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Connecting When Out of the Office

IT Connect > Software and Hardware > Nebula > Connecting

Making Connections

Nebula is not just for office desktop computers plugged into a UW ethernet jack. You can access your files and use many Nebula services when you are out of the office, whether you are using your laptop through Wifi, or working from a computer at home.

Connecting to the Internet

To connect to the UW from a remote location, you need a computer that has Internet access. Methods to access the Internet include:

Connection speeds vary greatly among these different methods and will generally be slower than the connection you have to your desktop Nebula computer on campus. You will find more information about how to establish a connection to the UW at the Connecting to the UW Networks page.

Please remember that there is no Nebula support for non-Nebula computers, and Nebula laptops are supported only during regular business hours.

Accessing Email, Calendar, and Files

You can access your email, calendar, and files from most computers that have an Internet connection.

Getting Full Functionality

If you have a good Internet connection and a fast computer, you can connect to your office Nebula computer with near full functionality.

Remote Desktop

Remote Desktop Connection allows you to connect to a Windows computer, such as your Nebula computer, from another computer (Windows or Mac) and have access to the files, applications, devices, and networks of the computer being connected to. You can even transfer files between the two computers.

Because Nebula desktop computers are left on all the time, they are always available for you to Remote Connect to. You do need to have administrative permissions on the computer you're connecting to.

Getting the IP Address and Computer Name

To be able to connect to your Nebula computer with Remote Desktop, you need to know either the IP address or the name of the computer.

Note: IP addresses sometimes change, so it's usually more reliable to use the Full Computer Name.

Finding the Computer Name

  1. StepsActions
  2. It will look something like xxxxx.clients.nebula2.washington.edu:
    • XP: Click Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> System, then click on the "Computer Name" tab
    • Windows 7: Click Start -> right-click Computer -> click on Properties
    • Windows 8: Use the Windows key + I to display Control Panel -> hit Enter to open Control Panel -> click System and Security -> click System
  3. Note what is listed for the Full computer name

Finding the IP Address

  1. StepsActions
    2. Nebula Support Request icon
  2. If it's available, click on the Nebula Support Request icon. In the window that appears, find IP Address and note the four sets of numbers separated by periods.
  3. You can also use this web site: WhatIsMyIP.com

Remote Desktop software

You will need Remote Desktop software on both the Nebula computer you want to connect to and the remote computer you want to connect from.

Most newer Windows computers already have Remote Desktop software installed. To check whether a Windows computer has the Remote Desktop program, click Start -> Programs -> Accessories and look for Remote Desktop Connection. If you do not see it, check the Accessories -> Communications folder. It is sometimes installed there.

Remote desktop software is available for other operating systems:

Running a Remote Session

To establish a Remote Connection session, use the following steps:

  1. StepsActions
  2. Establish a connection to the Internet.
  3. Start your remote desktop program
  4. In the "Computer:" field, type in either the IP address, or the name of the computer you want to connect to.
  5. Set the "Log into" field to Nebula2 .
  6. If you would like to be able to transfer files between your work and remote computers, click the Options button before you click Connect. On the Local Resources tab, click the "disk drives" box under the Local Devices section. Now when you connect, you will be able to copy files using the Copy and Paste commands.
  7. Click Connect, and you should get a login screen. Put in your regular Nebula login name and Nebula password, and hit Enter or click OK.

You will be able to print both to the printers installed on your remote system, and any printer that you have connected directly to your local machine. If you have trouble, click the Help button on the Remote Desktop Connection window, and scroll through the Index tab to "printing to your local printer from a remote session".

When you are finished, click Start in the Remote Desktop window. To log off the remote computer, click "Log off". To remain logged into the remote computer, click "Disconnect". Either action will disconnect you from the remote computer and close the Remote Desktop window. You can also use Alt-Ctrl-End to bring up the regular Windows Security screen for the remote computer, and log off from there.

Nebula Virtual Private Network (VPN) Service

The Nebula VPN service allows off-campus Nebula users to log in to the Nebula domain and use its resources from any location with Internet access. When using the Nebula VPN from a Nebula computer, you connect to the UW network as if you were in your campus office:

More information is found on the Nebula VPN Service page.

Using Nebula Filesystem Web Access

The Nebula File System Web Access lets you reach your Nebula files from anywhere you can browse the web.  Here are a few important facts:

Here's how to use this function.

Saving Your Documents to Your Computer

  1. StepsActions
  2. Open this web page (https://loupe.cac.washington.edu )
  3. Enter your UW NetID and your Nebula password and click "login:" login screen

  4. After login, you will see a screen similar to Windows Explorer (see below). Click on the [+] next to ‘uw’. You will see the same files that are shown when you double-click your I: drive

    NOTE:

    • uw\groups is the same as your I:\groups drive
    • uw\homedir is the same as your H: drive

    open uw

  5. On the left screen: keep clicking the + sign to move through the folder structure til you get display the folder you want. Then click on the folder name itself to display the contents of the folder on the right screen.

    screen 2

    NOTE:

    • Each time you click on a new directory, the cursor jumps back to the top. For each desired location, click on "Add to favorites" at the top. This creates a "favorites" option at the top left, with a link to each favorite location.

  6. On the right screen find the file you want to download and ALT-Left-Click on it (hold down the ALT key and click the left mouse button) . A Download box will appear. The file will be placed in your default download directory.

    open uw

    NOTE:

    • Remember where you saved your file(s)!

Saving Your Documents Back to the File Server

Once you have finished editing and have saved the changes to the local version of the file, you will need to "upload" it back to the Nebula file system.

NOTE:

  1. StepsActions
  2. Close your document(s).
  3. Open the Nebula Web Access (https://loupe.cac.washington.edu)
  4. Click through the folders list until you are displaying the desired location on the right-hand side.

  5. At the bottom, click on the first "Browse" button. In the File Upload box that appears, select the desired file and click "Open". This will enter the file name and location into the "Upload file" box. To upload another file, click the second "Browse" button (you can only upload 2 files at a time). Click "Upload" to start the uploading.

    file upload 1

    If you are uploading a file with its original name to its original location, you will get a warning that the file already exists.

    When you want to overwrite an existing file, you must check the "overwrite file" box, next to the "Upload" button.

Suggested Best Practices

When using the I:\groups folders:

When using the I:\homedir folder:

This is a new tool within Nebula and we welcome your feedback. Please email us at nebula@uw.edu.

SSH Secure File Transfer

For fast file access, use the SSH Secure File Transfer client to copy your files between your remote computer and the Nebula network servers. As soon as you connect to the UW dial-in service, you can open an SSH session and copy files between your remote computer and the Nebula network. The alternative, logging into the Nebula network to obtain the G: and H: drive mappings, results in much slower response time overall, especially over a modem dial-up connection.

Tips and Troubleshooting

How do I use SSH Secure File Transfer to view my H: drive?
This program is available on most Nebula computers. Open open up a session (Start -> Programs -> SSH Tectia Client -> SSH Tectia Client - SFTP).
  • Click Quick Connect and fill in your host name and your UWNetID as your user name. In most cases your host name will be bank.u.washington.edu, but if you know your files are stored on Red it will be red.cac.washington.edu.
  • Enter your UWNetID password. If asked to save information locally, answer Yes.
  • This should display the contents of your H: drive.
How do I view my I:\drive files?
  • Follow the instructions above to open your H: drive.
  • Operation -> Go to Folder
  • In the resultant box, type /usr/groups. You should see the I:\groups drive contents.
How do I transfer files?
  • To copy files from your PC to the network:
    • In the SSH window, maneuver to the directory that will receive the file.
    • Click the Up arrow and maneuver to the file on the local PC to be transferred.
  • To copy files from the network to your PC:
    • Locate the file on the network drive.
    • Click on the Down arrow, and maneuver to the directory on the local PC that will receive the file.
How can I make this easier, since I use it all the time?
Set up a Profile that will save your login information:
  • Open the transfer window (Start -> Programs -> SSH Secure Shell -> Secure File Transfer Client).
  • Click Profiles -> Add A Profile and type in a short name.
  • Click Profiles -> Edit A Profile and choose the name you just created. Fill in the host name and user name and click OK.
  • To use it, click Profiles and then your named profile.
Set up shortcuts to your I:\groups directories (we'll use i:\groups\ours\foo as an example):
  • Log into a Bank terminal (Start -> Programs -> Terminals -> Bank).
  • At the % prompt, type:
    ln -s /usr/groups/ours/foo $HOME/foo
    • Logout
    • When you log into the secure file transfer client, your home directory will show a folder called "foo" which leads to /groups/ours/foo.
How do I use SSH to transfer files to Fastrans?
Setting up a Fastrans session:
  • Start as stated above: download and install the UWICK software. Then open up a session (Start -> Programs -> SSH Secure Shell -> Secure File Transfer Client).
  • Click on Profiles, then Add Profile, and type a name; for this example we'll use fastrans. Hit Enter to add this profile (or click on Add The Current Connection to Profiles).
  • Click Profiles again, then Edit Profile. With fastrans selected, type fastrans.u.washington.edu in the Host Name field, and your Fastrans userid in the User Name field.
  • Click the Authentication tab. Click the word Password and then click the big up arrow to move it to first place on the list. Click OK.
  • Click Edit, then Settings to open the Settings window. Under Global Settings - File Transfer, click Mode. In the File Transfer Mode section to the right, click the ASCII button. Click OK.
Using a Fastrans session:
  • Open the SSH window (Programs - SSH Secure Shell - SSH File Transfer Client).
  • Click Profiles, and double-click your fastrans profile.
  • The first time, you'll be asked about saving the host key; answer Yes.
  • Enter your Fastrans password in the next window.
  • Click on Operation, then Upload.
  • In the Upload - Select Files window, maneuver to the file name you wish to transfer; it should end in .txt, .prn or .isd.
  • Double-click the file to transfer it. You should see your selected file in the Fastrans directory.
Reviewed 11/7/12 | News Feed | News Archive | About IT Connect
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