Remote access issue with xdmcp and Gnome.

This document (7019030) is provided subject to the disclaimer at the end of this document.

Environment

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 Service Pack 2 (SLES 12 SP2)
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 Service Pack 1 (SLES 12 SP1)
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 Service Pack 4 (SLES 11 SP4)
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 Service Pack 3 (SLES 11 SP3)

Situation

After trying to connect to a SLES server running Gnome desktop via xdmcp protocol, this may not work with some clients, and not with others.

Works with: Xephyr, VcXsrv ( working Windows X server implementation with OpenGL acceleration )
Does not work with: Xming

Resolution

Switch to client that works.

-or-

Use Display Manager and Window Manager that do not require 3D acceleration
For example xdm and icewm.

It is possible to do this by :

editing /etc/sysconfig/displaymanager to show :

DISPLAYMANAGER="xdm"

editing /etc/sysconfig/windowmanager to show :

DEFAULT_WM="icewm"

and switching to runlevel 3 and back to 5 or by rebooting teh system.

After that just make sure to configure xdm to enable xdmcp

Cause

Certain xmdcp clients do not support the necessary extensions for acceleration.
As such, gdm and gnome-shell do not work with it.

Additional Information

Disclaimer

This Support Knowledgebase provides a valuable tool for SUSE customers and parties interested in our products and solutions to acquire information, ideas and learn from one another. Materials are provided for informational, personal or non-commercial use within your organization and are presented "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND.