¶ Shell Accounts
Hopper is available for general usage at: ssh <username>@uwcs.co.uk
Hopper runs NixOS 24.05, More info for simple package installs below or general Nix Usage at Nix Docs.
Please note that Hopper shouldn't be used for long-running applications, e.g. Discord bots or game servers. This is due to resources being restricted and shared between all users, and as such, may be consumed by other users. Instead make use of our container host, or request a VM from us.
¶ Logging in
Your username and password accounts console under "personal info", if you login via Warwick SSO then you may need to create a password here.
Your username may also be preset as your Warwick ID, you are free to change this, though multiple home directories may exist.
If 2FA is activated the password entry field should be filled out as <password>/<OTP>.
¶ SSH-Guard
SSH-Guard is enabled to reduce bot attacks on our servers, if you suspect you have been banned due to failed attempts contact us at @sysadmins on Discord and consider logging in using your public-key.
¶ Campus Network
You may be unable to log in when connected to a campus network (Eduroam / ResNet). To get around this, we reccommend proxyjumping using DCS remote nodes, or using Cloudflare WARP.
¶ Webiste Hosting
Hopper hosts Static Sites at https://<username>.sites.uwcs.co.uk configureable by @sysadmins using Caddy.
¶ Running Programs
¶ Python
Python is preinstalled, setup a virtual environment first using:
python -m venv .venv
Then activate the virtual environment with:
source .venv/bin/activate
You can then use commands such as pip to install packages:
pip install ipykernel
You can direct VSCode (through Remote SSH) to use your user's virtual environment or create its own virtual envionment for a Jupyter kernel in the select kernel menu of a notebook.
¶ Installing Software
e.g. If you know the package name, run: nix-shell -p python312
This opens a new shell with Python installed that you can try out with: python3.12 -m this or exit with Ctrl+D.
If you do not know the package name, run the revelant programs name and command-not-found will attempt to find it for you and provide you with instructions:
[alexw@hopper:~]$ neofetch
The program 'neofetch' is currently not installed. You can install it
by typing:
nix-env -iA nixpkgs.neofetch.out
Or run it once with:
nix-shell -p neofetch.out --run 'neofetch ...'
For more info about using nix and setting up a direnv for automatic package management, check out the Nix Docs.
¶ VSCode
If you would like to run VSCode on hopper, use the Remote SSH Addon in your VSCode Client and it will connect automatically.
¶ Need Help?
Contact us on Discord at @sysadmins
For a more formal response tech@uwcs.co.uk can be used.
we don't bite 