X Display Manager (program Type)
In the X Window System, an X display manager runs as a program that allows the starting of a session on an X server from the same or another computer.
A display manager presents the user with a login screen which prompts for a username and password. A session starts when the user successfully enters a valid combination of username and password.
When the display manager runs on the user's computer, it starts the X server before presenting the user the login screen, optionally repeating when the user logs out. In this condition, the display manager realizes in the X Window System the functionality of getty and login on character-mode terminals. When the display manager runs on a remote computer, it acts like a telnet server, requesting username and password and starting a remote session.
X11 Release 3 introduced display managers in October 1988 with the aim of supporting the standalone X terminals then just coming onto the market. Various display managers continue in routine use to provide a graphical login prompt on standalone computer workstations running X. X11R4 introduced the X Display Manager Control Protocol (XDMCP) in December 1989 to fix problems in the X11R3 implementation.
Read more about X Display Manager (program Type): Local and Remote Display Management, X Display Manager Control Protocol, History, Some Implementations
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