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Virtual Desktops (Linux)

A running Linux virtual desktop open in the browser via the workspace "desktop" URL, showing the desktop environment and an installed app.

A Linux virtual desktop (VDI) is a containerized graphical desktop you reach from your browser. No local VNC or RDP client is required. The desktop is served over HTTPS on container port 3001, and Trailer wires up a URL for it automatically when you create a workspace.

Linux VDI images build on the linuxserver/webtop base image. You choose a base operating system and a desktop environment, and Trailer resolves the matching webtop tag.

Creating a Linux virtual desktop

Section titled “Creating a Linux virtual desktop”

A virtual desktop is delivered through the normal image then workspace flow.

  1. Create an image (see Create Image) and enable the VDI Desktop service.
  2. Pick a base operating system and a desktop environment.
  3. Optionally set the keyboard layout and system language.
  4. Optionally add VDI apps to pre-install (see below).
  5. Build the image.
  6. Create a workspace from the built image (see Create Workspace).

When the VDI Desktop service is enabled, the server sets the image base to lscr.io/linuxserver/webtop:<os>-<de>, for example lscr.io/linuxserver/webtop:ubuntu-xfce. It also creates a default in-image user named trailer (UID/GID 10001).

Operating systems and desktop environments

Section titled “Operating systems and desktop environments”

The base operating system determines which desktop environments are available. Trailer validates the combination server-side and rejects unsupported pairs.

Operating systemDesktop environments
Ubuntu (default)i3, KDE, MATE, Xfce
Alpinei3, KDE, MATE, Xfce
Archi3, KDE, MATE, Xfce
Debiani3, KDE, MATE, Xfce
Fedorai3, KDE, MATE, Xfce
Enterprise Linuxi3, MATE, Xfce

The default selection is Ubuntu with the Xfce desktop. Enterprise Linux has no KDE option.

You can also set:

  • Keyboard layout (for example English US, German, French). This sets XKB_DEFAULT_LAYOUT in the image.
  • System language (for example en_US.UTF-8). This sets LC_ALL in the image.

Accessing the desktop

Section titled “Accessing the desktop”

When you create a workspace from a VDI image, the create form is pre-filled with VDI-aware defaults. You can override any of them before saving.

  • A workspace URL with subdomain desktop on port 3001, served over TLS. This is the browser entry point to the desktop.
  • Hardware acceleration is turned on.
  • The container init step is turned off (the webtop base supplies its own init).
  • A TITLE environment variable set to the workspace name. This sets the browser tab title.

After the workspace is running, open the desktop URL to load the graphical session in your browser.

VDI apps

Section titled “VDI apps”

VDI apps are graphical applications baked into the image at build time. They are installed as portable, self-contained application bundles and are Linux-only.

Available apps include Firefox, Chrome, Chromium, Brave, VS Code, VSCodium, IntelliJ IDEA, PyCharm, GIMP, Inkscape, Krita, Blender, LibreOffice, Audacity, VLC, Obsidian, Joplin, Spotify, Telegram, FileZilla, GitHub Desktop, and Beekeeper Studio.

Selected apps are installed into the image during the build and appear in the desktop’s application menu. Each app you add increases image build time and size.

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