Can I edit files in my home directory via ssh?
Can I "mount" my home directory from outside DoC?
Can I ftp to any DoC systems?
Does DoC have a dialin service?
What kind of modem should I buy?
Is there x2/V90 support on the PPP dialin service?
Do you support dialup with ISDN lines?
I can dial out and hear the carrier, but pppd then terminates?
I get 'compatible network protocol could not be established'?
PPP disconnects me for no apparent reason?

Can I edit files in my home directory via ssh?

Yes, you can ssh to DoC machines from anywhere. Host names you can use are:

shell1.doc.ic.ac.uk
shell2.doc.ic.ac.uk
shell3.doc.ic.ac.uk
shell4.doc.ic.ac.uk

If your home machine runs Windows you could use a freeware application called PuTTY. There are some notes on using it and a link to the download location here. Just remember that you need to use the fully qualified hostnames as above, not just shell1 which is only sufficient within DoC.

From a PuTTY window you can run text-mode programs (eg. editors such as Pico or Emacs, or the Pine email client) but you won't be able to run X clients (graphical programs). To do that, you need an X server installed on the machine you are sitting at, and to tell ssh to forward the X protocol data over the connection. The lab Windows machines have Exceed which is an X server for Windows. But Exceed costs money and so do most of the alternatives, so it's likely you'll have to stick with text logins from Windows.

If your home machine runs Linux, you need to make sure OpenSSH is installed. Then you can run the command:

ssh shell1.doc.ic.ac.uk

ssh -X shell1.doc.ic.ac.uk

If you want to edit files, you can use scp ('secure copy') to grab a copy of the file, edit it locally, and scp it back again. Scp should be part of OpenSSH on Linux; you can get it for Windows as part of the PuTTY suite but there's no pretty GUI to help you use it.

Alternatively, you can download the GPLed WinSCP" tool, which, as the name suggests, is a Windows SCP/SFTP tool with a pretty GUI.

Can I "mount" my home directory from outside DoC?

You can mount the SMB share of your home directory, with or without VPN (for more information see the VPN guide).

When you have connected, you can access your home directory by:

Start -> Run... \\fs-homes.doc.ic.ac.uk\username

Can I ftp to any DoC systems?

No, ftp is not available in DoC. Please see our information on alternative protocols.

Does DoC have a dialin service?

We do have one but it's all rather old and slow now.

Please mail us if you do wish to register for this service.

If you have used the service before and want to check your account details click here.

Once you have an account the dialin number is 020 7594 8460.

The rather elderly modems are US Robotics Courier Dual Standard V34 Fax with V32 bis, and there are some equally dated setup notes for Linux, Mac and Windows. Please mail us if you have any queries.

Alternative facilities are provided by internet service providers. If you do use an ISP, please note that you need to use the ISP's mail gateway when sending mail from your DoC account using mail readers such as Mozilla and Eudora. Please ask your ISP for the name of their SMTP server and enter this in:

Edit -> Mail account settings -> Outgoing server

If you use Eudora, modify:

Special -> Settings -> Hosts

The exact location of these preferences and settings may vary slightly according to the versions used.

The reason you cannot use the DoC mail server for outgoing mail is that we have configured our servers to refuse to relay mail which originates from outside the college in order to prevent people using our systems for sending junk mail. Messages will only be accepted into our mail system if they have either originated from a local machine or are addressed to a local user.

What kind of modem should I buy?

A good HAYES compatible modem. I have a Motorola VoiceSURFR 56k which works well. I would recommend buying an external modem as this is more flexible than an internal one. DO NOT buy a 'winmodem' as this will not work with Linux. Some other suggestions from CSG staff here.

Is there x2/V90 support on the PPP dialin service?

The maximum data rate you'll get is about 33k after compression - x2/V90 cannot be deployed with our analogue line as x2 technology only works where there is a single analogue path in the phone call. If you want 56k you'll need to go to an ISP.

Do you support dialup with ISDN lines?

No, you would need to use an ISP for this.

I can dial out and hear the carrier, but pppd then terminates.

Please check that you have followed all the steps in the installation notes. In particular, that the chap-secrets file is set up correctly with your session password.

It may be that the initialisation string 'INIT' given to the modem as shown in the script on the webpage is not appropriate for your modem. Try shortening it to '&F'.

I get 'compatible network protocol could not be established'?

Recheck the dialogue boxes and make sure you have submitted the correct session password.

Also look in the log file 'modem.log' that windows stores on your hard drive.

PPP disconnects me for no apparent reason?

We are not aware of any particular problems with our modem service at present.

However:

• Some people have problems due to noise on their home phone line or in the phone exchanges between home and college (this has generally improved as BT have modernised their system).
• Many phone lines are affected by bad weather.

If you get a bad connection on a phone line to the extent that there is no longer enough data flowing for the error correction algorithms to function, then many modems will chose to drop the connection entirely rather than transmitting errors.

© CSG / 2003