Google Compute Engine Startup Script Cant Execute

Question

I am having trouble getting the following startup-script to execute properly when launching a Compute Engine Instance (GCE).

#! /bin/bash
setup vncserver
vnc4server -geometry 1440x900 :1
export DISPLAY=:1
echo "completed"

The script is read by GCE but does not execute the commands and the log shows blank lines with a message in-between which is the key to the problem but I cant seem to solve it.

Log shows the following:

Feb  3 09:15:33 simpleapache3 startupscript: Running startup script /var/run/google.startup.script
Feb  3 09:15:34 simpleapache3 startupscript:
Feb  3 09:15:34 simpleapache3 startupscript: You will require a password to access your desktops.
Feb  3 09:15:34 simpleapache3 startupscript:

How do I get around the "You will require a password..." section?

Tried:

I tried adding in a password inside the script like this but no luck...

#! /bin/bash
#setup vncserver
vnc4server -geometry 1440x900 :1
myPassword123
export DISPLAY=:1
echo "completed"

Notes:

I have got VNC4SERVER already installed on the persistent disk I am adding. If I ssh into the instance and run the commands manually they work perfectly and I am not asked for a password.

Any help would be greatly appreciated...

Brian Dorsey Brian Dorsey · Accepted Answer · 2014-02-03T18:44:40

I suspect this is because the startup scripts run as root rather than your user.

This script works for me:

#! /bin/bash
echo "I am: " `whoami`
sudo -u briandorsey DISPLAY=:1 vnc4server -geometry 1440x900 :1
echo "completed"

Replace briandorsey with your username.

Also, don't forget to create a firewall rule to allow vnc traffic. This can be done via the Console or with gcutil:

gcutil addfirewall vnc2 --allowed=tcp:5901

This will allow traffic on port 5901 to all virtual machines in your project. See the firewall docs for information on how to limit access further.

Google Compute Engine Startup Script Cant Execute

1 Answers