         MSM LinuxMichi
0033/3/88452356    67100 Strasbourg/France   IRC #Debian (irc.icq.com)

---

From: Thomas Adam <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2005 22:04:19 +0000

> Hello,

Hello -

> programs it isn't a good solution. So i tried xdm, but that was not
> what a really wanted. I'd like to have a somewhat more sophisticated
> display manager like gdm or kdm. Are there any other display manager

Are you sure you don't mean a session manager, or at least something
else?  I haven't used {K,G}DM in a while, but I was not aware any of
them could be used as "context switchers" in that regard.  Of course, a
display manager is just a graphical means to login (essentially) - what
kind of other sophistication would you *need*, let alone want?

> who are capable of managing different sessions at a time, ...? Or has

'wdm' is another display manager, and there is also 'sdm'.

> anybody some experience with setting up gdm or kdm for fvwm - I mean
> without installing the whole kde or gnome packages?

Sorry, but in order for either {G,K}DM to function, you're going to need
the whole suite of applications that goes with it.  One possible
solution is to start xdm on display :1, :2, etc.

-- Thomas Adam

-- 
I know nothing, and understand even less.

---

From: Roman <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 09 Feb 2005 12:43:12 +0100

Hello again!

>kind of other sophistication would you *need*, let alone want?
Maybe you are right and a session manager is what I'm really looking 
for. I don't know, because I haven't found out what's the difference 
between a session manager and a display manager. Both words are commonly 
used in the same context.
For what kind of sophistication: principially as much as possibly ;) - 
But when I wrote before, I meant similar capabilities as in WinXP. 
That's on the one hand a graphical login and a possibility to shutdown 
or restart the system without logging in before. (As far as I understand 
that's the purpose of a display manager) On the other hand I want to be 
able to simply switch the logged in user and then back again without 
disrupting any running programs. At least the newest version of kdm has 
this feature.

>'wdm' is another display manager, and there is also 'sdm'.
wdm sounds like a program, which is a step nearer the way I want it. 
I'll take a closer look at that.
sdm is only for remote sessions not for local ones

>solution is to start xdm on display :1, :2, etc.
I took a nearer look at gdm. There I'd need to install about 8 to 10 
additional libraries to get it to work. That would be worth it if it has 
all of the above mentioned capabilities.

>-- Thomas Adam
thanks for your answers

Roman

---

From: Thomas Adam <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 9 Feb 2005 17:08:18 +0000

> Hello again!

Hello.  :)

> between a session manager and a display manager. Both words are
> commonly used in the same context. For what kind of sophistication:

If they're used in the same context, whomever is doing so is in grave
error.  Let me explain.  A session manager is a program which is
responsible for saving the running state of open programs so that in
theory [1] when one logs out, and logs in again, the programs are
restored in their last-saved state.  This ought to include geometry and
open programs, but this last point is a sore area for many session
managers.

A display manager, however, simply provides a graphical means for users
to login.  At the most, this is all xdm does, but it can be customised
to do a whole lot of other things, that quite frankly, people don't
bother to look at, because they're unaware of the fact.  {K,G,W}DM
however, offer more flashier in-built functions such as selecting which
window manager/desktop environment to load, whether one is to restore
their previous session or not, whether the machine should be shutdown,
etc.  But that's all they do.  Nothing more.

> principially as much as possibly ;) - But when I wrote before, I meant
> similar capabilities as in WinXP. That's on the one hand a graphical
> login and a possibility to shutdown or restart the system without
> logging in before. (As far as I understand that's the purpose of a
> display manager) On the other hand I want to be able to simply switch

Right.  Then you are referring to the concept of "fast user switching".
Something that Linux doesn't have (but you can emulate it).
Essentially, you can start a known display manager on display(s) :0, :1,
:2, etc, and then have a locking mechanism available so that users can
switch between their displays.  In that instance, the VTs will most
likely be tty7 for :0, tty8 for :1, tty9 for :2, etc., and whenever the
user wants to access theirs, they switch to it, and if there is a
screensaver running, they can enter a password to resume their work.
Although I do have to stress the importance of resource usgae here.  It
may well be that you run out of system resources fast, if any one of you
is doing anything particularly intensive.

> the logged in user and then back again without disrupting any running
> programs. At least the newest version of kdm has this feature.

I'd have said that was more a facet of the desktop environment, and
*not* the display manager.  But I don't use a display manager that
often...

> I'll take a closer look at that. sdm is only for remote sessions not
> for local ones

I mentioned sdm, only because it exists.

> thanks for your answers

You're welcome.

-- Thomas Adam

[1]  I really do mean the "in theory" bit.  Session managers are very
hit and miss about such things.  :)

---

From: Richard Lister <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 09 Feb 2005 13:28:49 -0500 (EST)

Thomas Adam <[email-masked]> wrote
on Wed, 9 Feb 2005 17:08:18 +0000:
>
> Subject: Re: FVWM: Display Manager for FVWM
> 

If you're using gdm, run gdmflexiserver to start a new gdm instance
on the next free vt, normally 8. You can then switch back and forth
with ctrl-alt-f7 and ctrl-alt-f8.

This works on linux. I don't know how the vts are handled on other OS.

Cheers
Ric

---

From: jpkotta <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 12 Feb 2005 15:33:10 -0600

I have a bash function that will start X on a new display (it uses the  
lowest display number that's not currently being used) every time you run  
"startwm".  If you want an easy way to start several X sessions, without  
the need to install a display manager, this will do it.  If you want the  
fast user switching, this is not quite it.

I have this in my .bashrc:

# starts a new X server with a given windowmanager
# passes args to .xinitrc
function startwm()
{   # find next available display
     disp=0
     while [[ -e /tmp/.X${disp}-lock && $disp -lt 5 ]] ; do
         disp=$(( $disp + 1 ))
     done
     # backup previous log file
     mv -f $HOME/.X-log-$disp $HOME/.X-log-$disp.old
     startx $@ -- :$disp >& $HOME/.X-log-$disp &
}

And this in my .xinitrc:

# setup xmodmap, because certain programs (e.g. Mathematica and fvwm)  
require certain settings
if [ -r "$HOME/.xmodmaprc" ] ; then
     xmodmap $HOME/.xmodmaprc
fi

if [ "$1" == "fvwm" ] ; then
     fvwm
elif [ "$1" == "icewm" ] ; then
     starticewm
elif [ "$1" == "enlightenment" ] ; then
     enlightenment
elif [ "$1" == "other" ] ; then
     # shifts off parameter $1
     # and executes the remaining parameters
     shift 1
     "$@"
fi

jpkotta