How can I have a both GUI session and a VNC session?

[jamjar]

I was able to get Tigervnc running in Manjaro and have a VNC session into it.

But I found out that I could only have a VNC session if I was not running a GUI session at the Manjaro machine where the VNC server was running.

See this earlier post for details: VNC server's systemd service

Question:
How could I have both a GUI session at Manjaro and a VNC session into it? (If it matters, my desktop environment is Xfce.)

If that’s impossible, please kindly so advise. Thanks.

[Aragorn]

@jamjar

How could I have both a GUI session at Manjaro and a VNC session into it? (If it matters, my desktop environment is Xfce.)

That should normally work if both logged-in users are distinct, i.e. if they are separate user accounts.

[jamjar]

Ah, thank you.

I was the same user at both GUI and VNC.

When that’s the case, I have to choose one or the other session? Impossible to give the same user both?

[Aragorn]

Well, I have no experience with VNC and even less so with XFCE, so I don’t know whether either of them supports multiple concurrent logins from the same user.

The operating system itself and the X11 display server definitely do both support it — GNU/Linux is a UNIX/POSIX operating system, after all.

[linux-aarhus]

@linux-aarhus

Multiple X sessions for a single user are not supported
– TigerVNC - ArchWiki

This effectively means - if you are logged onto the physical display :0 then you cannot connect a vnc session. If you try to do so, using the same username, a black screen or system lockup will be the likely result.

In that regard it works like Microsoft RDP which logout the physical session when you initiate a remote connection and vice-versa.

This is a limitation of TigerVNC

[jamjar]

Thanks. And nice to have my own observations confirmed by “official” guidance.

Only, the same user account can have simultaneous local and TigerVNC X sessions in Ubuntu (and get two distinct desktops or even desktop environments). Therefore what we found would seem to be a limitation of Arch or Manjaro.

I only add this last bit so a random person landing here does not get thrown off. Perhaps they have Ubuntu.

[linux-aarhus]

@jamjar

the same user account can have simultaneous local and TigerVNC X sessions in Ubuntu

Imagine the mess when you leave your computer - connect using vnc to the same session - and your wife begins using the system.

@jamjar

(and get two distinct desktops or even desktop environments)

That is messy at best

@jamjar

limitation of Arch or Manjaro

Not a limitation but improvement.