Arch Linux

mctavish

Member

From: Australia

Registered: 2004-03-22

Posts: 48

problem running xfce4 with xdm

G'day,

I'm trying to get xdm happening but I'm having some problems.

After searching the forums I created a ~/.xsession file with the same content as my working ~.xinitrc and changed the runtime in inittab.

After rebooting login in xdm doesn't work. I just keep returning to the login screen.

Checking out my ~/.xsession-errors file, I have

/home/mctavish/.xsession: line 5: exec: startxfce4: not found

It works if I use the full path - but then of course falls down when startxfce4 tries to call xfwm4 and so on. So it looks like a path problem.

I know that the /opt/xfce4/bin path is setup in /etc/profile.d/xfce4.sh, which is called from /etc/profile.

Note too that I have never had any problems using startx to get xfce4 up and running.

So it seems to me that somehow /etc/profile is not being called (or whatever) when I use xdm. Is this crazy talk? In fact /etc/profile is not executable, so how it normally run and from where?

Of course I could just use gdm but the pain of having all those unnecessary gnomish packages on my system would be unbearable.

lanrat

Member

From: Poland

Registered: 2003-10-28

Posts: 1,274

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

How about this http://www.xfce.org/index.php?page=docu … en#install under "Running xfce 4" section? Also, are you loggin in as a user or root ?

mctavish

Member

From: Australia

Registered: 2004-03-22

Posts: 48

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Thanks for the link, but no cigar.

I am logging in as a user not root.

mctavish

Member

From: Australia

Registered: 2004-03-22

Posts: 48

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Never mind, the desire for a display manager has passed.

Its just a bit weird, thats all - my setup is very standard, and its seemingly a simple thing to configure.

Ah, the joys of linux!

torindan

Member

From: Romania

Registered: 2004-01-13

Posts: 32

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Try this .xsession

#!/bin/sh

#
# ~/.xsession
#
# Executed by xdm (run your window manager from here)
#

. /etc/profile.d/xfce4.sh
exec startxfce4

YES there is a " "(SPACE) between "." and "/etc/profile.d/xfce4.sh"

mctavish

Member

From: Australia

Registered: 2004-03-22

Posts: 48

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Thank torindan, that has put me on the right track.

I added that line to .xsession as you suggested and xfce4 started up ok. But then (as I expected) I found that /sbin hadn't been set in the path, and presumably all the other usuals specified in /etc/profile.

So in the dirtiest of hacks I just copied the contents of /etc/profile into ~/.xsession, and everything works fine.

So it does seem that somehow /etc/profile is missed when using xdm. I did a little bit of research but couldn't work out where it is usually called/parsed/whatever, so I'm a bit baffled but I'm not losing sleep over it.

Man that xdm is ugly, time for an extreme makeover.

Greycloack

Member

Registered: 2004-03-05

Posts: 166

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Hi,

I also encountered the same problem... though didn't do the ugly hack yet...

b.t.w if you'll look here
http://themes.freshmeat.net/search/?q=x … x=0&Go.y=0

you can see that xdm can be nicer and less ugly...

Greycloack

Member

Registered: 2004-03-05

Posts: 166

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Ok,
I think I found a nice hack...

add :

. /etc/profile

to /etc/X11/xdm/Xsession
I added it above the line :

startup=$HOME/.xsession

and this will load all the defenitions in /etc/profile when you log in...

well, at least it seems to work so far...

mctavish

Member

From: Australia

Registered: 2004-03-22

Posts: 48

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Greetings Greycloack!

So its not just me, thats great news.

And thankyou for the much nicer hack 8)

torindan

Member

From: Romania

Registered: 2004-01-13

Posts: 32

Re: problem running xfce4 with xdm

Try this /etc/X11/xdm/Xresources

! $Xorg: Xresources,v 1.3 2000/08/17 19:54:17 cpqbld Exp $
!
!
!
!
! $XFree86: xc/programs/xdm/config/Xres.cpp,v 1.7 2003/11/15 03:25:22 dawes Exp $
!


xlogin*login.translations: #override 
    Ctrl<Key>R: abort-display()n
    <Key>F1: set-session-argument(failsafe) finish-field()n
    <Key>Delete: delete-character()n
    <Key>Left: move-backward-character()n
    <Key>Right: move-forward-character()n
    <Key>Home: move-to-begining()n
    <Key>End: move-to-end()n
    Ctrl<Key>KP_Enter: set-session-argument(failsafe) finish-field()n
    <Key>KP_Enter: set-session-argument() finish-field()n
    Ctrl<Key>Return: set-session-argument(failsafe) finish-field()n
    <Key>Return: set-session-argument() finish-field()




xlogin*greeting: Welcome to CLIENTHOST
xlogin*namePrompt: Login:

xlogin*fail: Login incorrect

#if WIDTH > 800
xlogin*greetFont: -adobe-helvetica-bold-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
xlogin*font: -adobe-helvetica-medium-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
xlogin*promptFont: -adobe-helvetica-medium-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
xlogin*failFont: -adobe-helvetica-medium-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
#else
xlogin*greetFont: -adobe-helvetica-medium-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
xlogin*font: -adobe-helvetica-medium-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
xlogin*promptFont: -adobe-helvetica-medium-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
xlogin*failFont: -adobe-helvetica-medium-r-normal--12-120-75-75-m-70-iso8859-1
#endif

#ifdef COLOR

xlogin*borderWidth: 1
xlogin*frameWidth: 1
xlogin*innerFramesWidth: 1
xlogin*shdColor: grey30
xlogin*hiColor: grey90
xlogin*background: #f5f5f5
xlogin*foreground: darkgreen
xlogin*greetColor: #6c83b0

xlogin*failColor: red
*Foreground: black
*Background: #fffff0
#else

xlogin*borderWidth: 1
xlogin*frameWidth: 0
xlogin*innerFramesWidth: 1
xlogin*shdColor: black
xlogin*hiColor: black

#endif

#if PLANES >= 8
xlogin*logoFileName: /usr/X11R6/lib/X11/xdm/pixmaps/archlinux.xpm
#endif
xlogin*useShape: true
xlogin*logoPadding: 10


XConsole.text.geometry:    480x130
XConsole.verbose:    true
XConsole*iconic:    true
XConsole*font:        fixed

Chooser*geometry:        700x500+300+200
Chooser*allowShellResize:    false
Chooser*viewport.forceBars:    true
Chooser*label.font:        *-new century schoolbook-bold-i-normal-*-240-*
Chooser*label.label:        XDMCP Host Menu from CLIENTHOST
Chooser*list.font:        -*-*-medium-r-normal-*-*-230-*-*-c-*-iso8859-1
Chooser*Command.font:        *-new century schoolbook-bold-r-normal-*-180-*

Put this line into /etc/X11/xdm/Xsetup_0

/usr/X11R6/bin/xsetroot -solid "#000000"

And this into  /etc/X11/xdm/pixmaps/