Problem starting VNCServer at boot

[Bill Moran]

Tom Smith wrote:
> ENVIRONMENT
> FreeBSD 4.8-STABLE
> TightVNC 1.2.8
> 
> PROBLEM
> Getting error: "Starting local daemons:vncserver: couldn't find "xauth" 
> on your PATH."
> 
> SITUATION
> I installed tightvnc-1.2.8 from the port collection and configure 
> /etc/rc.local to start a vncserver for a specific user at startup using 
> the following command:
> 
> su <username> -c "/usr/X11R6/bin/vncserver :1 -depth 8 -geometry 800x600"
> 
> When this tries to start at boot up I get the above error. If I start it 
> from the command line it works fine.
> 
> This sounds like an issue with the defined PATH at bootup but I've not 
> been able to find anything explaining how to define this PATH in the 
> FreeBSD handbook or otherwise.

Make a script in /usr/local/etc/rc.d called vncserver.sh (or similar) and
use:

#!/bin/sh
PATH=/path/that/you/need
su <username> -c "/usr/X11R6/bin/vncserver :1 -depth 8 -geometry 800x600"

Can't say with certainty that it will work (as I haven't tested it), but
I don't see why it won't.  That's the "right" way to do it anyway. (actually,
it should have a case statement to accept "start" and "stop" ... but I'll
leave that as an exercise to the reader ... see the other scripts in that
directory)

-- 
Bill Moran
Potential Technologies
http://www.potentialtech.com