Various issues in Gnome and sound processing in Xmanager

PROBLEM DESCRIPTION


In recent Linux or Unix with Gnome , the following problems may appear:

    • Login window appears unusually late

    • After login password input, execution lags : SuSE Enterprise 10, etc.

    • Gnome app execution lag or error : SuSE Enterprise 10, etc.

    • Logout  process is slow : CentOS, etc.



REASON


X Window system does not support sound, so the modern Linux systems have to process sound separately. EsounD is the most commonly used method in Gnome.



RESOLUTION


There are many ways you can hear remote sounds from Xmanager. In Gnome, EsounD is becoming the standard. This article explains how you can use EsounD to hear remote sound on Xmanager.


1. Install the latest Xmanager

EsounD is supported since Xmanager 3.0 build 0114 or build 0188 if you are using the Enterprise version. They are both released on April 30th, 2009. If you are using an older version, you have to upgrade.


2. In the remote UNIX/Linux system, assign the ESPEAKER variable manually like the following example:

export ESPEAKER=$IPADDRESS$

Note

To save the ESPEAKER value every time the user logs in, add the above line in the login script such as .login or .bashrc.


3. Open TCP port 16001 on Windows where Xmanager is installed. EsounD uses this port to transfer sound to the client machine.



DISABLING THE ESOUND


If you wish to disable EsounD in Gnome, edit the $HOME/.gconf/desktop/gnome/sound/%gconf.xml file to include the following lines.