How To Login to ALCF¹ Systems

Please reach out to Sam Foreman (foremans@anl.gov) for any questions or issues related to the content in this section.

Introduction / Background

Check out the Get Started page from ALCF's Support Center for general guidance on getting started
- To log into Polaris, you will use the command: ssh [username]@polaris.alcf.anl.gov
  - or more generally: ssh [username]@[system].alcf.anl.gov
- When questions or issues arise, feel free to discuss amongst yourselves in the Slack channel or bring the issue up to one of the organizers (we're here to help!)
- When in doubt, there is a wealth of information available from ALCF on general best practices (+ tips & tricks for troubleshooting)
- Some important pages to keep close might be:
For those who may be unfamiliar with using the command line or even just want a review, there is no shortage of available information to help you get started.
- The Linux Command Line for Beginners
- The Linux Command Line: A Complete Introduction (+ complete book, freely available as a PDF)

Launch the terminal of your choice
- macOS: Terminal (built-in) or iTerm (free, modern feature set) are good options
- linux: Virtually all modern linux distributions come pre-installed with an application (Terminal, KDE Konsole, XTerm, etc) to access the command line
- References:
  - Opening a terminal from Ubuntu
  - Using a command line terminal + ssh
To log into an ALCF system, enter the ssh command:
```
ssh [username]@[system].alcf.anl.gov
```
If using a mobile token, enter your four-digit PIN in the mobile token application to generate a passcode. Enter the passcode onscreen.
- If using a physical token, press the button on your CRYPTOCard to generate an eight-digit, one-time passcode. Enter the passcode onscreen, prepending it with your four-digit PIN.
Press Enter.

The easiest way to get up and running on Windows is to install Linux
Once you've successfully installed a Linux distribution of your choice, you can follow the instructions from the Linux / macOS section above