Important Info for UCSB Physics Users

University computer users form a group whose members communicate and work with one another via open and accessible computer systems. You are about to become a member of that community. We ask that you use your best judgment, respect for others' property and privacy, and common sense when you use the Physics Department's and the University's computer systems.

Thank you, PCS

Types of Computer Accounts

Unless noted, all users can have access to the following servers:

• Email Server
  • mail.physics.ucsb.edu
• File Server:
  • Graduate Students use: gshell.physics.ucsb.edu.
  • Staff use Comet (from the Dept domain).
  • Faculty & Post Docs use research servers.
• Web Server
  • web.physics.ucsb.edu.
• Authentication Server for SSH
  • Faculty and Staff use: shell.physics.ucsb.edu.
  • Grad Students use: gshell.physics.ucsb.edu.
  • You can SSH to hosts on the Physics network after you have logged in.

Please change your password on all servers from the temporary one assigned to you.

• Visit https://passwords.physics.ucsb.edu

Email Access

There are several ways to access your email.

• Physics Webmail
  • To access your mail from an internet web browser, visit the website at:
  • https://webmail.physics.ucsb.edu
• Unix shell
  • From a command prompt use ssh to log onto mail.physics.ucsb.edu.
    • Example: ssh username@mail.physics.ucsb.edu.
  • Follow the menu items to use one of the mail clients (Pine, Mutt, Elm).
  • There are menu options to set up mail forwarding and set up a vacation message.
  • There is a menu option to change your password.
• IMAP Client Software
  • Configure a local mail client such as Outlook Express, Netscape, Eudora, or Pine to get mail from our IMAP server.
    • Outlook Set-Up for IMAP
    • Outlook Express Configuration
    • Netscape Mail (Linux)
    • Pine
      • More Pine settings
    • More Applications & Info

To change your password on the mail server, you must log in using SSH from a UNIX command prompt. Follow the menu item to change your password.

Remote Access to PCS Hosts

• Using Broadband from Home
  • Info for Cable Modem & DSL Users
  • VPN (https://vpn.physics.ucsb.edu)

Maintaining your Campus Presence

• UCSB Physics Directory
  • Please contact the appropriate department personnel to update your entry.
  • Shilo Tucker for Academic Personnel
  • Jennifer Farrar for Graduate Students
  • Cari Voth for all other personnel

• Campus Directory
  • It is each individual's responsibility to update and maintain their information with the UCSB Directory service. The printed phone book will use the information that is posted on the Campus Directory website.

Setting up a Web Site on www.physics.ucsb.edu

Please note that the recent move to a campus hosted website for the department means individuals must connect to web.physics.ucsb.edu (not www.physics.ucsb.edu as noted in existing documentation) to work on their webspace.

• Instructions on maintaining your personal, course, and research group web pages.
• How to upload pages to the webserver
• Roger Freedman's instructions on using Netscape Composer

Your website would be: http://www.physics.ucsb.edu/~username

Be sure that your first page has file name "index.html" when you upload it to the server.

To reset your web password, stop by the PCS office.

CorporateTime

The Information Systems and Computing department at UCSB offers CorporateTime which is software that provides electronic scheduling and calendaring to the UCSB campus community.

All UCSB Physics Faculty and Staff are required to have a Corporate Time account.

To request an account, please fill out the Corporate Time Account Request Form.

Further information including software and instructions can be found at our CorporateTime FAQs.

Help & Other links

• PCS FAQs (viewable from Physics network only.)
• Physics Computer Policies
• University of California Electronic Communications Policy

Last updated November 30, 2011

Physics Computing Services