How can I make X start on a different tty?

APLawrence.com - Resources for Unix and Linux Systems, Bloggers and the self-employed

X11 and GUI FAQ

Some material is very old and may be incorrect today

© September 2009 Anthony Lawrence

How can I make X start on a different tty?

We're talking about the default, automatic X session - if you just want to start a session where you are, use "startx :1" (assuming :0 is running already and :1 is not).

X implementation varies a lot from system to system. I really recommend X Power Tools.

Linux KDM/XDM

For old KDM and XDM, you edit the Xservers file. Your line might want to look something like:

:0 local /usr/bin/X :0 vt5

(tty5 of course would need to be unused)

More modern KDM uses "kdmrc" and a "ServerVTs=-7" line. The "-7" says use tty7 but only if it is free (-). Without a ServerVTs line, KDM defaults to using the first available vt.

Linux GDM

In /etc/gdm/gdm.conf is "FirstVT=7". Like KDM, without that it will just grab the first available vt.

Sco

Edit /usr/lib/X11/scologin/Xservers. You'll see the line:

 :0 local /usr/bin/X11/X :0 -crt /dev/tty02

Change tty02 to whatever you wish.

If you found something useful today, please consider a small donation.