X2Go Usage and Overview

If you are logged in locally to a host you can not connect to it via X2Go and vice versa.

If you are using a Purdue IT supported host and the X2Go client isn't installed then send in a request to have it installed. If you are not using an Purdue IT supported host then go the X2Go download and install pages.

Now start the X2Go client. You should see something like this:

X2Go new session window with Session name, Host, Login, and Session Type input highlighted with a red rectangle" class="image-richtext

There are 4 keys things to fill out:

  1. Session name
  2. Host
  3. Login
  4. Session type

Let's go through each of these.

Session

The host's name works for this but you can name it anything you like.

Host and Login

The Host field needs to be the Fully Qualified Domain Name of the host (e.g. valhalla.ecn.purdue.edu).

Login is your Purdue career account username.

Session Type

In our testing we found the the XFCE desktop manager worked the best with X2Go. Please confirm with Purdue IT that the host you want to connect with does have the XFCE desktop manager installed.

X2Go session type drop-down menu with XFCE selected

That is the minimum required to connect. You will need to create a VPN connection to Purdue to connect to most hosts.

Input/Output

You might want to change the window size that is created for a session. The default is 800x600. 1024x768 is a good size, but this is dependent upon the size of the monitor for the computer you are using.

X2Go Input/Output tab with a custom resolution of 800x600 set

Start session

Now that you have created a session, you can connect by clicking in the X2Go mascot/session name area on the right.

X2Go client sceenshot with the mascot and session name highlighted

This will bring up a login window. You might be prompted to approve the SSH key if this is your first time connecting to a host. Enter your career account password when prompted. A window with your desktop will come up and you can then use it to do what you need to do on the host.

Pause/Sleep Session

In the X2Go window where the login prompt was is a new window with connection information. You can choose to sleep/suspend the session. This will keep the session 'alive' on the host you connected to and will replace the connection information window with a login prompt. You can return to that session by logging in again. Just click on the "pause" button.

X2Go client with an active session. The Pause Session button is highlighted.

Ending A Session

Logging out of the host you're connected to is the recommended way to end a session. You can close out applications that are running cleanly.

That's it for the basic settings to get started using the X2Go client.

Mac Client Notes

  • XQuartz needs to be installed and running prior to starting the X2Go client.
  • the X2Go client software is not signed so an exception to allow it will be needed

Oracle Linux 8/9 and Ubuntu 22.04 LTS Client Notes

If you get visual artifacts:

  • Click on Applications button
    XFCE desktop environment. A red rectangle is around the Applications button.
  • Click on Settings sub menu iterm
    A red rectangle is around the Settings option in the Applications menu
  • Click on Window Manager Tweaks sub menu item
    A red rectangle is around the Window Manager Tweaks option in the Settings sub menu
  • Click on Compositor tab of the Window Manager Tweaks window
    A red rectangle is around the Compositor tab of the Windows Manager Tweaks window
  • Make sure the Enable display composting toggle is not checked
    A red rectangle is around the Enable display compositing toggle
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