Linux – Fake desktop environment on Debian server

debiandesktop-environmentslinuxremote desktop

I want to run a TeamSpeak 3 Client on my server to serve as a local sound bot. TeamSpeak 3 Client needs a GUI. It is based on Qt. Since TeamSpeak can be controlled from command line, it is not really necessary to waste CPU time for a GUI. So I thought of faking a desktop environment.

What's the best solution to fake a minimal desktop environment on a Debian Linux server? If this is not entirely possible, what would you recommend to waste as less performance as possible? Remember, I really don't need the GUI. It just needs to be there to get TeamSpeak 3 Client started.

Best Answer

You can try to use the X Virtual Frame Buffer. It will act as a regular X server, but will discard any data that is fed to it. You can install it on Debian with sudo apt-get install xvfb.

You can use it like this:

/usr/bin/Xvfb :10 &   # This will launch Xvfb
export DISPLAY=:10.0
/path/to/teamspeak3

You could of course also integrate this in the Teamspeak init script.

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