Connecting to SCRC Computers
Contents
The SCRC Computing Environment
The SCRC computing environment is a cluster of computers designated specifically for research computing. The computers rnd.stern.nyu.edu and vleda.stern.nyu.edu provide a direct public interface to this environment.
If you already know how to connect to the SCRC computers and would like to learn about and/or use its GRID processing capabilities, see GRID Processing at Stern. For technical information about the SCRC computing cluster, see Hardware, Software and Infrastructure.
Gaining Online Access to SCRC Computers
To use the SCRC computers you must have a Stern User ID and password. If you do not have a Stern account, see Obtaining a Stern User Account.
Additionally, you must have been added to the “grid” group in Hermes. Contact the Stern IT helpdesk and request that a ticket be created and assigned to Research Computing so you can be added to the “grid” group in Hermes.
Establishing a Secure Connection and Logging In
For security reasons, SCRC computers will only support secure shell (SSH), secure copy (SCP), and secure ftp (SFTP) sessions. Before you can log in, you must have a secure shell program on your computer. Here are our recommendations.
Recommended Secure Shell Client Programs for Windows
PuTTY
A free implementation of SSH (Secure SHell), PuTTY is very small and easily fits on a USB thumb drive to carry with you when you travel. PuTTY can be downloaded from the PuTTY Download Page. After you download “putty.exe” and put it on your desktop, you can start the program by double clicking its icon.
To log in to a server with PuTTY, type rnd.stern.nyu.edu or vleda.stern.nyu.edu in the Host Name field and click Open. (Note: The first time you log in, a dialog may appear which starts with “The server’s host key is not cached…”. Click Yes in this dialog.) Type your stern NetID and password at the prompts. When you see a command line prompt, you can enter Linux commands or run programs. For help with Linux see Linux Basics. For help running programs on the Stern GRID see GRID Processing at Stern.
PuTTY can be used to enable graphics for SAS and matlab. Configure PuTTY to run X Windows by navigating the tree on the left: Connection → SSH → X11, then check box “Enable X11 forwarding”. To save this configuration, click “Session”, then enter a name in the “Saved Sessions” text box and click “Save”. Next time you want to connect, click “Load” and pick your saved session name from the “Saved Sessions” list.
Xming
An X Window Server for Windows XP/Vista/Win7, Xming can run graphical versions of SAS and Matlab on the SCRC Linux computers. Download Xming here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/xming/. During the installation, on the “Select Components” dialog box, choose “Don’t install an SSH client”.
Xming, once started, runs transparently. You can see the process in the Windows task manager but it does not itself have a window. Additional help can be found at:http://www.straightrunning.com/XmingNotes/
Once logged in, you can start programs by typing the program name at the command line. For example, type “sas” or “matlab” to start SAS or Matlab, respectively.
Secure Shell Client Program for Mac
Mac OS X comes with its own implementation of OpenSSH, so you don’t need to install any third-party software to take advantage of the extra security SSH offers. Just open a terminal window and begin issuing commands.
Steps :
1. Open a mac terminal.
2. Type the command: ssh [-Y] sternNetID@hostName.stern.nyu.edu (e.g. ssh dfrederi@rnd.stern.nyu.edu)
3. RSA authentication will be prompted: “Are you sure you want to continue connecting (yes/no)?”
4. Type yes
5. At password prompt, type your stern account password.
6. You will be successfully logged into the stern server.
Secure File Transfer Using FileZilla
FileZilla is a free stand alone secure file transfer program that can be used to transfer files between your PC (Windows, Mac, or Linux) and the SCRC Computers. Download the client program here: http://filezilla-project.org/.
To start a session, type rnd.stern.nyu.edu or vleda.stern.nyu.edu into the Host field, your netID into the Username field, your stern password into the Password field, and 22 into the Port field then click Quickconnect.
The left pane shows your local Windows files and directories and the right pane shows your home directory and files on the remote SCRC computer. You can use the drag and drop method to transfer files in either direction.