Logging in with Lynx
Sometimes, it may be desirable or necessary to administer your system from the command line without the benefit of a GUI. Luckily, one does not have to give up Webmin entirely in these circumstances. Using Lynx, or a similarly capable text-mode web browser, one can login and use most of the Webmin modules much the same as using a graphical browser. Logging in when Webmin is using session authentication is identical to logging in with a graphical browser, but logging in when Webmin is configured to use traditional HTTP authentication is slightly different. Lynx requires that authentication information be included on the command line when starting up:
[joe@delilah joe]$ lynx -auth root:passwd http://delilah:10000
 | If you plan to administer your system via a text mode browser, you will want to choose an alternate theme rather than the new default MSC.Linux theme. The old default theme, or the Swell Technology theme have a simpler icon and table layout, allowing Lynx and other textmode browsers to display them more effectively. The MSC.Linux theme, while attractive in a GUI browser, uses a complex layout that leads many areas of Webmin to be difficult to read and impossible to use in a text mode browser. |
Another limitation of using a command line client is that SSL is not well supported by all versions of Lynx and other text-mode browsers. This means you may need to run your Webmin server without encryption, and thus more extreme measures should be taken to insure the security of your server. Securing a Webmin installation will be discussed in detail in later chapters.