Security from bills and ickets

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Security from bills and ickets
by Ambrose Bierce on Monday 31/Oct/2005, @12:44

I must say, how wonderful that a locked down terminal service is available to people of the Internet. The novelty makes the mind boggle. I look especially forward to getting bills and plane tickets this way. First, since I cannot access the bills to print, I will have difficult time paying them, which is fine - I like to keep my money. Second, I cannot get a printed copy of tickets, which means I cannot leave on boring business trips anymore. Thank you, keep up the good work!

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Re: Security from bills and ickets
by Corbin on Monday 31/Oct/2005, @14:06

NX will forward your printer (and sound, if they are setup to be forwarded), so yes, you can print them.

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Re: Security from bills and ickets
by Ambrose Bierce on Tuesday 01/Nov/2005, @07:43

Ah, but you see, it is not my printer I am speaking of. What antics I'm willing to perform on the firewall settings on my personal computer is one thing. Quite another is what would be sensible to offer at a publically accessible Internet kiosk.

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Re: Security from bills and ickets
by Corbin on Tuesday 01/Nov/2005, @08:13

If the Kiosk features an NX client, and also has a printer (how many have printers???), then they it most likely will be able to print. I've never tried to use the printing feature (don't have one anymore), but most likely it will become easier with time (if its not already brain dead simple).

Also you wouldn't have to adjust the firewall settings (everything can be tunnelled through SSH).

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Re: Security from bills and ickets
by Ambrose Bierce on Wednesday 02/Nov/2005, @10:24

You are restating my original argument - I cannot print useful items while on the move from a secured thin client. It is highly unlikely that you will come across a kiosk with the necessary features:
a) an NX client - this is solvable with the NX-applet, but does require a Java-enabled browser with the correct version at the kiosk.
b) an SMB/CUPS service running on the kiosk to include the local printer, which is then shared with the NX-server - which as described is fairly locked down.
c) SSH on the kiosk.

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Re: Security from bills and ickets
by cm on Wednesday 02/Nov/2005, @11:15

If I understand NX correctly there are quite a few points that you got wrong.

A Java-enabled browser, a kiosk setup that allows outgoing connections to port 22 and a printer that is accessible to the *local* machine should be enough.

a) The NX client applet opens an ssh-encrypted connection to the server.
b) The NX server forwards the printing request through that very connection to the client.
c) The NX *client* does the printing locally. No printer is "shared [directly] with the NX-server", no lockdown or firewall comes into play.

(To the people in-the-know: Please someone correct me if any of this is wrong.)

Of course, if the kiosk doesn't have any printer you're out of luck, but that would hardly be a problem specific to NX. :)

---
One potential issue: Are java applets allowed to print in a normal setup / has a regular user the right to allow that?

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