Homeserver - Setting up VNC

You will probably learn to do most things on the server over SSH, but it is always nice to have a VNC session that you can use if there is any GUI applications you need to setup. I decided to go with XFCE as my shell as it is lightweight (perfect for occasional use).

• Update your repo references - sudo apt-get update
• Install XFCE - sudo apt-get install xfce4
• Get a cup of tea, it will take a few minutes to install :)
• Install the VNC server - sudo apt-get install vnc4server
• Launch the VNC server - vncserver
• Enter a password, this will be required every time you try to log on to a VNC session.
• Kill the session we created - vncserver -kill :1
• Edit the VNC xstartup file - vi ~/.vnc/xstartup
• Your file should look like the following:

# Uncomment the following two lines for normal desktop:
# unset SESSION_MANAGER
# exec /etc/X11/xinit/xinitrc

[ -x /etc/vnc/xstartup ] && exec /etc/vnc/xstartup
[ -r $HOME/.Xresources ] && xrdb $HOME/.Xresources
xsetroot -solid grey
vncconfig -iconic &
x-terminal-emulator -geometry 80x24+10+10 -ls -title "$VNCDESKTOP Desktop" &
startxfce4 &

• You are now ready to launch VNC, you can specify the resolution of the screen while launching -  vncserver -geometry 1920x1080
• When you log in to the server using a VNC client (I recommend VNC viewer or Tight VNC) you should get the below:

VNC session using the XFCE shell

• Now you are ready to go! You can have multiple VNC sessions that are different resolutions for different devices.