[NTLUG:Discuss] Minimal XWindows Install for server

[kbrannen@gte.net]

Chris Cox wrote:
> Jack Snodgrass wrote:
> 
>> I have a remote server. There is no keyboard or monitor attached. I 
>> normally don't install X-Windows on a remote server.
>> If I wanted to do something like:
>>
>> ssh to remote server. set the DISPLAY to my local box
>> start xeyes
>> what X-Windows Software would need to be installed on the remote server? 
> 
> 
> For that, just the client and the client libraries.
> 
...
>> I guess that I don't fully grasp the server/client/XFree86/etc stuff 
>> 100%. As long as you install everything, everywhere... it works.... I 
>> am looking at the minimailistic install on the server. 

While Chris' answer is 100% correct, let me expound on it a bit, hoping to 
help over the last hurdle or two...

Client/Server as far as X Window is concerned, generally "feels" backward to 
most people upon hearing it explained the first time.

Think of the client as the application you want to run, so on the client 
machine (your remote server), you need the app and any library/data 
dependencies it has.  BTW, one of it's dependencies will be the low-level X 
libs, which contains the network protocol code it will use to talk to you over 
the network.

Think of the server as the software that controls the hardware resources that 
allow you to see and use the graphics (windows, etc).  Therefore, the X server 
must live on the machine you're using directly (what's attached to the 
keyboard, mouse, and screen you're using).  This is what allows X-Terminals to 
work as well as they do.  All they really need are enough resources to run a 
minimal kernel, and the X-Server; the client code is executing remotely 
(hopefully on a big machine) and displaying back to your local machine--the 
server of the hardware.

HTH,
Kevin