X.Org Server
Encyclopedia
X.Org Server refers to the X server
release packages stewarded by the X.Org Foundation
,
which is hosted
by freedesktop.org
, and grants
public access to the standard X Window releases
for the efforts of the free and open source software
community.
The services with which the X.Org Foundation supports X Server include the packaging of the releases; certification (for a fee); evaluation of improvements to the code; developing the web site, and handling the distribution of monetary donations. The releases are coded, documented, and packaged by global developers.
developers.
X11R6.7.0, the first version of the X.Org Server, was fork
ed from XFree86 4.4 RC2. The immediate reason for the fork was a disagreement with the new license for the final release version of XFree86 4.4, but several disagreements among the contributors surfaced prior to the split. Many of the previous XFree86 developers have joined the X.Org Server project.
The X11R6.9.0/X11R7.0.0 release primarily added a modular build system based on the GNU Autotools. 6.9.0 used the old imake
build system whereas 7.0.0 uses autotools, both on the same codebase. The modular path (using GNU Autotools) is however the future direction of the X.Org server, and also saw the X11 binaries moving out of their own /usr/X11R6 subdirectory tree and into the global /usr tree on many Unix
systems.
operating systems, being adopted in most Linux distribution
s and BSD
variants. It is also included in Sun Microsystems
's Solaris
, and is the de-facto server for x86 systems; SPARC
-based systems almost exclusively use Sun Microsystems's proprietary Xsun
server, as Sun graphics driver support for X.Org is very limited. It is also used in Cygwin/X
, Cygwin
's implementation of the X server for Microsoft Windows
, VcXsrv and in Xming
. Mac OS X
versions prior to 10.5 ("Leopard") ship with an XFree86-based server, but 10.5's X server is based on the X.Org codebase.
X Window System
The X window system is a computer software system and network protocol that provides a basis for graphical user interfaces and rich input device capability for networked computers...
release packages stewarded by the X.Org Foundation
X.Org Foundation
The X.Org Foundation is the organization holding the stewardship for the development of the X Window System. It was founded on 22 January 2004....
,
which is hosted
Internet hosting service
An Internet hosting service is a service that runs Internet servers, allowing organizations and individuals to serve content to the Internet. There are various levels of service and various kinds of services offered....
by freedesktop.org
Freedesktop.org
freedesktop.org is a project to work on interoperability and shared base technology for free software desktop environments for the X Window System on Linux and other Unix-like operating systems. It was founded by Havoc Pennington from Red Hat in March 2000.The organisation focuses on the user....
, and grants
public access to the standard X Window releases
for the efforts of the free and open source software
Free and open source software
Free and open-source software or free/libre/open-source software is software that is liberally licensed to grant users the right to use, study, change, and improve its design through the availability of its source code...
community.
The services with which the X.Org Foundation supports X Server include the packaging of the releases; certification (for a fee); evaluation of improvements to the code; developing the web site, and handling the distribution of monetary donations. The releases are coded, documented, and packaged by global developers.
History
The modern X.Org Foundation came into being in 2004 when the body that oversaw X standards and published the official reference implementation joined forces with former XFree86XFree86
XFree86 is an implementation of the X Window System. It was originally written for Unix-like operating systems on IBM PC compatibles and is now available for many other operating systems and platforms. It is free and open source software under the XFree86 License version 1.1. It is developed by the...
developers.
X11R6.7.0, the first version of the X.Org Server, was fork
Fork (software development)
In software engineering, a project fork happens when developers take a legal copy of source code from one software package and start independent development on it, creating a distinct piece of software...
ed from XFree86 4.4 RC2. The immediate reason for the fork was a disagreement with the new license for the final release version of XFree86 4.4, but several disagreements among the contributors surfaced prior to the split. Many of the previous XFree86 developers have joined the X.Org Server project.
The X11R6.9.0/X11R7.0.0 release primarily added a modular build system based on the GNU Autotools. 6.9.0 used the old imake
Imake
imake is a build automation system implemented on top of the C preprocessor.imake generates makefiles from a template, a set of cpp macro functions, and a per-directory input file called an Imakefile...
build system whereas 7.0.0 uses autotools, both on the same codebase. The modular path (using GNU Autotools) is however the future direction of the X.Org server, and also saw the X11 binaries moving out of their own /usr/X11R6 subdirectory tree and into the global /usr tree on many Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
systems.
Adoption
The X.Org Server is popular with the free software Unix-likeUnix-like
A Unix-like operating system is one that behaves in a manner similar to a Unix system, while not necessarily conforming to or being certified to any version of the Single UNIX Specification....
operating systems, being adopted in most Linux distribution
Linux distribution
A Linux distribution is a member of the family of Unix-like operating systems built on top of the Linux kernel. Such distributions are operating systems including a large collection of software applications such as word processors, spreadsheets, media players, and database applications...
s and BSD
Berkeley Software Distribution
Berkeley Software Distribution is a Unix operating system derivative developed and distributed by the Computer Systems Research Group of the University of California, Berkeley, from 1977 to 1995...
variants. It is also included in Sun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems, Inc. was a company that sold :computers, computer components, :computer software, and :information technology services. Sun was founded on February 24, 1982...
's Solaris
Solaris Operating System
Solaris is a Unix operating system originally developed by Sun Microsystems. It superseded their earlier SunOS in 1993. Oracle Solaris, as it is now known, has been owned by Oracle Corporation since Oracle's acquisition of Sun in January 2010....
, and is the de-facto server for x86 systems; SPARC
SPARC
SPARC is a RISC instruction set architecture developed by Sun Microsystems and introduced in mid-1987....
-based systems almost exclusively use Sun Microsystems's proprietary Xsun
Xsun
Xsun is an X Window System server implementation included with the Solaris operating system, developed by Sun Microsystems. It replaced the older "Xnews" server, which supported the display of not only X11 applications, but also NeWS and SunView programs...
server, as Sun graphics driver support for X.Org is very limited. It is also used in Cygwin/X
Cygwin/X
Cygwin/X is an implementation of the X Window System that runs under Microsoft Windows. It is part of the Cygwin project, and is installed using Cygwin's standard setup system...
, Cygwin
Cygwin
Cygwin is a Unix-like environment and command-line interface for Microsoft Windows. Cygwin provides native integration of Windows-based applications, data, and other system resources with applications, software tools, and data of the Unix-like environment...
's implementation of the X server for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, VcXsrv and in Xming
Xming
Xming is an implementation of the X Window System for Microsoft Windows operating systems, including Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista and Windows 7.-Features:...
. Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
versions prior to 10.5 ("Leopard") ship with an XFree86-based server, but 10.5's X server is based on the X.Org codebase.
See also
- Reference implementationReference implementationIn the software development process, a reference implementation is the standard from which all other implementations, with their attendant customizations, are measured, and to which all improvements are added...
– part of a standard release package - X window managerX window managerAn X window manager is a window manager which runs on top of the X Window System, a windowing system mainly used on Unix-like systems.Unlike the Mac OS and Microsoft Windows platforms which have historically provided a vendor-controlled, fixed set of ways to control how windows and panes display...
– a package that is deliberately kept separate from the X server package - X video extensionX video extensionThe X video extension, often abbreviated as XVideo or Xv, is a video output mechanism for the X Window System. The protocol was designed by David Carver; the specification for version 2 of the protocol was written in July 1991. Its main use today is to rescale video playback in the video controller...
- evdevEvdevIn computing, evdev is a component of the Linux kernel for handling input and a closely related input driver for the X.Org Server. The kernel component is glue code which translates input events from peripheral-specific drivers into a generic structure which the input driver can easily translate...
- X11.appX11.appXQuartz is Apple Inc.'s version of the X server, a component of the X Window System, for Mac OS X. The current version of XQuartz is a DDX included in the X.Org Server and implements support for hardware-accelerated 2D graphics , hardware OpenGL acceleration and integration with Aqua, the Mac OS...
- XFree86XFree86XFree86 is an implementation of the X Window System. It was originally written for Unix-like operating systems on IBM PC compatibles and is now available for many other operating systems and platforms. It is free and open source software under the XFree86 License version 1.1. It is developed by the...
- XglXglXgl was an X server architecture designed to take advantage of modern graphics cards via their OpenGL drivers, layered on top of OpenGL via glitz. It supported hardware acceleration of all X, OpenGL and XVideo applications and graphical effects by a compositing window manager such as Compiz or...
- xorg.confXorg.confThe file xorg.conf is a file used for configuring the X.Org Server. While typically located in /etc/X11/xorg.conf, its location may vary across operating systems....
- KDriveKDriveKDrive is a small X Window System server implementation created by Keith Packard. Unlike the X.Org Server, KDrive was not based on XFree86 code...
– now part of X.Org - XenocaraXenocaraXenocara is the OpenBSD build infrastructure for the project's customised X.Org 7.4. Until release 6.9, X.Org used imake but recent modularised versions have switched to GNU autotools. Xenocara uses BSD make and is designed to ease building and maintenance of modularised X.Org within the OpenBSD...
- Wayland (display server protocol) – Planned Eventual Replacement For X-Windows System.
External links
- X.Org home page
- [irc://irc.freenode.net/xorg #xorg] on freenode