Connecting to/from Outside

• ssh : To securely login to other computers

  Usage :

  ssh [email protected]
  
  or
  
  ssh -X [email protected]
  

  The option -X lets in the X signals. However, unless the machine is local, this is slow.

• scp : To securely copy a file from one machine to another.

  Usage : To copy file_1 from the current machine to another and name it as file_2

  scp file_1 [email protected]:file_2
  

  To copy from file_1 from another to the current machine and rename it as file_2

  scp [email protected]:file_1 file_2
  

• sftp : To securely transfer file from one account another

  Usage : sftp [email protected]

• To get your e-mails from outside McGill: Log in using ssh and do pine. If you want web-based email service, configure your browser/outlook with IMAP with SSL and set the Incoming server to

  hepmailhost.physics.mcgill.ca (for HEP/TNP/ASTRO)

  or imap.physics.mcgill.ca (for CMP/GANG).

Ssh is `secure shell'. It encrypts communication between two computers to prevent interception of information. If you do not have ssh in your home machine, you can get a copy from Paul (our system manager) or download it from www.openssh.com. The package also includes scp which acts like cp but secure, and sftp which acts like ftp but secure. If you use Windows at home, install PuTTY from http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/ or WinSCP from http://winscp.sourceforge.net/eng/.

To read mails from home using your browser:

You must know your current physics password in order to be able to read mail. If you don't know your physics password, you will have to contact the operators.

You can use your browser or favorite mail reader by making the following configuration changes:

• Incoming Mail Server: hepmailhost.physics.mcgill.ca if you belong to HEP/TNP/ASTRO. imap.physics.mcgill.ca if you belong to CMP/GANG.
• Outgoing Mail (SMTP) Server: the SMTP server of your ISP. Physics SMTP server is mx1.hep.physics.mcgill.ca. You may need the port number (587) to connect from home.
• Your identity (name, email address, username, etc.)
• Mail server type: IMAP
• Use Secure Connection: SSL
• Do not turn on Secure authentication.

In Mozilla, you can find these under the `Windows' button at the top. Choose Mail & Newgroups. To make these changes in Outlook, Netscape, etc, you may find this link useful:

http://www.mcgill.ca/ics/tools/email/accounts/