TightVNC can't connect when server is "locked"

[joshg]

OK here's my set up:

Home PC: Gentoo Linux 2004.0 kernel-2.6.3-gentoo-r1

Work: Windows XP SP1

At home (gentoo) running OpenSSH.

At work (WinXP) I'm connecting to that sshd using PuTTY (going through our corporate SOCKS 4 proxy).

LOCAL port forwarding tunnel L5901 localhost:5901
REMOTE port forwarding tunnel R5902 localhost:5902

I also have TightVNC viewer and server installed on both computers. On gentoo box version is tightvnc-1.2.9-r1, on WinXP box it is version 1.2.9 (they were both downloaded within minutes of each other )

Anyway as long as my PuTTY connection on my work computer is on, with the port forwarding this allows me to connect to either PC from either PC.

For instance to bring up a VNC of my home computer when I'm sitting at work:

vncviewer
localhost:1
<password>

Or to connect to my work computer when I'm sitting at home:

vncviewer
localhost:2
<password>


And yes this all works fine.

EXCEPT!!!

If my computer at work is "locked" (ctrl+alt+delete, "Lock Workstation"), then when I try to connect to it from home, I can't get in.

But like I said above if the computer is not "locked" then it works just fine.

Here's a high-level error log for example. The first entry (Fri Mar 19 08:03:27 2004) was when I had my wife connect to my work pc from home, and it worked just fine.

The next entry (Fri Mar 19 08:13:31 2004) was when she closed that initial session.

The remainder of the entries (Fri Mar 19 08:14:53 2004 and higher) were where I locked my work computer and she was trying to connect to it from my home computer.

#Initial Session (that worked fine)

Fri Mar 19 08:03:27 2004
vncSockConnect.cpp : accepted connection from 127.0.0.1
vncClient.cpp : client connected : 127.0.0.1 (id 3)
Fri Mar 19 08:03:33 2004
vncMenu.cpp : KillActiveDesktop

#Disconnect from initial session (basically she closed the window):

Fri Mar 19 08:13:31 2004
vncService.cpp : SelectHDESK failed to close old desktop 28, error=170
vncClient.cpp : client disconnected : 127.0.0.1 (id 3)
vncServer.cpp : deleting desktop server
vncService.cpp : SelectHDESK failed to close old desktop 28, error=170

#---#

#The rest of the lines are attempts to connect when my work PC was "locked"

Fri Mar 19 08:14:53 2004
vncSockConnect.cpp : accepted connection from 127.0.0.1
vncClient.cpp : client connected : 127.0.0.1 (id 3)
Fri Mar 19 08:14:57 2004
vncService.cpp : unable to open desktop, error=2
vncService.cpp : SelectHDESK failed to close old desktop 28, error=170
vncServer.cpp : failed to initialize desktop object
Fri Mar 19 08:15:25 2004
vncSockConnect.cpp : accepted connection from 127.0.0.1
vncClient.cpp : client connected : 127.0.0.1 (id 4)
Fri Mar 19 08:15:30 2004
vncService.cpp : unable to open desktop, error=2
vncService.cpp : SelectHDESK failed to close old desktop 28, error=170
vncServer.cpp : failed to initialize desktop object

#--#

#And finally, unlocked the work PC again and she connected again just fine:

Fri Mar 19 08:17:05 2004
vncSockConnect.cpp : accepted connection from 127.0.0.1
vncClient.cpp : client connected : 127.0.0.1 (id 5)
Fri Mar 19 08:17:11 2004
vncMenu.cpp : KillActiveDesktop
Fri Mar 19 08:18:03 2004
vncService.cpp : SelectHDESK failed to close old desktop 28, error=170
vncClient.cpp : client disconnected : 127.0.0.1 (id 5)
vncServer.cpp : deleting desktop server
vncService.cpp : Selec
tHDESK failed to close old desktop 28, error=170

Anyway does anyone know what I can do to try and work around this? Our computers at work are set by default to turn the screen saver on after 15 minutes, and lock the computer when it does so. I can't even get *home* before that happens!

 

[Need4Speed]

i use the same piercing method, and am able to log in just fine. is the server on the locked PC running as a service?

 

[joshg]

Unfortunately, no. In fact the only way I'll be able to set it up as a service is to boot to a linux boot disk that has NTFS write support and go in and add at least the barebones info for the service into the registry on my work computer. It's doable, but I'd rather there be a different solution if possible.

Any way to work around that?

 

[loup garou]

I'm guessing since you can't install it as a service, which is an install option, you are doing this "under the radar." I'd suggest speaking to your IT dept about viable remote access options.

 

[joshg]

I work in IT.

Also I have been approved for remote access however I can't stand to use it. We use a 3rd party company for a VPN connection but it is just so decrepedly slow. Also it uses your local PC as the processing power, meaning anything that you process has to move over the very slow VPN, then get to your computer, then process, then send back to the internal. Basically if I try anything significant it will always time out after about 30 minutes of hang.

I'd much rather have a terminal window type of deal that I can access that will use the processing power and local connections of something internal (I.E. exactly how I have it set up now).

Also I have spoken with one of the guys that handles some of the internal stuff about it and he ran some tests for me and ensures me that my connection is tested as safe as (and maybe even more so) then the VPN service that we are using.

 

[loup garou]

Originally posted by: joshg
I work in IT.

Also I have been approved for remote access however I can't stand to use it. We use a 3rd party company for a VPN connection but it is just so decrepedly slow. Also it uses your local PC as the processing power, meaning anything that you process has to move over the very slow VPN, then get to your computer, then process, then send back to the internal. Basically if I try anything significant it will always time out after about 30 minutes of hang.

I'd much rather have a terminal window type of deal that I can access that will use the processing power and local connections of something internal (I.E. exactly how I have it set up now).

Also I have spoken with one of the guys that handles some of the internal stuff about it and he ran some tests for me and ensures me that my connection is tested as safe as (and maybe even more so) then the VPN service that we are using.

So why can't you install it as a service?

 

[joshg]

As I said in another service I'm going to go ahead and give a call over and get them to up me from Power to Admin. I have a few other things I've been meaning to do so this will help out. I'll let you know how having it set up as a service instead works out.