Connecting to CS Server

This document will help you get connected with our local web server, cs4640.cs.virginia.edu. Each student in the class has access to a web directory, PHP, and a PostgresSQL database; use the information below to get connected to the server and upload your code.

Connection Information

Your user account information will be provided on Canvus under the Posted Feedback tab in the second week of class. There, you will find your userid (your computing ID), and passwords for both the file system (using SFTP) and PostgresSQL database (using PHP or phppgadmin). Do not share your password outside your project group or commit it in your code to Github! This may result in compromising the system or your code. You cannot change your password this semester. Note: If you need to change it for security reasons, please send Prof Hott an email.

You may access your public web space on cs4640 (from anywhere) by using the following URI:

https://cs4640.cs.virginia.edu/your-computing-id/

Files

To upload files to your hosting space, you will need to be on the UVA network. If you are on Grounds using the wifi, everything below should work. If you are not on Grounds, please install the UVA Anywhere VPN to connect to the network first. ITS provides instructions on getting connected for both Mac and Windows. If you use Linux, please post in Piazza and we can help you get connected.

If you already have an SSH/SFTP client, you may use the following connection information with the scp and rsync shell commands:

Hostname: cs4640.cs.virginia.edu
Port: 22
Username: your-computing-id
Password: provided on Collab

Any files uploaded to the public_html directory on that server will be presented through Apache to https://cs4640.cs.virginia.edu/your-computing-id.

Using the UVA-provided SFTP Client

In order to upload files to our server, you will need an SFTP client. Using an FTP or SFTP client is a common requirement of most web hosting platforms. UVA provides the SecureFX software, through the software gateway for both Mac and Windows, which may be used to connect to an SFTP client. Once installed, use the following connection steps to get connected to our server.

When you first open SecureFX, you will be presented with a Quick Connect option. This option is also available through the menus. In the dialog box, enter the following information, then click Connect.
- Hostname: cs4640.cs.virginia.edu
- Port: 22
- Username: your-computing-id
During the first connection process, you will need to “Accept and Save” the SSH certificate to continue the process, after which you will be asked to log in. Enter the password from Collab.
After login is complete, SecureFX will show the remote contents of the server in the right-side of the application window. It should look similar to the following image. You should see a public_html directory, which will contain your website files. Any files there will be presented through Apache to https://cs4640.cs.virginia.edu/your-computing-id/.
To copy files up to the server, you can drag and drop them from your Explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac) folders to the remote folder in the SecureFX application.

PostgresSQL Database

You may connect to your Postgres database by using the following connection information. Note, this will only work when your PHP code has been uploaded to the server. You cannot connect to this database remotely from your personal computer.

Hostname: localhost
Port: 5432
Username: your-computing-id
Password: provided on Collab

PHPPgAdmin

PHPPgAdmin is available for you manage your Postgres database. You should log in using the link below and the username and password provided on Collab.

https://cs4640.cs.virginia.edu/phppgadmin