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Incomplete administration tools

In the current state of development, the administrator must use the shell or edit configuration files at some points in order to get an LTSP network up and running. A tool that promises to help avoid this, the LTSP Manager, is currently under development, but it's still in an alpha version. It provides a user-friendly, complete graphical environment that should help those disinclined to dive into the shell, with installing and administering an LTSP infrastructure.

User profiles are some of the things that can be administered in KDE environments using the Kiosk Admin Tool (Fig. 4).
Zoom User profiles are some of the things that can be administered in KDE environments using the Kiosk Admin Tool (Fig. 4).
Another tool running under Ubuntu with Gnome is the Thin Client Manager (formerly student-control-panel). This graphical tool, installed by default in Edubuntu, provides many functions that are useful for administering individual thin clients, and it's of great help in administering training classes. To import it into Ubuntu, you need the thin-client-manager-backend and thin-client-manager-gnome packages. As shown in figure 2, this tool lists all connected clients and lets you send text messages to individual clients, close applications and individual processes, bar a workstation, enable remote logout, and display all processes running on any client. You can also send commands to a client and have them executed by it. An optional grouping function eases the administration and filtering of selected users.

The integrated screen viewer in figure 3 is a very practical tool for training purposes. This gives a live view of all connected clients. It isn't configured by default, however, and using it in normal workstation systems would probably not be permissible, for data protection reasons. One thing missing is the package x11vnc, which has to be installed on the clients. Instructions are given in the Edubuntu Wiki. The thin client manager has a framework for creating new plug-ins or integrating existing ones.

There are also tips for avoiding chaos on the desktop and adapting desktop management, in a simple way, to suit a user's wishes. For Gnome environments, Sabayon does these jobs. It isn't specific to LTSP, but is often used under Gnome for the administration of user-specific desktops. With Sabayon, the administrator can create graphical desktop profiles and then allocate them to the appropriate users. The equivalent tool for KDE environments is the powerful Kiosk Admin Tool.

Summary

One of the strengths of LTSP is its central administration of the infrastructure. Installing updates, configuring software and backing up data can all be done centrally, under the server's control. Using less expensive thin clients and discarded computers means less strain on the wallet, while the range of software available for free is steadily growing. So, if you have the option to use open source software in a firm or organisation and can see beyond your own nose, you'll find LTSP is a cost-effective alternative to commercial terminal/server solutions. LTSP has successfully found its way into school classrooms. In the business world, on the other hand, it has so far achieved little penetration. This can be put down to the wide use of commercial products, which can't always be easily and completely replaced by open source applications.

(rek)

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