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Connecting to a Server With SSH (Secure Shell Client)

The following guide assumes you want to connect to the WestGrid facilities. The basic process is the same for other servers, but welcome screens and configuration values will be slightly different. If you have questions about connecting to one of our other systems, contact us at research.support@ualberta.ca

Step One:

Open Secure Shell Client by double-clicking the icon on your desktop. You should see the following screen:

Step Two:

To establish a connection to the WestGrid server "Cortex," click first on the Profiles menu, and then on the "Cortex" entry. If you haven't yet set up a profile for the server you're trying to reach, see our guide to configuring the software.

Step Three:

You will now see a password dialogue box. Since we're logging into Cortex in this walk-through, use your WestGrid password here. Type your password into the box and click on "OK".

Step Four:

If all goes well, a connection will be established and you'll see a welcome screen that looks like the picture below. (If you're connecting to a server other than Cortex, the welcome screen will of course be a little different.)

You're now logged in. Note that the command prompt is at the bottom of the screen -- all Unix commands that you type here will be executed on the server. The command prompt isn't visible in the figure because the Message of the Day was rather long when I logged in, and I scrolled to the top so you could see the beginning of the wecome message.

To return to the main SSH page, click the "back" button on your browser. To learn how to use SSH to transfer files securely to and from a server, click here.

Revised: January, 2006