Hi,
I have started using the latest BOINC manager and client on 3 Linux PCs. I am only able to the X GUI on one of them. I have used the command line options to configure the two that do not have GUI access. All 3 are working fine. I note that it should be possible to use the GUI to access all 3 PCs using File->Select Computer. When I do this, it asks for a hostname, which I guess I know, and a password. I have no idea about the passowrd. Could you please explain the steps I need to go through to connect the GUI to other BOINC clients. Thanks and regards, Chris.

See the thread File.SelectComputer - Connection Failure - you need to set the password in the gui_rpc_auth.cfg file, and put the controlling computer name in the remote_hosts.cfg file (which you will have to create). References in other thread are to the Wiki pages on these topics.

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per Bills comments you can include the machine name or IP address in the remote_hosts.cfg file (I've got one machine that just won't share it's machine name)
only other gotcha to watch for (stoped my Macs working but not my Windows boxes) is that you need to allow port 1043 (for the GUI remote control) through.
If you've got a bunch of machines and want to watch all of them (and have a Windows machine) at the same time have a look at BoincView as another alternative

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Random Thoughts

If you have linux only I have heard that BOINC VIew will run under Wine. No personal experience with that though, my one attempt to get a Linux machine going recently failed ... :(

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I have just managed to get the manager GUI running on my desktop Linux (FC3) box to connect to BOINC client running on another FC3 box configured as a server (mail, file, web, etc) with no X server on it.

This is what I did:
I wanted the GUI on the desktop and the boinc client on my server.
I downloaded the compressed binary on both machines:-
On the desktop I uncompressed in /usr/local (and so got /usr/local/BOINC);
On my server I added a user boinc with a home directory /var/lib/boinc and uncompressed the file in there
(#sh boinc_5.4.9_i686-pc-linux-gnu.sh -- in both places)

On my server:
I edited /etc/sysconfig/iptables and added a line that opened the port that boinc client was listening on.
Excerpt from Boinc Client startup log:
2006-10-20 21:04:23 [---] Listening on port 31416
So I added:
-A RH-Firewall-1-INPUT -m state --state NEW -m tcp -p tcp --dport 31416 -j ACCEPT
NB all on one line! I actually copied the line in the iptables file that opened port 80 for the web server and changed the 80 to 31416. Don't forget to restart the firewall to re-read the config file ('service iptables restart' in FC3)

I edited the gui_rpc_auth.cfg file to a password of my choice (as I'm going to have to type it in each time)

I added the remote_hosts.cfg file with just the ip address of my desktop PC in which I luckily have a fixed IP - not setup by DHCP at each reboot.

In my case I copied my account_*.xml file from the PC I used previously to the /var/lib/boinc directory.

I started boinc (as user boinc) with run_client on my server and noted that it came up and that we had:

. . .
2006-10-20 21:04:23 [---] Remote control allowed
2006-10-20 21:04:23 [---] Listening on port 31416
. . .

then,

On the Desktop:
Just to be on the safe side I copied the gui_rpc_auth.cfg file from my server to my desktop - I don't think this is actually needed but the password is there now in case I forget it.

I ran run_manager and in 'Advanced -> Select Computer' I entered the IP of my mail server and the password I had selected.

To my amazement (after hours of head scratching, googling and trying to find the BOINC Wiki that everyone talked about but didn't seem to actually exist (I found that it has changed location so that's why most of the links on the message boards to boinc-doc.net don't work any more - also there is only the 'unofficial' wiki and it has very little for Linux users. - But after all this, it worked!

Just in case you're fazed by all this but still want to make use of that old hardware to run boinc rather than take it to the dump - you don't need the gui if you've got an account and an account_seti-or-what-ever.xml file. My client ran fine as soon as I had all the file permissions etc. correct for my boinc user.

Hope this helps someone (and hope they find it sooner than I did.)

davef

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Hmmmm.
Pi. In the face.