Sharing /tmp over NFS

Can I share a common /tmp across servers?

A bizarre question, isn't it?

I'm dabbling with a Linux Terminal Server Project (LTSP) deployment
where we have a main server which creates desktop sessions for X Windows
desktop machines via the XDMCP protocol.  It's running a Mandriva release.

In an effort to run newer applications and to provide a way to test
newer applications, different compile options and to distribute the load
of various applications to different machines, I have deployed another
machine running gentoo.

I've mirrored the account information for all user accounts from the
Mandriva machine to the Gentoo machine.  The /home directory of the
Mandriva machine is mounted as /home on the Gentoo box.

I've been able to make ssh calls to the gentoo box from Mandriva desktop
icons which launch applications back directly to the thin client's
desktop using something like this:

    echo $DISPLAY > ~/.DISPLAY ; ssh dhcp177
    "/usr/local/bin/setx;/usr/bin/thunderbird"

Here is the setx program referenced above:

    #!/bin/bash
    #This program depends on a current XWindows "DISPLAY" variable being
    passed
    #via a file in the user's home directory called .DISPLAY

    export DISPLAY=`cat ~/.DISPLAY`
    export XAUTHORITY=/home/~/.Xauthority

Basically, this program is setting up the .Xauthority and the current
$DISPLAY information.
What seems to be happening is  that applications which interact with
Gnome preferences want to be able to write all their preferences to
sockets which are created by default in the /tmp directory.

I'd like to know why these files aren't created in $HOME/tmp/ instead of
the global /tmp directory I don't know.   If I could change this I
wouldn't see the need for mounting /tmp across machines.

I've heard that gconfd  inter-relates with orbit and some dbus
technology.  And I've seen that these have options for tcp sockets
instead of file sockets.  But even if I could share gconfd across
multiple servers, wouldn't I have problems with different clients which
have been compiled against different versions of Gnome?

If I cannot figure this one out, I'll have to reconfigure the gentoo box
with the -gnome flag so applications like Thunderbird, and Firefox don't
interfere with the normal gnome applications on the Mandriva box.

Thanks for listening!

-Joe Baker


-- 
Joe Baker
Network Administrator
NEL Frequency Controls, Inc.

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