Switching from Command Line to GUI login

[Moxy_Fruvous]

I just got dropped into a job that uses Mandrake to run everything - I'm a NOVICE linux user - Here's my problem - I had to switch to a command line login to start an apache server with a connection to an oracle database - that's fine - but i can't switch back to the Graphical login or to the gui at all - everytime i use "startx" it gives me the error that the server is already running etc. - any ideas out there?

[Flatline]

When you say "switched to", do you mean you used init 3 or what? Anyway, you could always run top as root, look for the x process and kill it, then run startx. Personally, I run all my servers in runlevel 3 anyway.

[Moxy_Fruvous]

I followed instructions that were written down - they said at the graphical login press ctrl+alt+F2 to switch to the command line login - start apache - i did that now i can't get back to my GUI

[budman7]

Try Ctrl+Alt+F7

[Flatline]

The X server always starts up on CTRL-ALT-F7 and higher. Consoles
CTRL-ALT-F1 to F6 are permanently reserved as as text terminals.

I don't understand why they'd have you drop out of X instead of starting a terminal...of course, I don't understand why they're using graphical logins on a server either (if you're going to have X installed, why not boot to runlevel 3 so that it doesn't run by default?)

[Moxy_Fruvous]

THANKS GUYS!!! I GOT IT WORKIN'!!!!