Connecting to Acme using SSH:
A guide to connecting to Acme using SSH.

Prepared for CS1321 by Robert Gash

Why do I need to use SSH?

The acme.gatech.edu computing system provides Georgia Tech students with several important services, many of which are required by classes and/or the school administration. As you are undoubtedly aware (or you should be), your Email account resides on acme, as well as the "tin" newsreader many use to read newsgroups.

For security purposes, OIT (the campus computing department), does not allow students to connect to Acme using Telnet or FTP from off campus. Many choose to dial the school's provided dialup service, but that service is being terminated after Summer Semester 2001. However, there is no need to use the dialin service to connect to Acme. Acme is connected to the Internet, and it allows connections using a secure protocol, called SSH (Secure Shell Protocol). This document will outline the steps required to connect to Acme from off-campus using SSH. This guide also works from on-campus, and we recommend that on-campus users also connect to Acme using SSH, as it is much more secure and less susceptible to password theft.

Prerequisites

This document assumes that your computer has an Internet connection and you can use a web browser (we will be using Internet Explorer 5.5 in this demonstration, however you may use any browser you choose).

Installation

Download Putty
1. To install Putty, visit the Putty Download Page (this will open a new window so you can download while reading this guide). Scroll down the page to find the link next to "putty.exe" that says "(or by HTTP)". Make sure you select the one for "Windows 95, 98, ME, NT, and 2000", otherwise you will not be able to run putty. A screenshot of this page is provided below.
2. Next, you will be prompted with a dialog box asking you what you want to do with this file, select "Save this file to disk" and hit OK.
3. Now, you will be prompted with a box asking you where you want to save this file, find a folder or directory that you can remember and save it there. Your save dialog box may differ from the one seen below, but the basic premise is the same.
4. Now you should see some sort of download status box, possibly like the one below. Wait for Putty to download (should take < 1m on a 56k modem).
Run Putty
1. Click on the Start menu and then select the "Run" option.
2. When you are prompted with a path to putty, type in the path to where you saved putty.exe. If you get lost, you can use the "Browse..." button to find it. Click OK when you have found it.
Connect to Acme
1. When the Putty window first appears, you will see a screen very similar to this one.
  
  Type "acme.gatech.edu" in the "Host Name" text area. Click on the "SSH" radio button. Then type "acme.gatech.edu" into the text box under "Saved Sessions". Now click "Save". We have now just stored your session, so you do not have to re-type this information every time you run Putty.
  
  Now click "Open" to begin your connection to Acme.
2. You will now see a black window appear onscreen, shortly thereafter you will see a Yes/No dialog box entitled "Putty security alert". Click the "Yes" button to continue your connection. (This option appears when you connect to a host the first time, once you click "Yes" you will not have to do this again)
3. Now you will see "login as:" appear in the black window. Enter your GTE number here (gtXNNNX, NOT your SSN). When you are prompted for "gtenum@acme.gatech.edu's password:", enter your Acme password.

You are now connected to Acme! When you wish to re-connect to acme, simply run Putty, and double-click on the "acme.gatech.edu" session under the "Saved Sessions" area on the first screen, enter your gte number and password when prompted, and you're connected!

Creating a shortcut to Putty

Many of you will want to create a shortcut to Putty on your desktop so you can quickly access it in the future. This step is totally OPTIONAL. You can run putty the manual way (covered above) if you wish, the functionality is the same. If you do want to create a shortcut, follow these easy steps (which can be used for any program or file you want to make a shortcut to):

Open "My Computer" and browse to the folder you saved putty.exe in.
Using the RIGHT (or left, if you are using a left-handed mouse) mouse button, drag the putty icon from the folder to the desktop. A small menu will appear when you release the button. Select "Create shortcut(s) here" from the menu. You now have a shortcut on your desktop to run Putty!

Thanks

We want to take time to thank the Putty developers for creating such a wonderful, easy-to-use program, and to Peter Dillinger for providing a wonderful document, from which this one was derived.