[Techtalk] Security Issue:disallowing external access to X windows

[Julie]

Rita Starceski wrote:
> 
> Sorry.. didn't mean to sound rude.. deadline at work came up.

No problem -- I have them all the time.

> I do want to keep people from attaching to my Xserver from the outside and
> from using having an Xterm on any machine other than the console.

You can keep people from connecting to your X-server from other
machines by firewalling the ports your X-server uses.  The other
is much more difficult, to the point of being virtually
impossible.  An xterm is just a TCP/IP client -- it runs a bunch
of code and connects to someone elses X-server.  You could firewall
all outbound connections, but then you could get e-mail, use FTP,
rlogin, etc.  There is nothing magic about port 6000 (the default
X-server port).  And there is nothing magic about the name "xterm".

Is there a specific reason you want this?  Perhaps we're trying
to solve the wrong problem?
-- 
Julianne Frances Haugh             Life is either a daring adventure
jockgrrl at austin.rr.com                 or nothing at all.
					    -- Helen Keller