Disabling Screen Blanking

By default, Red Hat Linux blanks the screen after an interval of no keyboard or mouse activity (usually 10 minutes). This can be sometimes inconvenient.

To disable screen blanking:

Login to the machine as root
Open the file /etc/X11/gdm in your favorite editor
Scroll down to the section that defines the standard X server. It should look like:
```
#Definition of the standard X server.
[server-Standard]
name=Standard server
command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X -audit 0
```
Your lines may look slightly different
Add the option "-s 0" to the command. e.g.
```
command=/usr/X11R6/bin/X -s 0 -audit 0
```
Open the file /etx/X11/xorg.conf in your favorite editor
Comment out the DPMS option lines:
```
   Option           "dpms"
```
and/or
```
   Option           "DPMS" "true"
```
by placing a "#" sign at the start of the line(s).
Restart the X server (ctrl-alt-backspace, log-off/log-on. In some cases a reboot may be necessary).
If the screen is still blanking, login as the user and execute xscreensaver. Use the xscreensaver interface to disable any screensaver/screen blanking.

Other notes:

Redhat 6.4:

From Brad:

The workaround is achieved by issuing the following, as user root:

gconftool-2 –direct –config-source=xml:readwrite:/etc/gconf/gconf.xml.mandatory –type bool –set /apps/gnome-screensaver/idle_activation_enabled false

Have gotten a few reports and concerns about issues waking up from the 
screensaver. The details as we know it:

-Blank Screensaver is set to come on after 15 minutes of the workstation 
being "idle".

-If users attempt to wake the screensaver up after less than 15-20 minutes 
of the screensaver being on, then the screensaver will wake up in a few seconds.

-If users attempt to wake the screensaver up after it being on more than 
15-20 minutes, then the screensaver will take 30-90+ seconds to wake up.

-So total idle time is around 30-35 minutes before the issue will occur. 
Seems to only occur on the workstations. Doesn't matter if the user wakes 
up using mouse or keyboard.

We are actively working a ticket with RedHat on the issue. If anyone has 
details differing from our above understanding, let me know, it 
may prove useful in determining the ultimate cause.

If this is a concern the workaround is to disable the screensaver. 
You can run the following command on each workstation to disable 
the screensaver. 

gconftool-2 --direct --config-source=xml:readwrite:/etc/gconf/gconf.xml.mandatory --type bool --set /apps/gnome-screensaver/idle_activation_enabled false

N-AWIPS Workstations
 

Install 5.x Desktop

Install X devel ( yum -y install *X* xorg* *x11* )

Install fvwm

yum install nedit

Configure login banner with gdmsetup

install ksh ( yum -y install ksh )

Use the Generic/Postscript Driver for the plotter (plotter1.nhc.noaa.gov ) with the command “system-config-printer”.

sym link csh and ksh ( ln -s /bin/csh /usr/bin/csh, ln -s /usr/bin/ksh /bin/ksh )

/etc/gdm/custom.conf file and disable the CheckDirOwner option as show below:

  [security]

  CheckDirOwner=false

  RelaxPermissions=2

 

  gdm-restart

 

* Screen Blanking

In xorg.conf:

 

Section "ServerFlags"
  Option          "BlankTime"     "0"
  Option          "StandbyTime"   "0"
  Option          "SuspendTime"   "0"
  Option          "OffTime"       "0"
  Option "dpms" "false"

  EndSection

http://www.x.org/archive/X11R6.8.0/doc/xorg.conf.5.html

Option "BlankTime" "time" sets the inactivity timeout for the blanking phase of the screensaver. time is in minutes. This is equivalent to the Xorg server's `-s' flag, and the value can be changed at run-time with xset(1x) . Default: 10 minutes.

Option "StandbyTime" "time" sets the inactivity timeout for the "standby" phase of DPMS mode. time is in minutes, and the value can be changed at run-time with xset(1x) . Default: 20 minutes. This is only suitable for VESA DPMS compatible monitors, and may not be supported by all video drivers. It is only enabled for screens that have the "DPMS" option set (see the MONITOR section below).

Option "SuspendTime" "time" sets the inactivity timeout for the "suspend" phase of DPMS mode. time is in minutes, and the value can be changed at run-time with xset(1x) . Default: 30 minutes. This is only suitable for VESA DPMS compatible monitors, and may not be supported by all video drivers. It is only enabled for screens that have the "DPMS" option set (see the MONITOR section below).

Option "OffTime" "time" sets the inactivity timeout for the "off" phase of DPMS mode. time is in minutes, and the value can be changed at run-time with xset(1x) . Default: 40 minutes. This is only suitable for VESA DPMS compatible monitors, and may not be supported by all video drivers. It is only enabled for screens that have the "DPMS" option set (see the MONITOR section below).