prepare a shell on your client device

1. Open a bash shell. For best reproducibility, and to avoid potential problems, open a separate, fresh one. You can do this by (e.g.) opening a fresh gnome-terminal tab or xterm.

2. Prepare the shell's environment:

   1. set the environment variable PATH_TO_PROJECT appropriately for the client device.

   2. load private properties and public properties:

      source ${PATH_TO_PROJECT}/scripts/private.properties
      source ${PATH_TO_PROJECT}/scripts/public.properties
      

prepare an SSH shell on your jumpbox

From a prepared shell on your client device,

1. start a fresh, "normal" SSH shell on (aka connection to or session on) your jumpbox:

   ssh ${JUMPBOX_USER_NAME}@${JUMPBOX_IPV4}
   

2. Prepare the SSH shell's environment (which is not the same as the environment from which it was called on the client device!):

   1. set the environment variable PATH_TO_PROJECT appropriately for the jumpbox.

   2. load private properties and public properties:

      source ${PATH_TO_PROJECT}/scripts/private.properties
      source ${PATH_TO_PROJECT}/scripts/public.properties
      

start SSH tunnel on client to jumpbox

From a prepared shell on your client device, start an SSH tunnel to the jumpbox (and keep it open for the remainder of the VNC session):

ssh -L ${CLIENT_VNC_PORT_N}:localhost:${CLIENT_VNC_PORT_N} ${JUMPBOX_USER_NAME}@${JUMPBOX_IPV4}

install packages on jumpbox

0. Prepare an SSH shell from your client device to your jumpbox. (If you already have a prepared, non-SSH-tunnel shell open on the jumpbox, reuse that and skip to next step.)

1. In that prepared shell, install desktop and VNC server from packages:

   sudo aptitude update # may require authentication
   sudo aptitude install ${JUMPBOX_VNC_PACKAGE_LIST} ${JUMPBOX_DESKTOP_PACKAGE_LIST}
   

start VNC server on jumpbox

In a prepared SSH shell on your jumpbox (not the one running the previously-created SSH tunnel), start the VNC server (called using /etc/alternatives), and provide an 8-character-maximum password for your desktops:

vncserver :1 # trailing '&' is not necessary, nor is `sudo`

> You will require a password to access your desktops.
>
> Password:
> Verify:
>
> New 'it:1 (me)' desktop is it:1
>
> Creating default startup script /home/me/.vnc/xstartup
> Starting applications specified in /home/me/.vnc/xstartup
> Log file is /home/me/.vnc/it:1.log

configure VNC server on jumpbox

1. Stop the VNC server so that we can restart it with a non-default configuration. (This is necessary because (AFAICS) one must start the VNC server once in order to create the config script= ~/.vnc/xstartup)

   vncserver -kill :1
   

2. Configure the VNC server to launch the desktop (rather than just "vanilla X"):

   1. JIC, backup installed ~/.vnc/xstartup to, e.g., ~/.vnc/xstartup.0

      cp ~/.vnc/xstartup ~/.vnc/xstartup.0
      chmod a-w ~/.vnc/xstartup.0
      

   2. With your favorite editor (presumably installed as part of your base config), change tail of ~/.vnc/xstartup from

      x-terminal-emulator -geometry 80x24+10+10 -ls -title "$VNCDESKTOP Desktop" &
      x-window-manager &
      

      (which launches "bare X") to

      # from original ~/.vnc/xstartup.0
      # x-terminal-emulator -geometry 80x24+10+10 -ls -title "$VNCDESKTOP Desktop" &
      # x-window-manager &
      # Instead launch Xfce desktop (previously installed)
      startxfce4
      

3. Restart the VNC server to use the new configuration. It should still remember your password:

   vncserver :1
   
   > New 'krasia:1 (me)' desktop is krasia:1
   >
   > Starting applications specified in /home/me/.vnc/xstartup
   > Log file is /home/me/.vnc/krasia:1.log
   

install VNC viewer on client device

In a prepared shell on your client device that is not sshing to the jumpbox, install a VNC viewer from packages on the client device:

sudo aptitude update # may require authentication
sudo aptitude install ${CLIENT_VNC_PACKAGE_LIST}

run VNC viewer on client device

Run a VNC viewer from your client device (reusing its previously-created SSH tunnel):

1. Start the VNC viewer (called using /etc/alternatives) in a shell on the client device, and authenticate to it using your previously-set VNC password:

   vncviewer localhost:${CLIENT_VNC_PORT_N} # don't end with '&'
   
   > Mon Apr 20 17:45:20 EDT 2015
   > Connected to RFB server, using protocol version 3.8
   > Performing standard VNC authentication
   > Password:
   > Authentication successful
   > Desktop name "it:1 (me)"
   > VNC server default format:
   >   16 bits per pixel.
   >   Least significant byte first in each pixel.
   >   True colour: max red 31 green 63 blue 31, shift red 11 green 5 blue 0
   > Using default colormap which is TrueColor.  Pixel format:
   >   32 bits per pixel.
   >   Least significant byte first in each pixel.
   >   True colour: max red 255 green 255 blue 255, shift red 16 green 8 blue 0
   > Same machine: preferring raw encoding
   

2. After authenticating, you should see the jumpbox's desktop. If not, something's wrong!

3. Exit from the VNC viewer on the client device (but not the VNC server on the jumpbox) with the following sequence:

   1. On the client device, press key== F8
   2. From the popup menu, choose item== Quit viewer

TODO: turn off screensaver on Xfce!

reuse SSH tunnel

If you do not already have one open in a shell/terminal on the client, start an SSH tunnel from your client to your jumpbox. Note you almost certainly want to reuse an existing SSH tunnel (IIUC) rather than starting a new one.

reuse VNC server

If you have not done so already, start a VNC server process on the jumpbox. Note you almost certainly want to reuse an existing VNC server (IIUC) rather than starting a new one.

use VNC viewer

You will probably want to exit from your VNC viewer whenever you are not actually using it, since (IIUC) an active VNC connection consumes

• network bandwidth
• compute cycles on the jumpbox
• compute cycles on the client device

Accordingly, each time you want to start a VNC connection from your client device to your jumpbox, repeat this procedure.