This is from a local LUG list:
The safe way of doing this is to use xauth. xauth will allow you to set a magic cookie on your root account such that your X server will recognize it as being eligible to access your X server. First, as the non-root user who is running X type in an xterm: xauth list $DISPLAY which will output the xauth cookies associated with your current display. It should look something like: debian/unix:0 MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE-1 f00004739672dece010d7e1faf01dca9 ( note, the magic cookie has been changed to protect the innocent ). Then in the xterm where you have used su to become root type: xauth add $DISPLAY . f00004739672dece010d7e1faf01dca9 ( please note the big long number matches the one above ). Now your root user can access your X server and display X apps. Since the root user is caching the magic cookie in the .Xauthority file in roots homedir you will be able to display on this X server instance as root as long as it keeps running. -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]