3.2 Managing Remote Sessions on a Linux Device

Review the following sections for information on managing sessions on a Linux device:

3.2.1 Managing a Remote Control Session

Remote Management lets you remotely control a managed device. With remote control connections, the remote operator can go beyond viewing the managed device to taking control of it, which helps to provide user assistance and resolve problems on the managed device. For information on launching a Remote Control session, see Section 2.2.3, Starting Remote Management Operations on a Linux Device.

Using the Toolbar Options in the Remote Management Viewer on a Linux Device

The following table describes the various toolbar options available in the Remote Management viewer during a Remote Control session. It also lists the shortcut keys if they are available.

Option	Shortcut Key	Functionality
Connection Options		Allows you to configure various session parameters such as format and encoding for enhancing the session performance, logging, and local and remote cursor handling.
Connection Info	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+I	Provides the hostname, port, screen resolution, and protocol version of the managed device.
Full Screen	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F	Allows you to toggle between full screen and normal mode.
Request Screen Refresh		Refreshes the viewing window.
Send Ctrl-Alt-Del		Sends the Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke to the managed device. The Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke is delayed in a remote session when used for the first time after rebooting the managed device. However the subsequent Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke takes less time until you reboot the managed device again.
Send Ctrl-Esc		Invokes the Start menu on the managed device. This option will not work on a SLES 12 operating system.
Send Alt Key Press / Release		Clicking this option and pressing the ALT key on the keyboard sends the Alt keystroke to the managed device. This option will not work on a SLES 12 operating system.
Blank / Unblank Screen	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+B	Blanks or displays the screen on the managed device. When the screen of the device is blanked, the operations performed by the remote operator on the device are not visible to the user at the device. The keyboard and the mouse controls on the managed device also get locked. This option is enabled only if the Allow managed device screen to be blanked option is enabled in the Remote Management policy effective on the managed device.
Lock / Unlock Keyboard and Mouse	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+L	Locks or unlocks the keyboard and mouse controls for the managed device. When the mouse and keyboard controls of the device are locked, the user at the managed device cannot use these controls. This option is enabled only if the Allow managed device mouse and keyboard to be locked option is enabled in the Remote Management policy effective on the managed device.
Remote Execute	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+U	Launches a Remote Execute session on the managed device, which enables you to remotely launch any executable on the managed device. This option is enabled only if the Allow programs to be remotely executed on the managed device option is enabled in the Remote Management policy effective on the managed device.
Override Screensaver	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+O	Overrides any password-protected screen saver on the managed device during the remote session. This option is enabled only if the Allow screen saver to be automatically unlocked during Remote Control option is enabled in the Remote Management policy effective on the managed device. NOTE:This option is available only in the legacy Remote Management viewer.
Disconnect	Alt+F4	Closes the remote session.
Toolbar		Toggles toolbar visibility.

3.2.2 Managing a Remote View Session

Remote View lets you remotely connect with a managed device so that you can view the managed device desktop. For information on launching a Remote View session, see Section 2.2.3, Starting Remote Management Operations on a Linux Device.

The following table describes the various toolbar options available in the Remote Management viewer during a Remote View session.

Option	Shortcut Key	Functionality
Connection Options		Allows you to configure various session parameters such as format and encoding for enhancing the session performance, logging, and local and remote cursor handling.
Connection Info	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+I	Provides the hostname, port, screen resolution, and protocol version of the managed device.
Full Screen	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F	Allows you to toggle between full screen and normal mode.
Request Screen Refresh		Refreshes the viewing window.
Disconnect	Alt+F4	Closes the remote session.

3.2.3 Managing a Remote Login Session

Remote Login lets you log in to a managed device from the management console and start a new graphical session without disturbing the user on the managed device; however, the user on the managed device cannot view the Remote Login session.You must log into the device with a non-root user credentials. For information on launching a Remote Login session, see Section 2.2.3, Starting Remote Management Operations on a Linux Device.

The following table describes the various toolbar options available in the Remote Management viewer during a Remote Login session:

Option	Shortcut Key	Functionality
Connection Options		Allows you to configure various session parameters such as format and encoding for enhancing the session performance, logging, and local and remote cursor handling.
Connection Info	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+I	Provides the hostname, port, screen resolution, and protocol version of the managed device.
Full Screen	Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F	Allows you to toggle between full screen and normal mode.
Request Screen Refresh		Refreshes the viewing window.
Send Ctrl-Alt-Del		Sends the Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke to the managed device. This option is disabled for Remote View and Remote Diagnostics sessions. The Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke is delayed in a remote session when used for the first time after rebooting the managed device. However the subsequent Ctrl+Alt+Del keystroke takes less time until you reboot the managed device again.
Send Ctrl-Esc		Invokes the Start menu on the managed device. This option is not supported.
Send Alt Key Press / Release		Clicking this option and pressing the ALT key on the keyboard sends the Alt keystroke to the managed device. This option is not supported.
Disconnect	Alt+F4	Closes the remote session.

3.2.4 Managing a Remote SSH session

Remote SSH lets you securely connect to a remote Linux device and safely execute commands on the remote device. For information on launching a Remote SSH session, see Section 2.6, Launching a Remote SSH Session on a Linux Device

On launching a Remote SSH on the device, a terminal opens up on the device, which you can use to safely execute commands on the remote device.

Click Options to use the following options when executing the commands on the device:

X11 Forwarding

Allows you to run applications such as YaST by allowing the graphical information to be displayed on the device.

X11 forwarding is supported only if the Remote SSH session is launched from a Windows device. Ensure that an instance of XServer is running on the device on which you have launched the Remote SSH Java Web Start Launcher.

In the terminal, click Options > X11. Specify the XDisplayname in the following format:

hostname:6000

Local Port Forwarding

Local Port Forwarding allows you to establish a secure SSH session and then tunnel TCP connections through it. The information is sent over an encrypted connection.

In the terminal, click Options > Local Port. Specify the Local port forwarding in the following format:

port:host:hostport

The network connections to the client device on the local port are forwarded to the remote device on the specified port.

Remote Port Forwarding

Remote Port Forwarding allows you to establish a secure SSH session and then tunnel TCP connections through it. The information is sent over an encrypted connection.

In the terminal, click Options > Remote Port. Specify the Remote port forwarding in the following format:

port:host:hostport

The network connections to the SSH server on the remote port are forwarded to the local device on the specified port.

3.2.5 Improving the Remote Management Performance on the Linux Managed Device

The Remote Management performance during a remote session over a slow link or a fast link varies depending on the network traffic. For a better response time, try one or more of the following:

On the Management Console

In the ZENworks Remote Management Connection window at the console, click Connection Options and then click the Perfomance tab to set the following values:

Select the Use Encoding value as Tight option.
Set the 256 Colors and Allow CopyRect encoding to level 6.
Adjust the Custom Compression level and Allow JPEG compression depending on the quality of image required.

On the Managed Device

The speed of the Remote Management session depends upon the processing power of the managed device. We recommend that you use 1 GHz or higher processor with 1 GB or higher RAM.
Disable the wallpaper.
Configure the following settings at the managed device:
- Reduce the screen resolution.
- Reduce the depth of color pixels.

More Performance Tuning Tips

For additional information on performance tuning tips, refer to the following Web sites for specific components: