.TH vncsession 8 "" "TigerVNC" "Virtual Network Computing"
.SH NAME
vncsession \- start a VNC server
.SH SYNOPSIS
.B vncsession
.RI [-D]
.RI < username >
.RI <: display# >
.SH DESCRIPTION
.B vncsession
is used to start a VNC (Virtual Network Computing) desktop.
.B vncsession
performs all the necessary steps to create a new user session, run Xvnc with
appropriate options and starts a window manager on the VNC desktop.

.B vncsession
is rarely called directly and is normally started by the system service
manager.

.SH -D OPTION
.B vncsession
by default forks and detaches. If the -D option is used, it does not fork and
detach. This option is provided for use with system service managers that
require services to run in the foreground. This option is not intended for
debugging in a login shell from a terminal or for running
.B vncsession
from a terminal as an ordinary user.

.SH FILES
Several VNC-related files are found in the directory \fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc\fP:
.TP
\fI@CMAKE_INSTALL_FULL_SYSCONFDIR@/tigervnc/vncserver-config-defaults\fP
The optional system-wide equivalent of \fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/config\fP.
If this file exists and defines options to be passed to Xvnc, they will be used
as defaults for users. The user's \fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/config\fP overrides
settings configured in this file. The overall configuration file load order is:
this file, \fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/config\fP, and then
\fI@CMAKE_INSTALL_FULL_SYSCONFDIR@/tigervnc/vncserver-config-mandatory\fP.
None are required to exist.
.TP
\fI@CMAKE_INSTALL_FULL_SYSCONFDIR@/tigervnc/vncserver-config-mandatory\fP
The optional system-wide equivalent of \fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/config\fP.
If this file exists and defines options to be passed to Xvnc, they will override
any of the same options defined in a user's \fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/config\fP.
This file offers a mechanism to establish some basic form of system-wide policy.
WARNING! There is nothing stopping users from constructing their own
vncsession-like script that calls Xvnc directly to bypass any options defined in
\fI@CMAKE_INSTALL_FULL_SYSCONFDIR@/tigervnc/vncserver-config-mandatory\fP. The
overall configuration file load order is:
\fI@CMAKE_INSTALL_FULL_SYSCONFDIR@/tigervnc/vncserver-config-defaults\fP,
\fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/config\fP, and then this file. None are required to
exist.
.TP
\fI$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/tigervnc/config\fP
.TQ
\fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/config\fP
An optional server config file wherein options to be passed to Xvnc are listed
to avoid hard-coding them to the physical invocation. List options in this file
one per line. For those requiring an argument, simply separate the option from
the argument with an equal sign, for example: "geometry=2000x1200" or
"securitytypes=vncauth,tlsvnc". Options without an argument are simply listed
as a single word, for example: "localhost" or "alwaysshared".

The special option
.B session
can be used to control which session type will be started. This should match
one of the files in \fI/usr/share/xsessions\fP. E.g. if there is a file called
"gnome.desktop", then "session=gnome" would be set to use that session type.
.TP
\fI$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/tigervnc/passwd\fP
.TQ
\fI$HOME/.config/tigervnc/passwd\fP
The VNC password file.
.TP
\fI$XDG_STATE_HOME/tigervnc/\fIBhost\fI:\fIBdisplay#\fI.log\fP
.TQ
\fI$HOME/.local/state/tigervnc/\fIBhost\fI:\fIBdisplay#\fI.log\fP
The log file for Xvnc and the session.

.SH SEE ALSO
.BR vncviewer (1),
.BR vncpasswd (1),
.BR vncconfig (1),
.BR Xvnc (1)
.br
https://www.tigervnc.org

.SH AUTHOR
Tristan Richardson, RealVNC Ltd., D. R. Commander and others.

VNC was originally developed by the RealVNC team while at Olivetti
Research Ltd / AT&T Laboratories Cambridge.  TightVNC additions were
implemented by Constantin Kaplinsky. Many other people have since
participated in development, testing and support. This manual is part
of the TigerVNC software suite.