Connecting to CSIL via SSH with PuTTY


To connect remotely on Windows machines, we recommend using a program called PuTTY. This program is a well-known and widely-used SSH client for the Windows OS.

First, download the program from http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/download.html. You only need putty.exe, but feel free to download any other programs that you want. The page includes portable versions and a version with an installer. Always make sure to download PuTTY from this site (instead of some other site), so that you can make sure it is the correct program.

Then open PuTTY like you would open other programs. If you just download the putty.exe file, you can open it from your downloads folder directly. You can also move it to any other location on your machine and open it from there. If you used the installer, open PuTTY from the Start Menu.

When PuTTY opens, you should see a window that looks like this:

Empty PuTTY window

Type csil.cs.ucsb.edu into the box labeled “Host Name (or IP address)”. Leave the “Port” setting as 22 and leave the “SSH” button checked. The window should now look like this:

Completed PuTTY window

Then click on the “Open” button to connect. PuTTY will then show a prompt which looks like this:

PuTTY Host Key Prompt

Click “Yes” to accept and remember CSIL's key.

Once a connection is made, CSIL will ask for both your username and then your password. Type in your CSIL username and password. The password will not be shown on the screen, but the characters you type are being used. This step will look something like this (with your username instead of “username”):

PuTTY Login Prompt

Once you have logged in successfully, you should be connected remotely to the CSIL server. Run the following command to make sure (this command shows the full host name of the machine you are logged in to):

$ hostname

This command should output csil.cs.ucsb.edu. You can now do anything in this terminal window that you could do on a CSIL machine or a Phelps lab machine, except run graphical applications.


Thanks to the instructor and TAs from CS 16 spring 2015 class (and whoever else contributed).