These instructions are specifically for student PCs in the Earth and Planetary Remote Sensing Laboratory. They don't apply to PCs in other computer labs on campus, or to students' own personal computers.

Contents: The PCs and the File Server - The First Time You Log In - The Next Time You Log In - Remotely Accessing Class Files -  How To Run Programs - How To Read Your E-Mail - How To Print - How To Log Out - Your Password

The PCs and the File Server

For the class exercises, you may use your own Personal Computer, or you may use the PCs in the Earth and Planetary Remote Sensing Laboratory, EPS Building room 272. When you use the Laboratory PCs, you need to understand their relationship to the Laboratory file server, so that you know where to put your files.

The file server is a big computer that is connected by network to all the PCs in the laboratory. When you create files for your class exercises, you will store them in a folder on the file server. The advantages of this system are (1) there's a lot more room on the file server than on any PC, and (2) you don't have to use the same PC each time. Since your files are on the server, it doesn't matter which PC you use to access them.

When You Log In

A connection needs to be established on the PC in order to you to see your data on the file server. This is sometimes called "mounting the file server" or "mounting the drive." When you mount a drive onto the PC, it becomes associated with a drive letter (such as "x:" or "y:") and then looks like part of the local system to the PC.

Log in

1. When you sit down at a PC, it should have a login prompt on the screen, and nothing else. Make sure the CAPS LOCK light on the upper right of the keyboard is off; usernames and passwords should be all lowercase. You will probably be prompted to press Ctrl-Alt-Del to log in. This means to press the Delete key while holding down the Control and Alternate keys. This is usually a two-handed operation. Click OK to accept the lab computer use policy, and then enter your username and password in the boxes provided. Be sure to press the TAB key (not the ENTER key) to move to the box labeled Password. Press ENTER or click OK.

Connect to the File Server

1. After you have logged in, use the mouse to move the cursor down to the bottom of the screen. This makes the task bar pop up. Click on the START button at the lower left.
2. On the menu that appears, click PROGRAMS. On the next menu click ACCESSORIES, and then click WINDOWS EXPLORER. This starts the program that displays the files and folders on the system.
   • Note 1: Some computers hide unused programs within the Start Menu. You may need to click on the chevron arrows () at the bottom of the menu list to reveal all of the choices.
   • Note 2: An easy way to open a Windows Explorer is E (hold down the Windows key () and press E).
3. On the left side of the Explorer window is a list of the disks that are already mounted on this computer. Each disk has a drive letter and a name. Look for a disk with the name eprsl-root, and remember its letter. If you find it, great; that means this computer is already connected to the file server, and you can skip steps 4 through 6. If you don't find it, you'll have to make the connection yourself, as follows.
4. Click on the word TOOLS near the top of the Windows Explorer window. A menu will appear under it. Click on MAP NETWORK DRIVE.... in the menu.
5. You'll see a form asking you for a drive letter and a path. The drive letter will be already filled in; this is the disk you will use to store your files, so remember it. In the path field, type \\dfs\eprsl-root, making sure to get the punctuation marks right (no spaces!).
6. Make sure the box labeled RECONNECT AT LOGIN is checked. Then click OK.

Now the PC is connected to the file server, and you may access the file server just as you would a local disk. It already has a folder with your name on it, in which you will keep your files. When you are ready to save files on the file server, use the drive letter followed by your username, group name, and the file name. For example, E:\students\path11\imuser\filename. When naming files, it's best to use all lowercase letters and numbers, and no spaces or punctuation (except for hyphens and underscores, which are ok). For example, Homework For 10/31/08 is a bad filename, but homework-103108 is OK.

The Next Time You Log In

The next time you log in to this PC, the connection to the file server should be done automatically, but if for some reason the disk eprsl-root is not there, just repeat steps 4-6 above.

Remotely Accessing Class Files

You may access class data files using sftp (Secure File Transfer Protocol) to connect to major.wustl.edu.  See Using FTP for details.

How To Run Programs

Use the mouse to move the cursor to the bottom of the screen, to make the task bar pop up. Click START. On the menu that appears, click PROGRAMS. Another menu will appear listing all the programs you can choose from. Just click the one you want. Some computers hide unused programs within the Start Menu. You may need to click on the chevron arrows () at the bottom of the menu list to reveal all of the choices.

How To Read Your E-Mail

Click START on the task bar, then Run. In the window that appears, type telnet artsci. Then log in to your artsci account and read your e-mail as usual. Here's the E-Mail Introduction from the Arts and Sciences Computing Center.

How To Print

Most of the programs you'll use have a print function. Look for it under the File pulldown menu near the top of the program window. It will make a dialog box appear in which you select which printer to use. There is a Ricoh Aficio SP C811DN color laser printer in the lab, as well as a Tektronix Phaser 7300 color laser as backup.

If your color output doesn't look right, it may be that the printer needs more toner or ink. Ask a teaching assistant for help.

How To Log Out

When you are finished working, you must remember to log out. Use the mouse to move the cursor to the bottom of the screen. Click START. On the menu that appears, click SHUT DOWN.... From the dialog box select the choose Log off johnson (or whatever your username is). Click OK. If you do not see this option on the shut down menu, go back to the start menu and select Log off as user.

Your Password

Keep your password a secret. If you have to write it down to remember it, do so in a place that's not obvious. (Inside the front cover of your notebook would be an obvious place, for example.) Do not let anyone else inside or outside the class use your account. Realize that if someone else can get into your account, that means he or she has access to your homework.

You can't change your password; the passwords are locked. If you have a special reason for changing your password -- for example, if you think someone else knows your password and might use it maliciously -- see Lars or  Tom to have it changed.