How To Install and Configure VNC Server on Ubuntu

VNC stands for “Virtual Network Computing” and is a system or set of protocols for sharing desktops. There are many software options available to access Linux-based desktops remotely, including TigerVNC, TightVNC, Vino, vnc4server, and more.

TigerVNC is a free, open-source, high-performance VNC server used to control or access Linux-based desktops remotely. It is a client/server application that allows you to interact with graphical applications on remote machines.

• Read: How to Install Remote Desktop (XRDP) on Ubuntu

In this tutorial, we will show you how to install and configure a VNC server on Ubuntu.

Setting Up VNC Server on Ubuntu: Step-by-Step

Follow the step-by-step instructions to install and configure VNC server on Ubuntu systems.

Step 1: Installing Desktop Environment

Ubuntu desktop users can skip this step.

By default, Ubuntu Server does not include any Desktop Environment. The TigerVNC server is designed to control desktop systems remotely, so you will need to add a desktop environment to your server.

1. First, update and upgrade all installed packages with the following commands:

   apt update -y 
   apt upgrade -y 
   

2. Once your system is updated, install the Tasksel utility to install a desktop environment:

   apt install tasksel -y 
   

3. After installing Tasksel, launch it with the following command:

   tasksel 
   

   You should see the following interface:

   

   Use the arrow key to scroll down and find Ubuntu desktop. Press the Space key to select it, then press the Tab key to select OK, and hit Enter to install the Ubuntu desktop.

4. Once all packages are installed, set your system to boot into the graphical target with the following command:

   systemctl set-default graphical.target 
   

5. Restart your system to apply changes.

Step 2: Installing TigerVNC Server

1. TigerVNC packages are available in the default Apt repository on Ubuntu systems. You can install it by running the following command:

   sudo apt install tigervnc-standalone-server -y 
   

2. After installing TigerVNC, create a new user and set a VNC password for that user. For this tutorial, we are creating a user named “tecadmin” with the following command. You can choose any name you like.

   sudo adduser tecadmin
   

3. Next, switch to the tecadmin user and set a VNC password with the following commands:

   su - tecadmin
   vncpasswd 
   

   Provide your desired password as shown below:

   
   Password:
   Verify:
   Would you like to enter a view-only password (y/n)? n
   
   

   Output

   Copy
4. Next, start the VNC server using the following command:

   vncserver -localhost no 
   

   Once the VNC server is started, you should get the following output:

   
   New 'ubuntu2204:1 (tecadmin)' desktop at :1 on machine ubuntu2204
   
   Starting applications specified in /etc/X11/Xvnc-session
   Log file is /home/tecadmin/.vnc/ubuntu2004:1.log
   
   Use xtigervncviewer -SecurityTypes VncAuth,TLSVnc -passwd /home/tecadmin/.vnc/passwd ubuntu2004:1 to connect to the VNC server.
   
   

   Output

   Copy
5. You can verify your running VNC server with the following command:

   vncserver -list 
   

   You should get the following output:

   
   TigerVNC server sessions:
   
   X DISPLAY #	RFB PORT #	PROCESS ID
   :1		5901		1719
   
   

   Output

   Copy

Step 3: Installing VNC Client

1. You can download the latest VNC client from the official RealVNC download page.
2. Once the download is complete, install the downloaded package with the following command:

   dpkg -i /home/rahul/Downloads/VNC-Viewer-7.11.1-Linux-x64.deb  
   

3. Next, launch the VNC client from the Gnome application menu. Click on the File menu => New connection to create a new connection. You should see the following screen:

   

4. Provide the Name and IP address along with VNC session ID :1 of your VNC server and click on OK to save the connection. You should see your saved connection in the following screen:

   

5. Now, double-click on your newly created connection. You will be asked to provide your VNC password as shown below:

   

6. Provide your VNC password and click on OK. Once connected, you should see your Ubuntu desktop screen:

   

Step 4 : Configure VNC to Work with Your Desktop Environment

1. The first thing is to stop currently running VNC instance using the vncserver command with the -kill option followed by the session ID as an argument.

   vncserver -kill :1 
   

   You should get the following output:

   
   Killing Xtigervnc process ID 1719... success!
   
   

   Output

   Copy
2. Next, configure TigerVNC to work with Gnome. Create a new xstartup file inside the .vnc directory with the following commands:

   su - tecadmin 
   nano ~/.vnc/xstartup 
   

   Add the following lines:

   
   #!/bin/sh
   
   exec /etc/vnc/xstartup
   xrdb $HOME/.Xresources
   vncconfig -iconic &
   dbus-launch --exit-with-session gnome-session &
   
   

   Copy

   Save and close the file. The above script will run automatically whenever you start or restart the TigerVNC server.

3. Next, give execute permissions to the ~/.vnc/xstartup file:

   chmod u+x  ~/.vnc/xstartup 
   

Step 5: Setup Systemd Service

1. The systemd configuration will help you to auto start service on system reboots. Create a systemd file for TigerVNC to manage the VNC service. You can create it with the following command:

   nano /etc/systemd/system/vncserver@.service 
   

   Add the following lines:

   
   [Unit]
   Description=Remote desktop service (VNC)
   After=syslog.target network.target
   
   [Service]
   Type=simple
   User=tecadmin
   PAMName=login
   PIDFile=/home/%u/.vnc/%H%i.pid
   ExecStartPre=/usr/bin/vncserver -kill :%i > /dev/null 2>&1 || :
   ExecStart=/usr/bin/vncserver :%i -localhost no -geometry 1024x768
   ExecStop=/usr/bin/vncserver -kill :%i
   
   [Install]
   WantedBy=multi-user.target
   
   

   Copy

   Save and close the file

2. Then reload the systemd daemon with the following command:

   systemctl daemon-reload 
   

3. Next, enable the VNC service to start at system reboot with the following command:

   systemctl enable vncserver@1.service 
   

4. Next, start the VNC service with the following command:

   systemctl start vncserver@1.service 
   

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have successfully installed and set up the Tiger VNC server on Ubuntu systems. You can now connect to your Ubuntu system from any desktop system and manage it with an easy-to-use graphical interface.