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.\" $Xorg: Xserver.man,v 1.4 2001/02/09 02:04:07 xorgcvs Exp $
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.\" $XdotOrg: xserver/xorg/doc/Xserver.man.pre,v 1.4 2005/12/23 20:11:12 alanc Exp $
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.\" Copyright 1984 - 1991, 1993, 1994, 1998 The Open Group
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.\" Except as contained in this notice, the name of The Open Group shall
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.\" from The Open Group.
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.\" $XFree86: xc/programs/Xserver/Xserver.man,v 3.31 2004/01/10 22:27:46 dawes Exp $
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.\" shorthand for double quote that works everywhere.
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.TH XSERVER 1 __xorgversion__
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Xserver \- X Window System display server
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is the generic name for the X Window System display server. It is
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frequently a link or a copy of the appropriate server binary for
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driving the most frequently used server on a given machine.
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.SH "STARTING THE SERVER"
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The X server is usually started from the X Display Manager program
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\fIxdm\fP(1) or a similar display manager program.
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This utility is run from the system boot files and takes care of keeping
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the server running, prompting for usernames and passwords, and starting up
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Installations that run more than one window system may need to use the
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\fIxinit\fP(1) utility instead of a display manager. However, \fIxinit\fP is
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to be considered a tool for building startup scripts and is not
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intended for use by end users. Site administrators are \fBstrongly\fP
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urged to use a display manager, or build other interfaces for novice users.
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The X server may also be started directly by the user, though this
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method is usually reserved for testing and is not recommended for
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normal operation. On some platforms, the user must have special
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permission to start the X server, often because access to certain
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devices (e.g. \fI/dev/mouse\fP) is restricted.
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When the X server starts up, it typically takes over the display. If
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you are running on a workstation whose console is the display, you may
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not be able to log into the console while the server is running.
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Many X servers have device-specific command line options. See the manual
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pages for the individual servers for more details; a list of
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server-specific manual pages is provided in the SEE ALSO section below.
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All of the X servers accept the command line options described below.
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Some X servers may have alternative ways of providing the parameters
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described here, but the values provided via the command line options
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should override values specified via other mechanisms.
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.B :\fIdisplaynumber\fP
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The X server runs as the given \fIdisplaynumber\fP, which by default is 0.
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If multiple X servers are to run simultaneously on a host, each must have
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a unique display number. See the DISPLAY
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NAMES section of the \fIX\fP(__miscmansuffix__) manual page to learn how to
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specify which display number clients should try to use.
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sets pointer acceleration (i.e. the ratio of how much is reported to how much
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the user actually moved the pointer).
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disables host-based access control mechanisms. Enables access by any host,
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and permits any host to modify the access control list.
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Use with extreme caution.
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This option exists primarily for running test suites remotely.
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.B \-audit \fIlevel\fP
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sets the audit trail level. The default level is 1, meaning only connection
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rejections are reported. Level 2 additionally reports all successful
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connections and disconnects. Level 4 enables messages from the
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SECURITY extension, if present, including generation and revocation of
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authorizations and violations of the security policy.
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Level 0 turns off the audit trail.
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Audit lines are sent as standard error output.
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.B \-auth \fIauthorization-file\fP
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specifies a file which contains a collection of authorization records used
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to authenticate access. See also the \fIxdm\fP(1) and
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\fIXsecurity\fP(__miscmansuffix__) manual pages.
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sets the default root window to solid black instead of the standard root weave
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pattern. This is the default unless -retro or -wr is specified.
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disables backing store support on all screens.
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sets key-click volume (allowable range: 0-100).
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sets the visual class for the root window of color screens.
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The class numbers are as specified in the X protocol.
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Not obeyed by all servers.
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causes the server to generate a core dump on fatal errors.
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.B \-deferglyphs \fIwhichfonts\fP
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specifies the types of fonts for which the server should attempt to use
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deferred glyph loading. \fIwhichfonts\fP can be all (all fonts),
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none (no fonts), or 16 (16 bit fonts only).
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.B \-dpi \fIresolution\fP
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sets the resolution for all screens, in dots per inch.
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To be used when the server cannot determine the screen size(s) from the
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enables DPMS (display power management services), where supported. The
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default state is platform and configuration specific.
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disables DPMS (display power management services). The default state
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is platform and configuration specific.
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.BI \-extension extensionName
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disables named extension. If an unknown extension name is specified,
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a list of accepted extension names is printed.
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.BI \+extension extensionName
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enables named extension. If an unknown extension name is specified,
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a list of accepted extension names is printed.
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sets feep (bell) volume (allowable range: 0-100).
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.B \-fc \fIcursorFont\fP
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sets default cursor font.
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sets the default font.
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.B \-fp \fIfontPath\fP
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sets the search path for fonts. This path is a comma separated list
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of directories which the X server searches for font databases.
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See the FONTS section of this manual page for more information and the default
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prints a usage message.
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causes all remaining command line arguments to be ignored.
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.B \-maxbigreqsize \fIsize\fP
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sets the maximum big request to
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disable the display of the pointer cursor.
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.B \-nolisten \fItrans-type\fP
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disables a transport type. For example, TCP/IP connections can be disabled
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.BR "\-nolisten tcp" .
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This option may be issued multiple times to disable listening to different
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prevents a server reset when the last client connection is closed. This
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sets screen-saver pattern cycle time in minutes.
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permits the server to continue running if it fails to establish all of
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its well-known sockets (connection points for clients), but
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establishes at least one. This option is set by default.
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causes the server to exit if it fails to establish all of its well-known
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sockets (connection points for clients).
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turns off auto-repeat.
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turns on auto-repeat.
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starts the stipple with the classic stipple and cursor visible. The default
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is to start with a black root window, and to suppress display of the cursor
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until the first time an application calls XDefineCursor(). For the Xorg
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server, this also sets the default for the DontZap option to FALSE. For
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kdrive servers, this implies -zap.
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sets screen-saver timeout time in minutes.
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disables save under support on all screens.
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sets pointer acceleration threshold in pixels (i.e. after how many pixels
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pointer acceleration should take effect).
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causes the server to terminate at server reset, instead of continuing to run.
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This overrides a previous
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.B \-to \fIseconds\fP
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sets default connection timeout in seconds.
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disables all testing extensions (e.g., XTEST, XTrap, XTestExtension1, RECORD).
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ignored, for servers started the ancient way (from init).
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sets video-off screen-saver preference.
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sets video-on screen-saver preference.
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forces the default backing-store of all windows to be WhenMapped. This
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is a backdoor way of getting backing-store to apply to all windows.
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Although all mapped windows will have backing store, the backing store
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attribute value reported by the server for a window will be the last
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value established by a client. If it has never been set by a client,
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the server will report the default value, NotUseful. This behavior is
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required by the X protocol, which allows the server to exceed the
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client's backing store expectations but does not provide a way to tell
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the client that it is doing so.
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sets the default root window to solid white instead of the standard root weave
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.B \-x \fIextension\fP
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loads the specified extension at init.
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This is a no-op for most implementations.
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enables(+) or disables(-) the XINERAMA extension. The default state is
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platform and configuration specific.
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.SH SERVER DEPENDENT OPTIONS
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Some X servers accept the following options:
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.B \-ld \fIkilobytes\fP
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sets the data space limit of the server to the specified number of kilobytes.
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A value of zero makes the data size as large as possible. The default value
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of \-1 leaves the data space limit unchanged.
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sets the number-of-open-files limit of the server to the specified number.
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A value of zero makes the limit as large as possible. The default value
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of \-1 leaves the limit unchanged.
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.B \-ls \fIkilobytes\fP
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sets the stack space limit of the server to the specified number of kilobytes.
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A value of zero makes the stack size as large as possible. The default value
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of \-1 leaves the stack space limit unchanged.
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turns on the X Window System logo display in the screen-saver.
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There is currently no way to change this from a client.
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turns off the X Window System logo display in the screen-saver.
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There is currently no way to change this from a client.
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.BR default | mono | gray | color
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sets the color allocation policy that will be used by the render extension.
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selects the default policy defined for the display depth of the X
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don't use any color cell.
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use a gray map of 13 color cells for the X render extension.
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use a color cube of at most 4*4*4 colors (that is 64 color cells).
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disables smart scheduling on platforms that support the smart scheduler.
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.B \-schedInterval \fIinterval\fP
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sets the smart scheduler's scheduling interval to
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X servers that support XDMCP have the following options.
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See the \fIX Display Manager Control Protocol\fP specification for more
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.B \-query \fIhostname\fP
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enables XDMCP and sends Query packets to the specified
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enable XDMCP and broadcasts BroadcastQuery packets to the network. The
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first responding display manager will be chosen for the session.
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.B \-multicast [\fIaddress\fP [\fIhop count\fP]]
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Enable XDMCP and multicast BroadcastQuery packets to the network.
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The first responding display manager is chosen for the session. If an
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address is specified, the multicast is sent to that address. If no
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address is specified, the multicast is sent to the default XDMCP IPv6
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multicast group. If a hop count is specified, it is used as the maximum
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hop count for the multicast. If no hop count is specified, the multicast
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is set to a maximum of 1 hop, to prevent the multicast from being routed
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beyond the local network.
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.B \-indirect \fIhostname\fP
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enables XDMCP and send IndirectQuery packets to the specified
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.B \-port \fIport-number\fP
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uses the specified \fIport-number\fP for XDMCP packets, instead of the
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default. This option must be specified before any \-query, \-broadcast,
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\-multicast, or \-indirect options.
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.B \-from \fIlocal-address\fP
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specifies the local address to connect from (useful if the connecting host
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has multiple network interfaces). The \fIlocal-address\fP may be expressed
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in any form acceptable to the host platform's \fIgethostbyname\fP(3)
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causes the server to terminate (rather than reset) when the XDMCP session
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.B \-class \fIdisplay-class\fP
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XDMCP has an additional display qualifier used in resource lookup for
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display-specific options. This option sets that value, by default it
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is "MIT-Unspecified" (not a very useful value).
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.B \-cookie \fIxdm-auth-bits\fP
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When testing XDM-AUTHENTICATION-1, a private key is shared between the
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server and the manager. This option sets the value of that private
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data (not that it is very private, being on the command line!).
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.B \-displayID \fIdisplay-id\fP
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Yet another XDMCP specific value, this one allows the display manager to
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identify each display so that it can locate the shared key.
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.SH XKEYBOARD OPTIONS
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X servers that support the XKEYBOARD (a.k.a. \*qXKB\*q) extension accept the
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following options. All layout files specified on the command line must be
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located in the XKB base directory or a subdirectory, and specified as the
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relative path from the XKB base directory. The default XKB base directory is
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.IR __projectroot__/lib/X11/xkb .
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.BR [+-]accessx " [ \fItimeout\fP [ \fItimeout_mask\fP [ \fIfeedback\fP [ \fIoptions_mask\fP ] ] ] ]"
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enables(+) or disables(-) AccessX key sequences.
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.B \-xkbdir \fIdirectory\fP
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base directory for keyboard layout files. This option is not available
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for setuid X servers (i.e., when the X server's real and effective uids
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.B \-ardelay \fImilliseconds\fP
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sets the autorepeat delay (length of time in milliseconds that a key must
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be depressed before autorepeat starts).
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.B \-arinterval \fImilliseconds\fP
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sets the autorepeat interval (length of time in milliseconds that should
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elapse between autorepeat-generated keystrokes).
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.B \-xkbmap \fIfilename\fP
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loads keyboard description in \fIfilename\fP on server startup.
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.SH "NETWORK CONNECTIONS"
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The X server supports client connections via a platform-dependent subset of
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the following transport types: TCP\/IP, Unix Domain sockets, DECnet,
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and several varieties of SVR4 local connections. See the DISPLAY
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NAMES section of the \fIX\fP(__miscmansuffix__) manual page to learn how to
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specify which transport type clients should try to use.
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The X server implements a platform-dependent subset of the following
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authorization protocols: MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE-1, XDM-AUTHORIZATION-1,
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XDM-AUTHORIZATION-2, SUN-DES-1, and MIT-KERBEROS-5. See the
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\fIXsecurity\fP(__miscmansuffix__) manual page for information on the
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operation of these protocols.
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Authorization data required by the above protocols is passed to the
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server in a private file named with the \fB\-auth\fP command line
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option. Each time the server is about to accept the first connection
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after a reset (or when the server is starting), it reads this file.
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If this file contains any authorization records, the local host is not
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automatically allowed access to the server, and only clients which
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send one of the authorization records contained in the file in the
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connection setup information will be allowed access. See the
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\fIXau\fP manual page for a description of the binary format of this
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file. See \fIxauth\fP(1) for maintenance of this file, and distribution
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of its contents to remote hosts.
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The X server also uses a host-based access control list for deciding
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whether or not to accept connections from clients on a particular machine.
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If no other authorization mechanism is being used,
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this list initially consists of the host on which the server is running as
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well as any machines listed in the file \fI/etc/X\fBn\fI.hosts\fR, where
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\fBn\fP is the display number of the server. Each line of the file should
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contain either an Internet hostname (e.g. expo.lcs.mit.edu) or a DECnet
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hostname in double colon format (e.g. hydra::) or a complete name in the format
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\fIfamily\fP:\fIname\fP as described in the \fIxhost\fP(1) manual page.
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There should be no leading or trailing spaces on any lines. For example:
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corporate.company.com
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Users can add or remove hosts from this list and enable or disable access
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control using the \fIxhost\fP command from the same machine as the server.
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If the X FireWall Proxy (\fIxfwp\fP) is being used without a sitepolicy,
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host-based authorization must be turned on for clients to be able to
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connect to the X server via the \fIxfwp\fP. If \fIxfwp\fP is run without
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a configuration file and thus no sitepolicy is defined, if \fIxfwp\fP
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is using an X server where xhost + has been run to turn off host-based
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authorization checks, when a client tries to connect to this X server
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via \fIxfwp\fP, the X server will deny the connection. See \fIxfwp\fP(1)
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for more information about this proxy.
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The X protocol intrinsically does not have any notion of window operation
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permissions or place any restrictions on what a client can do; if a program can
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connect to a display, it has full run of the screen.
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X servers that support the SECURITY extension fare better because clients
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can be designated untrusted via the authorization they use to connect; see
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the \fIxauth\fP(1) manual page for details. Restrictions are imposed
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on untrusted clients that curtail the mischief they can do. See the SECURITY
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extension specification for a complete list of these restrictions.
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Sites that have better
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authentication and authorization systems might wish to make
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use of the hooks in the libraries and the server to provide additional
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The X server attaches special meaning to the following signals:
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This signal causes the server to close all existing connections, free all
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resources, and restore all defaults. It is sent by the display manager
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whenever the main user's main application (usually an \fIxterm\fP or window
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manager) exits to force the server to clean up and prepare for the next
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This signal causes the server to exit cleanly.
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This signal is used quite differently from either of the above. When the
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server starts, it checks to see if it has inherited SIGUSR1 as SIG_IGN
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instead of the usual SIG_DFL. In this case, the server sends a SIGUSR1 to
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its parent process after it has set up the various connection schemes.
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\fIXdm\fP uses this feature to recognize when connecting to the server
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The X server can obtain fonts from directories and/or from font servers.
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The list of directories and font servers
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the X server uses when trying to open a font is controlled
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by the \fIfont path\fP.
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The default font path is
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__default_font_path__ .
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A special kind of directory can be specified using the \fBcatalogue\fP:
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prefix. Directories specified this way can contain symlinks pointing to the
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real font directories. See the FONTPATH.D section for details.
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The font path can be set with the \fB\-fp\fP option or by \fIxset\fP(1)
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after the server has started.
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You can specify a special kind of font path in the form \fBcatalogue:<dir>\fR.
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The directory specified after the catalogue: prefix will be scanned for symlinks
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and each symlink destination will be added as a local fontfile FPE.
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The symlink can be suffixed by attributes such as '\fBunscaled\fR', which
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will be passed through to the underlying fontfile FPE. The only exception is
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the newly introduced '\fBpri\fR' attribute, which will be used for ordering
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the font paths specified by the symlinks.
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An example configuration:
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75dpi:unscaled:pri=20 \-> /usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi
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ghostscript:pri=60 \-> /usr/share/fonts/default/ghostscript
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misc:unscaled:pri=10 \-> /usr/share/X11/fonts/misc
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type1:pri=40 \-> /usr/share/X11/fonts/Type1
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type1:pri=50 \-> /usr/share/fonts/default/Type1
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This will add /usr/share/X11/fonts/misc as the first FPE with the attribute
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'unscaled', second FPE will be /usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi, also with
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the attribute unscaled etc. This is functionally equivalent to setting
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the following font path:
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/usr/share/X11/fonts/misc:unscaled,
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/usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi:unscaled,
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/usr/share/X11/fonts/Type1,
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/usr/share/fonts/default/Type1,
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/usr/share/fonts/default/ghostscript
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.I /etc/X\fBn\fP.hosts
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Initial access control list for display number \fBn\fP
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.IR __datadir__/fonts/X11/misc , __datadir__/fonts/X11/75dpi , __datadir__/fonts/X11/100dpi
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Bitmap font directories
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.IR __datadir__/fonts/X11/TTF , __datadir__/fonts/X11/Type1
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Outline font directories
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.I /tmp/.X11-unix/X\fBn\fP
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Unix domain socket for display number \fBn\fP
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.I /usr/adm/X\fBn\fPmsgs
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Error log file for display number \fBn\fP if run from \fIinit\fP(__adminmansuffix__)
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.I __projectroot__/lib/X11/xdm/xdm-errors
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Default error log file if the server is run from \fIxdm\fP(1)
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General information: \fIX\fP(__miscmansuffix__)
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.I "X Window System Protocol,"
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.I "The X Font Service Protocol,"
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.I "X Display Manager Control Protocol"
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Fonts: \fIbdftopcf\fP(1), \fImkfontdir\fP(1), \fImkfontscale\fP(1),
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\fIxfs\fP(1), \fIxlsfonts\fP(1), \fIxfontsel\fP(1), \fIxfd\fP(1),
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.I "X Logical Font Description Conventions"
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Security: \fIXsecurity\fP(__miscmansuffix__), \fIxauth\fP(1), \fIXau\fP(1),
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\fIxdm\fP(1), \fIxhost\fP(1), \fIxfwp\fP(1),
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.I "Security Extension Specification"
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Starting the server: \fIstartx\fP(1), \fIxdm\fP(1), \fIxinit\fP(1)
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Controlling the server once started: \fIxset\fP(1), \fIxsetroot\fP(1),
579
\fIxhost\fP(1), \fIxinput\fP(1), \fIxrandr\fP(1)
581
Server-specific man pages:
582
\fIXorg\fP(1), \fIXdmx\fP(1), \fIXephyr\fP(1), \fIXnest\fP(1),
583
\fIXvfb\fP(1), \fIXquartz\fP(1), \fIXWin\fP(1).
585
Server internal documentation:
586
.I "Definition of the Porting Layer for the X v11 Sample Server"
588
The sample server was originally written by Susan Angebranndt, Raymond
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Drewry, Philip Karlton, and Todd Newman, from Digital Equipment
590
Corporation, with support from a large cast. It has since been
591
extensively rewritten by Keith Packard and Bob Scheifler, from MIT.
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Dave Wiggins took over post-R5 and made substantial improvements.
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doc/Xserver.man.pre
