CrunchBang Linux

Maj_Numpty

Member

From: Belgium

Registered: 2012-05-02

Posts: 10

[SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

Hi All,

OK then I been just about everywhere I can think of with google (and some places I don't want to go to again!!) but this has got me pulling my hair out and the Mrs is starting to get angry because I could be doing something useful instead of playing on the computer and going bald.

The basic problem is that I have 2 video cards fitted with a monitor connected to each. Therefore forget xinerama and twinview etc. which is fine - I am happy to live with separate x sessions and loose the ability to drag applications between monitors.

I have Nvidia drivers (from Nvidia) loaded and nvidia-settings configured with each monitor in a separate x session and am at the stage where Openview is up on main monitor and fine whilst the other monitor is a blank screen with the mouse cursor showing as an "X" only.

OK so far - but really I'm at the same sticking point as a lot of other people on the net

Sooooo, the 64 million hot croissant question......How do you open a second instance of Openbox on the other X session???

I did find this link http://crunchbanglinux.org/forums/topic … -dualhead/ which comes close but screen2.sh script seems to fail for me with "Openbox-Message: Failed to open the display from the DISPLAY environment variable" (and this isn't a dualhead setp anyway)

I should say besides being a major Numpty I'm new to Crunch and Openbox having given up on Ubuntu etc. so some explanations might need to be pretty basic

Last edited by Maj_Numpty (2012-05-09 11:49:59)

greyproc

#! Member

From: Abarrach

Registered: 2012-04-30

Posts: 58

Website

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

This thread might help you with your error:
https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=59897

And here are some other links...
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=185555

http://www.nu2upc.com/linux-tips/config … -displays/

http://en.gentoo-wiki.com/wiki/X.Org/Dual_Monitors

I know you said you already googled, but sometimes, it's the simple things which are missed. The first thread seems to indicate that you've got a working second X session... have you tried running something? Have you tried starting x running a program, like terminator?  Have you tried running as a different user?

I'm planning on seeing what I can do with my dual-head card (since it's impossible to have two 16x cards in my system, when the motherboard's in a chassis) and separate X-sessions, but I haven't gotten to the point yet. When I do, I'll likely be able to offer you more worthwhile information. 

Also, does your .Xsession-errors give you anything helpful?

Maj_Numpty

Member

From: Belgium

Registered: 2012-05-02

Posts: 10

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

Simple things that are missed.........

Sorry for not being absolutely clear:

(1st video card)
On DISPLAY 0.0 everything is good Openbox WM up and runnging and everything working fine

(2nd Video Card)
On DISPLAY 1.0 Blank screen with mouse cursor "X" - Mouse can be dragged between monitors - mouse clicks etc. have no effect.

2nd X session is up but no Window Manager so how to (edit script?) start 2nd instance of Openbox in the 2nd X session

Thanks for the links - the only relevance I could see is if one uses .xinitrc maybe to start the Window Manager for the 2nd X Session ???

greyproc

#! Member

From: Abarrach

Registered: 2012-04-30

Posts: 58

Website

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

What happens if you type this into a term on your primary?

DISPLAY=":0.1" terminator

Or, if you're sure it's 1,

DISPLAY=":1.0" terminator

?

Edit/Update:
I've now had the same screen with just an X cursor, where clicking does nothing.  I got further doing:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure x11-common

(from: http://www.khattam.info/solved-user-not … 1-26.html)

After that, I was able to do:

DISPLAY=:0.1 openbox-session &

Not quite where I want to be yet, but getting closer.  (I also spent some quality time in xorg.conf after ATI's amdcccle left it soiled with improper dallying)

Have you had any further luck, Maj?

Last edited by greyproc (2012-05-04 06:04:56)

xaos52

The Good Doctor

From: Planet of the @s

Registered: 2011-06-24

Posts: 4,493

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

See http://lists.debian.org/debian-user/201 … 01566.html
Use 2 instances of the X server.

Last edited by xaos52 (2012-05-03 13:23:45)

---

bootinfoscript - emacs primer - I ♥ #!

Maj_Numpty

Member

From: Belgium

Registered: 2012-05-02

Posts: 10

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

What happens if you type this into a term on your primary?
..........

After that, I was able to do:

DISPLAY=:0.1 openbox-session &

........

Have you had any further luck, Maj?

This is as far as I've got too - I run it in Terminator after I login, throws up a lot of errors in the terminal window but comes up ok on the second monitor. Most applications seem to behave ok except browser which will always open a new instance of itself on the same monitor that the first instance was started on.

rhowaldt

#!*$%:)

Registered: 2011-03-09

Posts: 4,396

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

i might have misunderstood everything here, or whatever. but i came across this yesterday, and thought it might be what you are looking for. don't kick me if it's not - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiseat_ … NU.2FLinux

greyproc

#! Member

From: Abarrach

Registered: 2012-04-30

Posts: 58

Website

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

This is as far as I've got too - I run it in Terminator after I login, throws up a lot of errors in the terminal window but comes up ok on the second monitor. Most applications seem to behave ok except browser which will always open a new instance of itself on the same monitor that the first instance was started on.

If there's already an instance of the browser, you likely can't get around this as the same user.  Did you check out Openbox's config for where to open apps?

What I'm doing now is using gksu to run the Exec line from Chrome's .desktop file (though it looks like gksu might actually take the .desktop file with the --description line?) and putting it on my second monitor, without errors.

Btw, I modified /usr/bin/openbox-session to have this:

# Second monitor
DISPLAY=:0.1 /usr/bin/openbox &

# Run Openbox, and have it run the autostart stuff
exec /usr/bin/openbox --startup "/usr/lib/openbox/openbox-autostart OPENBOX" "$@"

The result being, on my second monitor, I just have a vanilla session I can run things in. Obviously, nothing (not even conky) is starting there, because I'm not running it exactly the same. However, I don't see any errors --- maybe you can try doing the same?

What I'm beating my head trying to figure out is how to have slim run on multiple VCs now, so that I can just ctrl-alt-f8, for example, and log in as a different user concurrently. (Instead of logging into a shell as a user and startx'ing for each VC I want)...

@rhowaldt: speaking for myself, I don't want multi-seat... and I think Maj just wants a working X session on both monitors.

Maj_Numpty

Member

From: Belgium

Registered: 2012-05-02

Posts: 10

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

You got it exactly right greypoc - For me (because I have 2 video cards installed) It is to have two fully functioning desktops on on both screens - Multiseat is something different.

The browser issue is not a problem for me and tbh although it's not the "cleanest" way it works for me although if I was to make a wish list I would want conky (and some of the other bells and whistles like date/time/calendar/volume control etc. etc.) on the right monitor only (2nd desktop instance).

This probably wouldn't be too difficult to do but I'm not very familiar with the #! file structure/Openbox/tint2 etc. so am taking it slow in case I bork it

rhowaldt

#!*$%:)

Registered: 2011-03-09

Posts: 4,396

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

I think Maj just wants a working X session on both monitors.

i don't get it. isn't that exactly what multiseat provides? http://wiki.x.org/wiki/Development/Docu … /Multiseat

At first glance, it looks trivial to deploy a multiseat system under Linux by starting one instance of our canonical X server (i.e., the Xorg) for each user. But, alas, it is not that simple. The current version of the X server (1.6) doesn't let us easily deploy a multiseat system for several reasons [..]

so, what you want is 2 x-sessions, and you could just start 2 x-servers, but that won't work, so you're looking at multiseat.

doesn't matter one or way or the other to me, as long as you get what you're looking for. i just don't get why multiseat is so different from what you are talking about.

Maj_Numpty

Member

From: Belgium

Registered: 2012-05-02

Posts: 10

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

I think Maj just wants a working X session on both monitors.

i don't get it. isn't that exactly what multiseat provides? http://wiki.x.org/wiki/Development/Docu … /Multiseat

At first glance, it looks trivial to deploy a multiseat system under Linux by starting one instance of our canonical X server (i.e., the Xorg) for each user. But, alas, it is not that simple. The current version of the X server (1.6) doesn't let us easily deploy a multiseat system for several reasons [..]

so, what you want is 2 x-sessions, and you could just start 2 x-servers, but that won't work, so you're looking at multiseat.

doesn't matter one or way or the other to me, as long as you get what you're looking for. i just don't get why multiseat is so different from what you are talking about.

Actually 2 x-sessions does work - nvidia-settings configures xorg.conf for you if you select the option when you activate the 2nd video card/monitor and do not choose xinerama.

So the result is the user (me !!) logs in once and has two working desktops - both screens - Openbox is running on both monitors.

Multiseat - is for a user to log in one one screen and a different user to log in on the other screen.

The point that is very often overlooked is that there are 2 video cards so twinview or xinerama is of no use unless you plug both monitors into 1 card

greyproc

#! Member

From: Abarrach

Registered: 2012-04-30

Posts: 58

Website

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

@rho: Multiseat _also_ implies 2* keyboards, and 2*mice.  Multhead (which isn't technically correct for Maj) is just the opposite of "take my two monitors and make them one big screen", which should be simple, but, since this is Linux, it has to be hair-pulling frustration just to get the simplest damn thing to work.

Maj: Try my code above... just save your openbox-session to openbox-session-backup, and then add the lines like I have it (it should be obvious where). When that works, then, you can reverse them, and you should end up with conky, etc on your right hand monitor.

I tell you, there's nothing like days of frustration to learn a distro's structure.  For borking, just make a back up of every file, and know how to get get about at a tty, if you mess something up too much.

For example, I installed cdm earlier, and could only log in as root.  After a few hours of changing every action to 'echo x' in the script, (cdm's just a script...), I got smart, and put a 'sleep 4' at the end of the file...and found the reason the thing wasn't working is because there's no 'dialog' installed by default. Happily, now, I have what I wanted, which is (the gasp-inducing wildness, living on the edge concept) of being able to log in and automatically have X sessions as different users, without having to do it all by hand in a console. (tangent: It looks like sane login managers have this... kdm, for example, reads an .Xserver file, that does exactly what I want. At the point of installing that much bloat for a simple thing.. naff.  And, I'm much slimmer without slim, I guess. Grumble. Whine. Rant.)

Back to Maj --- you've pretty much won the battle. On my system (ymmv)
/usr/bin/openbox-session (just an editable file; open with vi and see..) is called by ~/.xsession, which is referenced by /etc/X11/Xsession, which is referenced by /etc/X11/xinit/xinitrc which is used by xinit, or startx ... and so on. 

For the command to put in your openbox-session,
/usr/lib/openbox/openbox-autostart will reference your ~/.config/openbox/autostart, which you can back up and edit for what you want (date, conky, volcontrol, etc, and get rid of stuff you don't need by simply commenting it out) and then call for the second monitor.

rhowaldt

#!*$%:)

Registered: 2011-03-09

Posts: 4,396

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

@maj+grey: thanks for the explanation, i get the difference now. sorry for the interruption

Maj_Numpty

Member

From: Belgium

Registered: 2012-05-02

Posts: 10

Re: [SOLVED1 last try - Openbox with separate X sessions, dual video cards

Brilliant, solved cheers greyproc