How to Install Guacamole on OpenBSD

Guacamole is an open-source clientless remote desktop gateway. It allows you to access your desktop or VDI infrastructure through a common web browser. This tutorial will guide you through the process of installing Guacamole on OpenBSD.

Prerequisites

Before we begin with Guacamole installation, you need to make sure that your system has the following prerequisites installed:

• OpenBSD 6.0 or higher
• Apache Tomcat 8.5
• Java 1.8

Step 1: Download and Install Guacamole

1. Open your OpenBSD terminal and run the following command to download the latest version of Guacamole:

   $ sudo su
   $ cd /usr/local/share
   $ wget https://downloads.apache.org/guacamole/1.3.0/source/guacamole-server-1.3.0.tar.gz
   

2. Extract the downloaded package with the following command:

   $ tar -zxvf guacamole-server-1.3.0.tar.gz
   

3. Change your current directory to the extracted source directory:

   $ cd guacamole-server-1.3.0
   

4. To compile Guacamole on OpenBSD, you need to install the following packages:

   $ pkg_add libcairo libjpeg libpng libssh2 libvncserver openssl freerdp
   

5. Run the following commands to configure and install Guacamole:

   $ ./configure --with-init-dir=/etc/init.d
   $ make
   $ make install
   

Step 2: Configure Guacamole

1. Now that the installation is complete, you must configure Guacamole to work with Apache Tomcat.

2. To do this, create a new file /usr/local/tomcat/conf/Catalina/localhost/guacamole.xml with the following contents:

   <?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8'?>
   <Context path="/guacamole" docBase="/usr/local/share/guacamole-server-1.3.0/guacamole" />
   

3. Next, you need to edit the file /usr/local/tomcat/conf/server.xml.

   $ vim /usr/local/tomcat/conf/server.xml
   

   Add the following lines in the Server section of the file:

   <!-- Guacamole -->
   <Connector port="8080" protocol="HTTP/1.1"
              connectionTimeout="20000"
              redirectPort="8443" />
   

4. Restart Apache Tomcat to enable the changes:

   $ systemctl restart tomcat8
   

Step 3: Access Guacamole

1. Open your web browser and go to:

   http://your-server-hostname:8080/guacamole/
   

   You should see the Guacamole login page.

2. Sign in using the default credentials:

   Username: guacadmin
   Password: guacadmin
   

3. You will be prompted to set a new password for the guacadmin account.

4. Once you have successfully logged in, you will be directed to the Guacamole dashboard.

Congratulations! You have successfully installed and configured Guacamole on OpenBSD.

If you want to self-host in an easy, hands free way, need an external IP address, or simply want your data in your own hands, give IPv6.rs a try!

Alternatively, for the best virtual desktop, try Shells!