Logging Onto Your Unix/Linux Accounts
and
Changing Your Unix/Linux Password

Last updated by Tom Walter on 02/05/2005

The following instructions assume you are working on a PC running Windows XP. You must have SSH installed on your local PC.

Start the SSH Secure Shell Client program. The following window will appear:

Click on Quick Connect and a dialog box called Connect To Remote Host appears.

You will be logging onto a workstation called earth (a.k.a. earth.geo.hunter.cuny.edu). The name earth.geo.hunter.cuny.edu is also known as the fully qualified domain name (FQDN) in 'net talk. Besides a name, every computer must have a unique IP (Internet Protocol) address. It's the Internet equivalent of a person's social security number (SSN). No two people have the same SSN. The IP address of earth.geo.hunter.cuny.edu is 146.95.2.5. Ok, back to SSH and logging on.

The Host Name of the workstation you're going to log onto is earth. If that name doesn't work use earth.geo.hunter.cuny.edu and if that doesn't work use 146.95.2.5. Click here for an explanation about why the names might not work all of the time.

The User Name is your assigned user name. Leave the default entries for Port Number and Authentication Method.

If your entries are correct and the Internet is working properly, you will next have an Enter Password dialog box appear. Enter your Unix/Linux password.

If you entered the correct password the log on sequence will occur ending with a Unix prompt. You'll also see an Add Profile dialog box. You can save the settings so next time you want to log on you can click on a name and the Host Name and User

Name will be set. Call the profile earth.

The Unix prompt is earth.heo.hunter.cuny.edu{tbw}501:   It consists of three parts, the name of the computer you're logged on to, your user name and a command number. The command number will increment each time to issue a line command. Remember, in this situation you don't have a GUI (Graphical User Interface) where you use your mouse and click on icons. Instead you issue commands by typing them in. If you were logged onto earth locally, that is, sitting at earth's console, you'd have access to a GUI.

OK........ you're logged onto earth, a Dell PC running Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS release 3 (Taroon).

Click here for instructions about how to change your Unix/Linux password.