Getting Started
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Your Waterloo Polaris network account is protected by a password. You select your initial password when you first create your account through the scratch log-in facility. Passwords are stored in encrypted form, so only you know what your password is. If you forget your password, please bring identification to your nearest consulting office to have it changed.
When you log on for the first time, you will be presented with a Windows95 dialog box asking you to "Confirm your Windows Password". If you just press the Enter key, leaving the Windows password blank, you will not be asked for a Windows password again. If you put in a password, you will be required to enter it at every log-in.
To log off, run the Waterloo Polaris Logoff application on the desktop. Alternately, select Shut Down the Computer from the Start menu.
The Windows Screen Saver / Lock
To protect your account while you are temporarily away from a workstation, the Windows95 screen saver password is automatically set to be the same as your log-on password.
Note that the screen saver, and therefore your protection from tampering, is only enabled after a time-out period has elapsed.
Before you leave your workstation, you may want to reduce the time-out period.
To do this, look under Start / Settings / Control Panel and select the Display icon.
Under the Screen Saver tab, set the time delay to the desired value.
Also note that it is poor etiquette to leave a workstation unattended for an inordinate period of time. It is quite acceptable for someone else to reset and take over your workstation in a public lab if you have been away too long -- more than 20 minutes or so.
Everything you need for a functioning account is preconfigured for you when your account is created. However, there are some settings that you may want to adjust to suit the way you work. To do this, you will notice an application called Configure Waterloo Polaris on your desktop or under the Start / Programs menu. If you run this application, a tabbed list of items is presented to you:
Userid
Your user ID (identification) is preset as your UW user ID. This identification is unique to you and should be the same on every computing system that you have an account on at UW.
Password
The password tab allows you to set three different passwords associated with your account:
- Login Password
- Your login password is the one you use to log in to your Waterloo Polaris account. You should be the only one who knows it.
- Read Password
- Obsolete
- Read/Write Password
- Obsolete
Email
Your email address is preset to your unique UW user ID and cannot be changed for security reasons.
The Waterloo Polaris network uses Unix (or NT) servers to process email.
The particular server that processes your email is identified in the appropriate box.
Setting the Reply To field is optional.
Home Dir
The home directory is the location on a remote file server where your user files are stored. None of your files are stored on your local workstation. On the Waterloo Polaris network, your home directory may be located on drive N or drive P. The device that stores your home directory is changed in 1999 from a Watstar (PC) server to a Network Appliance. For most Waterloo Polaris accounts, the home directory remains on drive N, but the physical device with that drive letter has changed. Advantages of moving to a Network Appliance file server include: easy remote access to your files and a "snapshot" directory containing backups of your files.
The home directory stores your Windows95 setup files and documents you create. Most Waterloo Polaris accounts have 25 Megabytes of user storage space available as drive N. You may also have additional file space available from your department as drive P.
Web
If you have an account on a Web server running on a Unix or NT computer, you can enter it in the box provided and Waterloo Polaris will access it as drive W.
When you log in to your Waterloo Polaris account you will be asked only once to provide the password for your Web server account before drive W is linked, then the password is saved.
Sharing
Waterloo Polaris has reserved drive letters S through V for links to additional NT or Unix accounts. If you have more than one Unix or NT account, you can link them in here. Also, administrative departments or special student projects may have Unix accounts to be shared by multiple users.
If you link in other shared drives, you will be asked to provide the passwords each time you log on.
Printers
This section tells you which Waterloo Polaris printers are currently accessible from your account and lets you change printers.
Station
The station information refers to the local workstation you are currently using and cannot be changed by the user.
Limits
The Limits tab contains information about your Waterloo Polaris account, such as how much of your disk space you have used. Your account limits can be displayed constantly on your desktop by selecting the check box. N.B. Unless you select the "make always visible" option, the quota value shown is not correct..
Current
The Current tab indicates the size and read/write status of reserved Watstar server drive letters accessed by your account.
If you are familiar with Windows95, after you log on things will look and behave much like they do with a stand-alone computer, with a few exceptions:
- Deleted files are not kept in the Recyle Bin for users with accounts on a Network Appliance file server. This is because the NetApp is not local to your workstation and is not a Windows file system. However, a self-serve recovery system is available for lost files, as described in a following section.
- Files saved to the Desktop are initially saved to the Windows working disk, which in our case is the read-write D drive on the local workstation. Such files are copied over to the user's N drive for permanent storage only during the log-off process. Therefore, files saved to the desktop may be lost if the workstation crashes or if the logoff process is interupted in any way. It is safer to save your work directly to N:\My Documents or to other folders you have created on your N drive.
- We have set limits (quotas) on the storage space available to you. If you run out of storage space on your N drive, your account will begin misbehaving, because the Windows user registry information and other files copied to the N drive at log-off time will not be able to be copied. Also, if you have saved files to the Windows desktop or directly to the D drive, they will be lost without warning if there is insufficient space to store them on the N drive. Applications may also misbehave if there is not enough space to store a file you are working on. You can check your N disk usage as a percentage of your quota using the Quota Tool in the Configure Waterloo Polaris application, or by typing quota in a DOS shell. There is also temporary storage available on the D drive, which is deleted when you log off.
If you are unfamiliar with Windows95, click the Start button in the lower left corner of your screen and click Help. IST-Client Services also offers hands-on training courses (with comprehensive notes you can work through on your own if you like). Also, check your local faculty consulting office for additional training courses they may offer.
Besides the Configure Waterloo Polaris program, Windows Explorer under the Programs section of the Start menu is the main program you will use for managing your files. On a Waterloo Polaris account, you will notice several more drive letters available to you than on a stand-alone PC.
As usual, drives A and B are reserved for floppy disk drives. Drives C, D, and E are separate partitions of your local workstation's internal hard disk. Drives F and G may be internal hard disk partitions which are mirrors of the remote J and K drives for increased performance. Drives I through N are reserved for Waterloo Polaris network drives which exist on a remote file server. Drive Q is another application disk. Drives S though V are links to accounts on NT or Unix servers, configurable by the user under the Sharing section of the Configure Waterloo Polaris application. Drive W is a link to your home page space on a Unix Web server (if available in your faculty). Some of the disk drives that are accessed by your Waterloo Polaris workstation are in read-only mode to protect their contents, such as the software disks (drives E and J and Q). Some of the Unix or NT file systems which you have accessed through the Sharing section of the Configure Waterloo Polaris tool may also be in read-only mode. You can only store your files on read-write drives (drive N and/or P) and other drives you may have linked in with the Configure Waterloo Polaris tool. A complete list of drive letter assignments for Waterloo Polaris workstations is given in the table below:
Drive Letter Assignments on the Waterloo Polaris Network
| Drive Letter | Purpose | Accessiblity |
|---|
| A: | Floppy Disk | read/write |
| B: | Floppy Disk | read/write |
| C: (Local_boot) | Boot partition of local hard disk | read-only |
| D: (Local_temp) | Partition of local hard disk Windows95 uses to temporarily store files it must have write access to. This disk can also be used for temporary storage by the user. In public labs, this drive is erased whenever a new user logs on to the workstation. | read/write |
| E: (Local_95) | Partition of local hard disk used to store frequently used software | read-only |
| F: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
| G: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
| H: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
| I: (Boot) | Reserved drive letter: remote boot disk on server | read-only |
| J: ($system95) | Reserved drive letter: remote hard disk on the file server which stores less frequently used software | read-only |
| K: | Reserved drive letter: remote hard disk on the file server used for departmentally owned software | read-only |
| L: | Reserved drive letter: remote disk on server, use unspecified | depends on use |
| M: | Reserved drive letter: remote disk on server, use unspecified | depends on use |
| N: (UserID) | Reserved drive letter: remote disk on server used to store user files | read/write |
| O: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
| P: | Alternative home directory space on NT or Unix account, set with Configure Waterloo Polaris | depends on use |
| Q: | Reserved drive letter for software | read-only |
| R: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
| S: | Linkable disk space on NT or Unix account, set with Configure Waterloo Polaris | depends on use |
| T: | Linkable disk space on NT or Unix account, set with Configure Waterloo Polaris | depends on use |
| U: | Linkable disk space on NT or Unix account, set with Configure Waterloo Polaris | depends on use |
| V: | Linkable disk space on NT or Unix account, set with Configure Waterloo Polaris | depends on use |
| W: | Web server disk space on NT or Unix account, set with Configure Waterloo Polaris | depends on use |
| X: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
| Y: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
| Z: | Unreserved drive letter | depends on use |
Accessing Network-Wide Software
All generally available Windows95 software on the Waterloo Polaris network is maintained centrally. A copy of the most used software is kept on a read-only partition of your local workstation as drive E (Local_95). This software is updated automatically as patches or newer versions are required. All other Windows95 software is stored on either a remote Watstar applications server, drive J ($system95) or on drive Q, a remote Unix server. Any software run from the J or Q drives is sent to your local workstation over the network, or may be "mirrored" on a partition of your hard disk, if there is room.
Accessing "Departmental" Software
Many academic departments maintain their own specialized software on network drive Q. Account holders registered in such departments automatically access the departmental software disk when they log on, and will usually see modifications to their start menus or desktops which provide access to the software.
If you need access to the "departmental" software of another department, please contact the consulting office in your faculty.
Working with Windows95 Applications
Windows95 software is typically started from the Start menu or from an icon on the desktop. You can configure your desktop to the way you find it most convenient to work. Your changes will be stored on your home disk (N disk) and will follow you from one workstation to another. Please see a consultant for help with Windows95 and all installed applications.
Installing Your Own Windows95 Applications
We have attempted to provide all of the software you will need for you work. If you find this is not the case, please contact your local consulting office.
All users are discouraged from attempting to install their own software. Student users will not have access to drives C or E where most software will expect to be able to write. No support will be given to students attempting to install their own software on a Waterloo Polaris account.
Using Your Waterloo Polaris Account as a Unix Terminal
If you need to run software on your Unix account, you can use terminal emulation software available under the Start / Programs / Network Software menu. X-Server provides graphical X-Windows emulation. Telnet Presenter provides a text terminal. Rapid FTP (File Transfer Protocol) provides a method of moving files to and from a Unix host. You can also use the Windows Explorer to manage files if your Unix account has been mounted as a Windows95 drive letter.
Running Software from an NT Server
If you have access to a WindowsNT server containing Windows95 software, you will be able to run it as well in the usual manner. It is also possible to run WindowsNT software remotely on a WindowsNT server, as is done in the Math faculty from Unix X terminals. This is not done on the Polaris network.
User File Storage and Backups
When you save your work you should be careful to store it in a safe place. This
may sound like strange advice. However, Waterloo Polaris provides the flexibilit
y to write to many remote file systems and to some temporary storage spaces such
as drive D (Local_temp) which are periodically erased. The following are safe places where you should save your work:
- directories you create for it on the Waterloo Polaris N drive or P drive (yo
ur personal file space)
- directories you create for it in your home directory on remote Unix or NT se
rvers you have linked to your Waterloo Polaris account
- your own floppy disks, Zip drives, or other removable storage media
The above network disks are regularly backed up to tape to ensure the security o
f your files. Users with home directories on a Network Appliance also have easy access to recent versions of their files via "snapshots" taken at regular intervals. A snapshot directory is available from any directory on your N (or P drive). To access the snapshots from Windows, go to the Start menu, select Run, then type in e.g. n:\~snapshot, to see snapshots of all files and folders in your root directory. You will have a choice of several folders. "Hourly" snapshots give you access to files that may have changed in the last few hours, numbered starting from zero, which is the most recent. There are also some nightly snapshots for the previous six days and one from two weeks back. If you enter the snapshot directory from another directory on your account, e.g. n:\My Documents\~snapshot you will only see the snapshots of files in that directory. To access the snapshots from Unix, use the command "cd .snapshot" from any directory.
User's with accounts on the old Watstar PC file servers. Must recover lost files from tape backups. Request these backups through your local consulting office. There is a fee of $10 per backup request because of the labour involved.
Note though, it is always wise to keep your own backups too, whenever possible, on floppy disks or Zip disks.
The screen resolution and number of colours available to you depends on the video card in your local workstation and the capabilities of your monitor. However, changing these screen characteristics is easy. Just click on the small monitor icon in the Windows95 task bar (the bar that contains the Start button), initially located at the bottom right of your screen. The default screen configuration is 800 by 600 pixels resolution with 256 colours.
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