Blog Posts

So close, yet so far away!

With a weekend of ThinApp and WINE tweaking/hacking atop iMKS Project's WINE install, this is as far as I could get running the VI Client on my PbG4. Interestingly, I tried the VI Client in a WINE-only environment as well, and got just as far with that as my Thinstall bundle. I did an end-run around schannel.dll issues by disabling SSL on my host. Once past that, I get an error parsing the server's config.xml file. I think this is due to the VI Client failing on a .dll somewhere in the winsock/network stack. There's also more issues pointing to XML-parsing problems in WINE's .Net install. If this can be made to work with ThinApp on-top Wine, we will have a VI3 Client that essentially runs on PowerPC Macs, Solaris and Linux (Oh yeah, WinTel too. Heh...)

There was one nice take-away from this failed VI-Client-on-everything mission... I got Office 2003 running in WINE and I've figured out a couple of wierd FreeNX/X11/Wine issues that were annoying the heck out of me. It's unbeleivably cool how close iMKS has gotten to being a free and open alternative for running Windows software over the 'Net, acting as both application and terminal server.

Go to the iMKS Download Page at DesktopECHO.com

What is iMKS?

• The iMKS Virtual Appliance presents the VMware Remote Console in a simple, secure, and cross-platform fashion.
• Impressive console rendering over any IP network -- LAN, WAN or Internet.
• FreeNX + NX GPL back-end, NoMachine NX Client front-end (download for Mac OS X, Solaris, Linux and Windows.)
• iSCSI target (IET 0.4.16) built-in, and a basic Webmin GUI for iSCSI target editing.
• Network PDF Printer: Macs (or PC's with Bonjour) can autodiscover and install the iMKS PDF print driver.
• PDF's automagically wind up in your home folder or the public web share at http://imks.local/public

Remote Consoles supported:

• VMware ESX 2.x and ESX 3.x
• VMware Server 2.x and Server 1.x
• Microsoft RDP and SeamlessRDP
• VNC and Apple Remote Desktop (ARD)
• Cirtix ICA and Java-based consoles work when their respective plugins are installed

Challenges: (What problems can iMKS solve?)

• VMware's Remote Console (RemoteMKS) is designed for high-fidelity reproduction of screens to other computers on a LAN. Performance over Cable/DSL Internet is therefore (expectedly) terrible or unusable.
• Mac users suffer with terrible ARD/VNC performance over WAN/Internet.
• RemoteMKS consoles pumped over RDP/Citrix work ok, but issues with "drunken mouse syndrome" or "screen-in-screen lagmonster" can make for unhappy experiences.
• VMware Remote Consoles are only available for Windows and Linux on x86.
• Mac (Intel/PPC) or Solaris users have no free and reliable way to run
• VMware GSX / Server/ ESX 2.x / ESX 3.x Remote Consoles.

Design:

• Start the iMKS VM - Set passwords - DONE.
• Unlimited users -- The ceiling is hardwarwe and bandwidth, not licensing.
• Engineered with attention to being small, good-looking and dead-simple to use. CD size or better (b315 is 502mb)
• iMKS (strictly speaking) is a Virtual Appliance, there is no desktop per-se. Remote applications are seamlessly integrated into the local desktop
• ZeroConf/Bonjour aware, remote SMB filecopy, discoverable PDF printer for the network.
• Windows Remote Desktop (RDP protocol) supported through an improved GUI rdesktop, and provides accessibility to Win2000 / XP / 2003 / and Vista RDP sessions.
• SeamlessRDP support; integrating rdesktop/SVN, third-party patches and a tuned version of TSclient 1.50. Past work on the TSclientX project for MacOS became the breeding ground for the refinement seen here.
• A VNC Client with tabbed windows, ZeroConf/Bonjour autodiscovery, Apple VNC and Keychain support: Vinagre, wow.
• Secure enough to live in the perimeter. One incoming port required for functionality; authentication and data streams are protectd by SSHv2.
• Fast, secure remote access to a Mac OS X Desktop when used in conjunction with the excellent Vine Server, it can transform Mac OS X into a multi-user Terminal Server.

Tips:

• There are lots, I need to post some.

Known Issues:

• There are lots, I need to post some.

ChangeLog:

• June 18, 2008 - Build 315. Initial Release

Everything Else:

• This package is provided "AS-IS" with no warranty - explicit or implied - from anyone.

Thanks go out to:

VMware: The remote console binaries packaged in iMKS are VMware's code, (c)VMware, Inc.

The rest of iMKS is made up of free and open source software.
CentOS/RedHat, FreeNX, NoMachine NX, XFCE, GNOME, KDE, OpenVM-Tools,
and at least one kitchen sink. Hack away, let us know if you can make iMKS better!

Questions or feedback? E-Mail me, or post questions in an appropriate VMware Community Forum.

Daniel Milisic.