[PLUG] Running Browser From Cron?

[Carlos Konstanski]

Xvfb might be the answer.  We use it to run our megabloated tomcat app
on remote machines.  The app requires X resources for some reason.

The poor man's way for us to run the app on a remote machine is to run
it in a vnc session.  This allows the ability to disconnect from the
server without it being the wiser, since the X session remains alive and
well.  While our app can be started and run in an ssh shell, it cannot
be backgrounded, and the screen session in which we get the ssh shell to
the server cannot be detached, without the server dying.  I'm no expert
on this stuff (I'm not a sysadmin, I'm a code drone), but I do know we
solve the problem with Xvfb.  It looks like another way to keep an X
display session alive so an X-dependent app can have have an environment
to run in.

Since our servers do not run any X session other then the Xvfb one, the
sysadmins are at liberty to hardcode :0 into their scripts.  This does
not work on a workstation, where the user is likely to be running :0
already, and possibly others in the form of multiple graphical X
sessions and vnc sessions.  You need some dynamic way to find the next
available display.  If I find out how, I'll add a posting later.  I
think our scripts were actually fixed to remove the hardcodings.  I can
take a look.

Carlos

On Fri, 2 Sep 2005, Robert McIntosh wrote:

> Date: Fri, 02 Sep 2005 17:39:32 -0700
> From: Robert McIntosh <mcintoshrt at gmail.com>
> Reply-To: "General Linux/UNIX discussion and help; civil and on-topic"
>     <plug at lists.pdxlinux.org>
> To: plug at lists.pdxlinux.org
> Subject: [PLUG] Running Browser From Cron?
> 
> I'm trying to get a cron job to load a browser page as a user multiple
> times and then close.  Those of you with devious minds see what I'm
> getting at.
>
> I would use lynx or wget, but I need a browser with javascript to load
> the page.  Odd request, I know.
>
> I'm working with:
>
> #!/bin/sh
> /usr/X11R6/bin/mozilla --display :0 http://www.somewebsite.com
> exit
>
> and cron whines at me:
>
> (mozilla-bin:2725): Gtk-WARNING **: cannot open display: :0
>
> Please provide hints or blatant help.
>
> Thanks!
> Robert
>
> -- 
> Robert McIntosh
> mcintoshrt at Comcast.net
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