Creating a "xbmc-only" system

jehojakim · May 26, 2011, 8:47pm

With Suse Studio I try to create an appliance that just runs xbmc, with possibly mythtv installed alongside it. No window manager at all, just X + xbmc.

I’ve read the topic “Can I login to xbmc - without the desktop environment?” dated 21-Jun-2009 02:23, but the advices given there suggest introducing a lightweight window manager, like icewm for example.
I’ve read also the article on
Opensuse 11.0 - 11.2 - MythTV Official Wiki
but there a window manager is installed, too.

I have been experimenting with several setups (with icewm, without icewm, Xorg setuid’ed or not) but so far not the result I want, that is:
without logging in xbmc starts after power on. Preferably without even showing the grub start up screen, or boot messages. No window manager.

Any hints on this one?

jdmcdaniel3 · May 27, 2011, 12:44am

jehojakim With Suse Studio I try to create an appliance that just runs xbmc, with possibly mythtv installed alongside it. No window manager at all, just X + xbmc.

I’ve read the topic “Can I login to xbmc - without the desktop environment?” dated 21-Jun-2009 02:23, but the advices given there suggest introducing a lightweight window manager, like icewm for example.
I’ve read also the article on
Opensuse 11.0 - 11.2 - MythTV Official Wiki
but there a window manager is installed, too.

I have been experimenting with several setups (with icewm, without icewm, Xorg setuid’ed or not) but so far not the result I want, that is:
without logging in xbmc starts after power on. Preferably without even showing the grub start up screen, or boot messages. No window manager.

Any hints on this one?
Hello jehojakim. Anyone using openSUSE can have XBMC load directly. In fact you don’t need SuSE Studio and I have not tried using it that way. Here are some facts. I am using the lastest version of openSUSE, 11.4:

XBMC should be installed from the Packman repository into a standard load of openSUSE.
XMBC is already a desktop, just like KDE or GNOME and is treated like another desktop session.
To Go Directly into XBMC, load XBMC from Packman AND when you are at the Login screen, select the session option in the bottom left and check the bullet for XBMC. When you log in, you will go straight into XBMC.
I highly recommend you keep at least one other desktop loaded but it could be just the slimmed down XFCE, but at least you could select a GUI desktop if you like to just run Package Management in a GUI.
You can set yourself to auto login (to XBMC) , but it can only be done, as best I can tell, from the text mode of yast.

Once you install XMBC (from Packman) and change your session to XBMC (From the Standard SUSE Login), you should go directly into XBMC with running any other desktop session.

To Set your self to auto login, only after you have setup everything just as you want, do the following:

From the openSUSE Standard Login Screen, before you login, press **CTRL-ALT-F1
**2. Log into the terminal session as root.
start YaST in text mode(type yast2 and press enter)
Select Security and Users (on Left)
Select User and Group Management (On Right)
Highlight Your Name (If more Than One Name Listed)
Tab To Expert Options (Bottom Right)
Select Login Settings and press enter
Tab To Auto Login and Press Space Bar (X will appear as selected)
Tab To User Name, Make Sure it is Yours
Tab to OK and Press Enter
Press F10 for OK
Press F9 to Exit YaST
Enter CTRL-ALT-F7 to return Back to Login Screen

You must revers this process to stop auto Logins. You would have to do this to even switch back to XFCE or what other session you have, so auto logins are not recommended by me.

Thank You,

martin_helm · May 27, 2011, 1:16am

What exactly is the problem having a window manager installed? I just do not
really understand what the problem is when you have one. Compared to X which
you need anyway it nearly needs no additional resources.

jehojakim · May 31, 2011, 8:17pm

Hi Martin,

Well, it’s not so much a problem, but since in my view a window manager is not used, it should not be there. What I want is to create a Linux media box, based on xbmc and mythtv, as tightly integrated as possible, and nothing more. A window manager isn’t gonna be used in this setup, so there’s no need for having it around.

regards, jehojakim

martin_helm · May 31, 2011, 8:58pm

I would try the following just as a proof of concept.
Use the install dvd and choose the option to install a minimal system
without X (desktop choice -> other in the installer) later during the
installation process but before the installation happens you can refine your
choice of software packages to be installed. Here you can select a minimal
pattern for X, this pattern will as far as I remember preselect also icewm
(or icewm-lite - not sure), simply remove anything window manager related
and other unwanted stuff at this point in the software selection.
And then installation is done, check if installing xbmc works without
pulling in some unwanted stuff (I think it should work that way).