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Table of Contents
xinit - X Window System initializer
xinit
[ [ client ] options ] [ -- [ server ] [ display ] options ]
The
xinit program is used to start the X Window System server and a first client
program on systems that cannot start X directly from /etc/init or in environments
that use multiple window systems. When this first client exits, xinit
will kill the X server and then terminate.
If no specific client program
is given on the command line, xinit will look for a file in the user's home
directory called .xinitrc to run as a shell script to start up client programs.
If no such file exists, xinit will use the following as a default:
xterm
-geometry +1+1 -n login -display :0
If no specific server program is given on the command line, xinit will
look for a file in the user's home directory called .xserverrc to run as
a shell script to start up the server. If no such file exists, xinit will
use the following as a default:
X :0
Note that this assumes that there is a program named X in the current
search path. However, servers are usually named Xdisplaytype where displaytype
is the type of graphics display which is driven by this server. The site
administrator should, therefore, make a link to the appropriate type of
server on the machine, or create a shell script that runs xinit with the
appropriate server.
Note, when using a .xserverrc script be sure to ``exec''
the real X server. Failing to do this can make the X server slow to start
and exit. For example:
exec Xdisplaytype
An important point is that programs which are run by .xinitrc should be
run in the background if they do not exit right away, so that they don't
prevent other programs from starting up. However, the last long-lived program
started (usually a window manager or terminal emulator) should be left
in the foreground so that the script won't exit (which indicates that the
user is done and that xinit should exit).
An alternate client and/or server
may be specified on the command line. The desired client program and its
arguments should be given as the first command line arguments to xinit.
To specify a particular server command line, append a double dash (--) to
the xinit command line (after any client and arguments) followed by the
desired server command.
Both the client program name and the server program
name must begin with a slash (/) or a period (.). Otherwise, they are treated
as an arguments to be appended to their respective startup lines. This
makes it possible to add arguments (for example, foreground and background
colors) without having to retype the whole command line.
If an explicit
server name is not given and the first argument following the double dash
(--) is a colon followed by a digit, xinit will use that number as the display
number instead of zero. All remaining arguments are appended to the server
command line.
Below are several examples of how command line arguments
in xinit are used.
- xinit
- This will start up a server named X and run the
user's .xinitrc, if it exists, or else start an xterm.
- xinit -- /usr/X11R6/bin/Xqdss
:1
- This is how one could start a specific type of server on an alternate
display.
- xinit -geometry =80x65+10+10 -fn 8x13 -j -fg white -bg navy
- This will
start up a server named X, and will append the given arguments to the default
xterm command. It will ignore .xinitrc.
- xinit -e widgets -- ./Xsun -l -c
- This will
use the command ./Xsun -l -c to start the server and will append the arguments
-e widgets to the default xterm command.
- xinit /usr/ucb/rsh fasthost cpupig
-display ws:1 -- :1 -a 2 -t 5
- This will start a server named X on display 1
with the arguments -a 2 -t 5. It will then start a remote shell on the machine
fasthost in which it will run the command cpupig, telling it to display
back on the local workstation.
Below is a sample .xinitrc that starts a clock,
several terminals, and leaves the window manager running as the ``last'' application.
Assuming that the window manager has been configured properly, the user
then chooses the ``Exit'' menu item to shut down X.
xrdb -load $HOME/.Xresources
xsetroot -solid gray &
xclock -g 50x50-0+0 -bw 0 &
xload -g 50x50-50+0 -bw 0 &
xterm -g 80x24+0+0 &
xterm -g 80x24+0-0 &
twm
Sites that want to create a common startup environment could simply create
a default .xinitrc that references a site-wide startup file:
#!/bin/sh
. /usr/local/lib/site.xinitrc
Another approach is to write a script that starts xinit with a specific
shell script. Such scripts are usually named x11, xstart, or startx and
are a convenient way to provide a simple interface for novice users:
#!/bin/sh
xinit /usr/local/lib/site.xinitrc -- /usr/X11R6/bin/X bc
- DISPLAY
- This variable gets set to the name of the
display to which clients should connect.
- XINITRC
- This variable specifies
an init file containing shell commands to start up the initial windows.
By default, .xinitrc in the home directory will be used.
.
- default client
script
- xterm
- client to run if .xinitrc does not exist
.- default server script
- X
- server to run if .xserverrc does not exist
X(7)
, startx(1)
, Xserver(1)
,
xterm(1)
Bob Scheifler, MIT Laboratory for Computer Science
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