[GRLUG] gui on a server

[John-Thomas Richards]

On Fri, Apr 06, 2012 at 05:12:37PM -0400, Adam Tauno Williams wrote:
> 
> 
> >When *I* was a kid (early 20's) the gui was started at a runlevel.
> >Runlevel3 was the command line, runlevel5 got you the gui.  Startx
> >actually changed the runlevel.
> 
> are u sure?  back on igdrassil and friends startx was for running the
> X server in runlevel 3.  runlevel 5 ("init 5") always implies a
> display manager - although current display managers support
> autologins.

Debian runs multi-user at runlevel 2, regardless.  RedHat and its
derivatives used runlevel 5 for multi-user with GUI (via a display
manager) and runlevel 2 for multi-user console.

I've never understood that distinction.  I'm no sysadmin but I'm not
sure how distinguishing between the two (above) is practical.  Do
businesses sometimes run multi-user console but later need to switch to
multi-user GUI?  Debian just seems (to me) to be cleaner.  Functionally
(not merely theoretically) it seems that a system needs runlevels 1, 2,
and 6.

> letting a display manager run is a good thing.  they are integrated
> with keyrings, etc... so u get the full desktop experience.

That's a much bigger issue these days than it was ten or twelve years
ago.  If I run startx from a commandline I don't get sound.  If I login
via a display manager I get sound.  That's new behavior.  For years I
didn't run a display manager and didn't have that issue.
-- 
john-thomas
------
I took a speed reading course and read 'War and Peace' in twenty
minutes. It involves Russia.
Woody Allen, author, actor (1935- )