tighvnc connection to ubuntu server refused

Please post the output of the following (2) commands:

ps ax | grep vnc

netstat -na | grep :590

ps ax | grep vnc

10153 pts/1    S+     0:00 grep --color=auto vnc

 netstat -na | grep :590

"Nothing goes back to the command line"

Okay, so the VNC server definitely isn't running - do you have a file /etc/init.d/vncserver?

If yes, please do:

  /etc/init.d/vncserver start

If you do not, please describe to me the steps you used to initially enable this service.

No I don't have that file. I did a search for desktop sharing and check all the options I needed and it worked for a couple of days.

I just installed tightvncserver and when I run:
 vncserver - geometry 1024x768

I get this:

Couldn't start Xtightvnc; trying default font path.
Please set correct fontPath in the vncserver script.
Couldn't start Xtightvnc process.

Try this, it seems to work out of the box for me:

  sudo apt-get install x11vnc

  x11vnc -nodpms -rfbauth -xkb /home/yourusername/.vnc/passwd -display :0

This is a better solution if you're trying to attach to a GUI which is already launched from bootup which sounds like you did.

By default it will die when you disconnect your VNC client session, but you can tweak the flags to have it stay up if that's what you desire.

x11vnc -nodpms -rfbauth -xkb /home/myname/.vnc/passwd -display :0
** Results **

21/11/2013 13:14:29 passing arg to libvncserver: -rfbauth
21/11/2013 13:14:29 passing arg to libvncserver: /home/myname/.vnc/passwd
21/11/2013 13:14:29 x11vnc version: 0.9.12 lastmod: 2010-09-09  pid: 12828
No protocol specified
No protocol specified
21/11/2013 13:14:29 XOpenDisplay(":0") failed.
21/11/2013 13:14:29 Trying again with XAUTHLOCALHOSTNAME=localhost ...
No protocol specified
No protocol specified

21/11/2013 13:14:29 ***************************************
21/11/2013 13:14:29 *** XOpenDisplay failed (:0)

*** x11vnc was unable to open the X DISPLAY: ":0", it cannot continue.
*** There may be "Xlib:" error messages above with details about the failure.

Some tips and guidelines:

** An X server (the one you wish to view) must be running before x11vnc is
   started: x11vnc does not start the X server.  (however, see the -create
   option if that is what you really want).

** You must use -display <disp>, -OR- set and export your $DISPLAY
   environment variable to refer to the display of the desired X server.
 - Usually the display is simply ":0" (in fact x11vnc uses this if you forget
   to specify it), but in some multi-user situations it could be ":1", ":2",
   or even ":137".  Ask your administrator or a guru if you are having
   difficulty determining what your X DISPLAY is.

** Next, you need to have sufficient permissions (Xauthority)
   to connect to the X DISPLAY.   Here are some Tips:

 - Often, you just need to run x11vnc as the user logged into the X session.
   So make sure to be that user when you type x11vnc.
 - Being root is usually not enough because the incorrect MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE
   file may be accessed.  The cookie file contains the secret key that
   allows x11vnc to connect to the desired X DISPLAY.
 - You can explicitly indicate which MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE file should be used
   by the -auth option, e.g.:
       x11vnc -auth /home/someuser/.Xauthority -display :0
       x11vnc -auth /tmp/.gdmzndVlR -display :0
   you must have read permission for the auth file.
   See also '-auth guess' and '-findauth' discussed below.

** If NO ONE is logged into an X session yet, but there is a greeter login
   program like "gdm", "kdm", "xdm", or "dtlogin" running, you will need
   to find and use the raw display manager MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE file.
   Some examples for various display managers:

     gdm:     -auth /var/gdm/:0.Xauth
              -auth /var/lib/gdm/:0.Xauth
     kdm:     -auth /var/lib/kdm/A:0-crWk72
              -auth /var/run/xauth/A:0-crWk72
     xdm:     -auth /var/lib/xdm/authdir/authfiles/A:0-XQvaJk
     dtlogin: -auth /var/dt/A:0-UgaaXa

   Sometimes the command "ps wwwwaux | grep auth" can reveal the file location.

   Starting with x11vnc 0.9.9 you can have it try to guess by using:

              -auth guess

   (see also the x11vnc -findauth option.)

   Only root will have read permission for the file, and so x11vnc must be run
   as root (or copy it).  The random characters in the filenames will of course
   change and the directory the cookie file resides in is system dependent.

See also: http://www.karlrunge.com/x11vnc/faq.html

Your Xorg graphical environment is no longer running, which explains why you weren't able to connect via the native method nor connect up x11vnc.

You will need to log into the console and run startx again (or just log in if it's sitting at a prompt)

After that, you will probably be able to connect without starting x11vnc or tightvncserver.

OK this is what I get when I start startx. I hope this is the proper way to do it:

 startx


Fatal server error:
Server is already active for display 0
        If this server is no longer running, remove /tmp/.X0-lock
        and start again.


Please consult the The X.Org Foundation support
         at http://wiki.x.org
 for help.

 ddxSigGiveUp: Closing log
Invalid MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE-1 keyInvalid MIT-MAGIC-COOKIE-1 keyxinit: giving up
xinit: unable to connect to X server: Resource temporarily unavailable
xinit: server error

This helped resolve my issue