Related pages
A managed version of Linux is available to be installed on University PCs.
Log on with your IT Services username and password.
If you need a new PC, please see Buying computer equipment for a department.
Eligibility
Anyone with an IT Services account can log on to the Linux desktop in classrooms.
Office PCs are restricted to staff and research graduates only.
Ubuntu LTS can be installed as either single or dual boot on managed PCs.
The service includes core scientific and programming applications, and receives regular security updates.
If you'd like to use the Linux managed desktop, please contact IT Support.
Departments and research groups may add their own software or resources to the standard build.
Departmental Computing Officers and other authorised staff have administrative access to the PCs for user support and service enhancement. Any requests should be sent to your DCO in the first instance.
Log on with your University username and password.
There are a few cases where accounts are not valid on a PC, all of which will give an "Incorrect password" error:
If none of the above apply, contact the IT Support.
The managed desktop is based on 64-bit Ubuntu LTS. We make new versions available from the Summer after release and support each for 4 years.
Our default desktop environment is Gnome 3, identified by their "footprint" icon in the login toolbar:
To change to XFCE 4, click on the icon and change it before you log in:
Your home directory in Linux is the same across all IT Services computers, and is mapped to M: under Windows. You can check how much space is left using the quota -s command in a terminal.
To save temporary files on the local hard disk of a classroom PC, use one of the following locations:
File permissions are set to -rwx------ or 0700
This is a feature of the filer which holds your home directory, unless you actually set permissions on a file it just uses the defaults you're seeing.
If you set permissions using chmod, the filer will assign and keep using Unix permissions. Setting Unix permissions on a directory will also automatically apply Unix permissions to new files created in it.
Some shared drives have native Linux support and are mounted by default. (You may still need to request access from the owner of the share).
Other shares need to be connected manually. Here's an example of mounting a Storage drive:
You can check stored passwords using the seahorse utility (Settings | Passwords+Keys from the start menu)
To mount from the command line, use gvfs-mount "smb://ITSYORK;abc1234@storagefs.york.ac.uk/sharename/" - note that the URL needs to match exactly to use your saved password.
To unmount, use gvfs-mount -u "smb://ITSYORK;abc1234@storagefs.york.ac.uk/share/"
To automatically run this command when you login:
We require Kerberos authentication to access all managed Linux systems and filestores. Once you have logged in to one of our systems, your Kerberos ticket allows seamless access to many resources, including SSH.
To set up Kerberos on an unmanaged Linux system on campus (or using VPN access), install the krb5-user package and use the following settings:
Default realm: YORK.AC.UK
Kerberos servers: auth.york.ac.uk auth0.york.ac.uk auth1.york.ac.uk auth2.york.ac.uk
Admin server: authm.york.ac.uk
You can then use the kinit command to get a Kerberos ticket. You'll need to specify the -K option to SSH, or set both GSSAPIAuthentication and GSSAPIDelegateCredentials to yes in your SSH configuration.
Research0/1 run Ubuntu 16.04 with the same software as the Linux managed desktop 2016-2018.
Research2 and teaching0 run Ubuntu 18.04 with the same software as the Linux managed desktop 2018-2019.
YARCC and Viking are research clusters with their own software and access controls, although some of the software is accessible from the managed desktop.
The group its-linux-user-group allows Linux users at the University to collaborate and exchange information. IT Services also make announcements here.
Library & IT Help Desk
If you're having problems using Linux, get in touch with the IT Support.
Service status | Live and supported service. |
---|---|
Hours of service | 24/7 |
Service support | For help and support with this service, contact the IT Support. |
Hours of support | Help from the Library & IT Help Desk is available 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. |
Target availability |
General IT Services targets:
|
Review cycle |
Ubuntu LTS releases every 2 years; internal review by service owners at that time. Rolling review as part of the Linux Focus Group, comprising IT Services and departmental representatives. |
Our performance |
Our service standards have been produced in consultation with our customers, and monitor the quality, timeliness and access to facilities and services:
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Complaints procedure |
If you wish to give us general feedback on this service, please see our Feedback page for ways to get in touch. If you wish to make a complaint, please see our complaints procedure. |