XINIT(1)                    General Commands Manual                   XINIT(1)



NAME
       xinit - X Window System initializer

SYNOPSIS
       xinit  [  [  client ] options ... ] [ -- [ server ] [ display ] options
       ... ]

DESCRIPTION
       The xinit program is used to start the X Window  System  server  and  a
       first  client  program  on systems that are not using a display manager
       such as xdm(1) or in environments that  use  multiple  window  systems.
       When  this  first  client  exits, xinit will kill the X server and then
       terminate.

       If no specific client program is given on the command line, xinit  will
       look  for a file in the user's home directory called .xinitrc to run as
       a shell script to start up client programs.  If no  such  file  exists,
       xinit will use the following as a default:

            xterm  -geometry  +1+1  -n  login  -display  :0


       If  no specific server program is given on the command line, xinit will
       look for a file in the user's home directory called .xserverrc  to  run
       as  a  shell  script  to  start up the server.  If no such file exists,
       xinit will use the following as a default:

            X  :0

       Note that this assumes that there is a program named X in  the  current
       search  path.  The site administrator should, therefore, make a link to
       the appropriate type of server on the machine, or create a shell script
       that runs xinit with the appropriate server.

       Note,  when  using  a  .xserverrc script be sure to ``exec'' the real X
       server.  Failing to do this can make the X server  slow  to  start  and
       exit.  For example:

            exec Xdisplaytype

       An important point is that programs which are run by .xinitrc should be
       run in the background if they do not exit  right  away,  so  that  they
       don't prevent other programs from starting up.  However, the last long-
       lived program started (usually a window manager or  terminal  emulator)
       should  be  left in the foreground so that the script won't exit (which
       indicates that the user is done and that xinit should exit).

       An alternate client and/or server may be specified on the command line.
       The  desired  client  program  and its arguments should be given as the
       first command line arguments to xinit.  To specify a particular  server
       command  line,  append  a  double  dash  (--) to the xinit command line
       (after any client and arguments) followed by the  desired  server  com-
       mand.

       Both  the  client  program  name and the server program name must begin
       with a slash (/) or a period (.).  Otherwise, they are  treated  as  an
       arguments to be appended to their respective startup lines.  This makes
       it possible to add arguments (for example,  foreground  and  background
       colors) without having to retype the whole command line.

       If  an explicit server name is not given and the first argument follow-
       ing the double dash (--) is a colon followed by a digit, xinit will use
       that number as the display number instead of zero.  All remaining argu-
       ments are appended to the server command line.

EXAMPLES
       Below are several examples of how command line arguments in  xinit  are
       used.

       xinit   This  will  start up a server named X and run the user's .xini-
               trc, if it exists, or else start an xterm.

       xinit -- /usr/bin/Xvnc  :1
               This is how one could start a specific type  of  server  on  an
               alternate display.

       xinit -geometry =80x65+10+10 -fn 8x13 -j -fg white -bg navy
               This  will start up a server named X, and will append the given
               arguments to the default xterm command.  It will ignore  .xini-
               trc.

       xinit -e widgets -- ./Xorg -l -c
               This  will  use the command .Xorg -l -c to start the server and
               will append the arguments -e widgets to the default xterm  com-
               mand.

       xinit /usr/ucb/rsh fasthost cpupig -display ws:1 --  :1 -a 2 -t 5
               This  will  start  a server named X on display 1 with the argu-
               ments -a 2 -t 5.  It will then start  a  remote  shell  on  the
               machine  fasthost  in  which  it  will  run the command cpupig,
               telling it to display back on the local workstation.

       Below is a sample .xinitrc that starts a clock, several terminals,  and
       leaves  the window manager running as the ``last'' application.  Assum-
       ing that the window manager has been configured properly, the user then
       chooses the ``Exit'' menu item to shut down X.

               xrdb -load $HOME/.Xresources
               xsetroot -solid gray &
               xclock -g 50x50-0+0 -bw 0 &
               xload -g 50x50-50+0 -bw 0 &
               xterm -g 80x24+0+0 &
               xterm -g 80x24+0-0 &
               twm

       Sites  that  want  to  create a common startup environment could simply
       create a default .xinitrc that references a site-wide startup file:

               #!/bin/sh
               . /etc/X11/xinit/site.xinitrc

       Another approach is to write a script that starts xinit with a specific
       shell  script.   Such  scripts are usually named x11, xstart, or startx
       and are a convenient way to  provide  a  simple  interface  for  novice
       users:

               #!/bin/sh
               xinit /etc/X11/xinit/site.xinitrc -- /usr/bin/X -br


ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
       DISPLAY        This  variable  gets  set  to the name of the display to
                      which clients should connect.

       XINITRC        This variable specifies an init  file  containing  shell
                      commands  to  start up the initial windows.  By default,
                      .xinitrc in the home directory will be used.

FILES
       .xinitrc       default client script

       xterm          client to run if .xinitrc does not exist

       .xserverrc     default server script

       X              server to run if .xserverrc does not exist

SEE ALSO
       X(7), startx(1), Xserver(1), Xorg(1), xorg.conf(5), xterm(1)

AUTHOR
       Bob Scheifler, MIT Laboratory for Computer Science



X Version 11                      xinit 1.3.4                         XINIT(1)
