Note: As soon as VNC Server is licensed and started, users can connect. To delay or prevent connections, see Preventing connections to VNC Server.

Windows

VNC Server can start in Service Mode, in User Mode, or both. For more information on these modes, which you might want to use, and why you might want to run more than one instance of VNC Server, see Running multiple instances of VNC Server.

To start VNC Server:

• In Service Mode, select RealVNC > VNC Server from the Start menu. Note administrative privileges are required to perform this operation.

Note: By default, VNC Server automatically starts as a service when the computer is powered on. If you explicitly stop VNC Server, however, the service does not automatically restart when the computer is rebooted.

• In User Mode, select RealVNC > Advanced > VNC Server (User Mode) from the Start menu.

Note: Microsoft User Account Control severely restricts users connected to VNC Server in User Mode from fully controlling a host computer running Windows Vista or later.

The VNC Server dialog opens:

The VNC Server dialog is the gateway to VNC Server and all its features. More on this dialog.

Click the Hide button to minimize the VNC Server dialog but keep VNC Server running in the background. To access the dialog again, double-click the VNC Server icon in the Notification area. More on this icon.

To see how to explicitly stop VNC Server, or to learn why VNC Server might stop automatically, read Stopping VNC Server.

UNIX/Linux

VNC Server can start in User Mode, in Virtual Mode, or both, as many times as your license permits. For more information on these modes, which you might want to use, and why you might want to run more than one instance of VNC Server, see Running multiple instances of VNC Server.

Note: VNC Server can also start in Service Mode, as soon as the host computer boots, and irrespective of whether or not a host computer user is logged on. For more information on this mode in this release, visit www.realvnc.com/products/vnc/documentation/latest/misc/reference/vncserver-x11-serviced.

To start VNC Server:

• In User Mode, either:

— Select Applications > Internet > VNC Server (User Mode) from the menu system, if available.

— Run the command vncserver-x11 in a Terminal window, and press the ENTER key. Note you should not do this as a user with administrative privileges.

The VNC Server dialog opens:

The VNC Server dialog is the gateway to VNC Server in User Mode and all its features. More on this dialog.

Under most versions of UNIX and Linux, you can click the Hide button to minimize the VNC Server dialog but keep VNC Server in User Mode running in the background. To access the dialog again, click the VNC Server icon in the Notification Area. More on this icon.

• In Virtual Mode, run the command vncserver-virtual in a Terminal window, and press the ENTER key. Note you should not do this as a user with administrative privileges. A message ending with text similar to the following appears:

New desktop is johndoe:1 (192.168.0.187:1)

This operation starts VNC Server in Virtual Mode attached to a virtual desktop, detached from the monitor, and independent of the console. This means that no VNC Server icon and VNC Server dialog comparable to those found in User Mode can be displayed. To see how to work with VNC Server in this mode, read Working with VNC Server in Virtual Mode.

A virtual desktop is assigned an X Server session number corresponding to the port on which VNC Server is listening for connection requests. In the example above, this is session number 1, corresponding to port 5901. For more information on ports, see Configuring ports.

To see how to explicitly stop VNC Server, or to learn why VNC Server might stop automatically, read Stopping VNC Server.