Enable Xubuntu remote desktop access with Vino VNC

Xubuntu 14.04 does not come with VNC working out of the box which is frustrating and feels like a step backwards. So here is how I enabled VNC on Xubuntu...

DD-WRT web interface not responding, restart httpd over ssh / telnet

DD-WRT is a third party developed firmware released under the terms of the GPL for many ieee802.11a/b/g/h/n wireless routers based on a Broadcom or Atheros chip reference design.  DD-WRT runs a small httpd server used for configuring the router (remember that opening WEB server to the world could be potential security problem). I am currently running DD-WRT v24-sp2 (07/22/09) vpn and occasionally cannot connect at all to the web interface after the router has been under heavy load or operating for a substantial amount of time. Rather than reboot the router the following commands can attempt to restart the web interface, executed via ssh or telnet:



Stopservice httpd

Startservice httpd

Ubuntu remote desktop does not refresh issue (Nvidia + Vino VNC)

This seems to be a common issue for people using the built-in Ubuntu remote desktop server, vino, and the proprietary Nvidia drivers along with compiz visual effects; whereby the remote desktop screen on the VNC client fails to update unless you reconnect to the server. There seem to be plenty of bugs lying around open for this issue and it seems to affect a range of VNC servers (it doesn't impact TightVNC from my experience) a work around is as follows:

TightVNCServer on Ubuntu (HP Microserver build)

As part of the HP Microserver build: seeking to have a backup remote administration (VNC) service I opted to install TightVNCServer. TightVNC is a free remote control software package which allows you to see the desktop of a remote machine and control it with your local mouse and keyboard, just like you would do it sitting in the front of that computer. TightVNC is free for both personal and commercial usage, and compatible with standard VNC software. The main reasons for installing TightVNC are that I often find it to be faster and more responsive than the Ubuntu built-in Remote Desktop VNC server, vino, and also I find that vino can often be unreliable with the screen not updating. Read on...

Webmin on Ubuntu (HP Microserver build)

As part of the HP Microserver build: seeking to have a web based GUI remote administration tool to allow the box to be easily administered without having to result to a remote shell  / command line interface I opted to install Webmin. Webmin is a web-based interface for system administration for Unix. Using any modern web browser, you can setup user accounts, Apache, DNS, file sharing and much more. Webmin removes the need to manually edit Unix configuration files and lets you manage a system from the console or remotely. Read on...