Use Xpra desktop mode when you want to use a complete remote Linux desktop, rather than have each remote application appear as its own local window. The remote desktop opens in one Xpra window and keeps running when you disconnect, so you can reconnect later and carry on where you left off.
Desktop sessions need an X11-capable Linux or Unix server. If the desktop you want to access is already running, use shadow mode instead; it also works with macOS and Windows servers.
Choose this when you want a separate, private desktop for remote work. Start with the quick start below.
Choose shadow mode when someone is already logged in at the server and you need to view or control that same display.
Choose seamless mode when you only need a few remote applications and want their windows to mix with the windows on your computer.
You need to start an Xpra server on the remote computer, then connect to it from your own computer. The easiest way to do both is over SSH:
xpra desktop --start-child=fluxbox ssh://USER@HOST/
Replace USER and HOST with your login name and the server name. fluxbox
is a small desktop window manager used as an example; replace it with the
command that starts the desktop environment installed on your server.
When you close the Xpra client window or choose Disconnect, the remote desktop continues to run. Connect again with:
xpra attach ssh://USER@HOST/
If you prefer not to type commands, open Xpra from your application menu, choose Start, then choose a desktop session. The graphical tool can start a session on this computer or a remote host.
On the server, start a desktop session on a free display. :100 is an example
display number:
xpra desktop :100 --start-child=fluxbox
Then, on your own computer, connect to it:
xpra attach ssh://USER@HOST/100
If the client is on the same machine and uses the same account, use:
xpra attach :100
For most people, desktop is the right choice. It creates one remote screen
and shows it in an Xpra window, much like a traditional remote-desktop tool.
If you regularly use several monitors, monitor can make the remote session
follow your local monitor layout. It needs additional server support, so start
with normal desktop mode unless you specifically need this behaviour.
On a server with Xdummy support, start the session with:
xpra monitor --start-child=fluxbox ssh://USER@HOST/
Monitor mode exposes a virtual monitor for each of the client’s displays and updates the layout as it changes. It is unavailable with the simpler Xvfb backend; see Xdummy for platform and package requirements.
Desktop and monitor servers require an X11 server and are not available on macOS or Windows servers. You can attach with an Xpra client; a desktop session can also accept a VNC client when VNC support is enabled.
The initial desktop size comes from the xvfb backend. Set it explicitly when
needed:
xpra desktop --resize-display="1024x768" --start-child=fluxbox
You can later resize the virtual screen with normal X11 tools such as
xrandr. Monitor mode instead uses the client’s monitor geometry; configure
the Xdummy virtual size for the largest combined layout you expect.
To end a session automatically when its window manager exits, use
--start-child with --exit-with-children. Otherwise, the session remains
available after its client disconnects.