this seems strange so any help is much appreciated. when i tried to start x windows on a sco unix server the screen went blank (no picture) but i could still access files, databases, and run commands to the server from clients just fine. its been like this for a few days and been looking for a way to safely exit or kill the x windows on the sco unix server. should all else fail i can shutdown the server from a client or i can simply pull the plug. that is a problem since the office constantly needs the server up during the office hours that i come in. thanks.