This guide will walk you through installing a VNC desktop on Ubuntu 14.04 with the free VNC software, TightVNC.
Step 1: Install components
We need to install the following components for a proper desktop with VNC.
- xOrg
- A desktop (LXDE)
- An Ubuntu VNC server (TightVNC)
Run the following command to install them.
sudo apt-get install xorg lxde-core tightvncserver
Step 2: Setup VNC
We have to set up a VNC password for our VNC connection. This password is limited to 8 characters in length. Longer passwords will be truncated.
tightvncserver :1
Next, we need to config the xstartup because VNC doesn’t know how to launch LXDE.
nano ~/.vnc/xstartup
In this file…
- Remove the
#before#x-window-manager & - Add the line
lxterminal & - Add the line
/usr/bin/lxsession -s LXDE &
Your config should now resemble the following:
#!/bin/sh
xrdb $HOME/.Xresources
xsetroot -solid grey
#x-terminal-emulator -geometry 80x24+10+10 -ls -title "$VNCDESKTOP Desktop" &
x-window-manager &
lxterminal &
/usr/bin/lxsession -s LXDE &
# Fix to make GNOME work
export XKL_XMODMAP_DISABLE=1
/etc/X11/Xsession
Save the file with Ctrl + O, then exit nano with Ctrl + X.
Step 3: Restart VNC
To restart VNC we have to shut it down with:
tightvncserver -kill :1
… and start it again:
vncserver :1 -geometry 1024x768 -depth 16 -pixelformat rgb565
Step 4: Connect to the VNC server
Start your favorite VNC Client and connect to your server’s IP with the ending :1. For example: 123.123.123.123:1.
Enjoy your new VNC server!