The server is 200 miles away
At 9 pm a server in the college data room stops answering. The technician is at home, a long way off.
She needs to log in, look at the fault and maybe restart the machine. But she must not let a stranger do the same. Four tools do this job in four different ways.
Key words
| Word | What it means |
|---|---|
| Network | computers and devices joined together so they can share data |
| Protocol | a set of rules that devices follow to talk to each other |
| Remote access | using a computer or server from a different place over a network |
| VPN | virtual private network, a private, encrypted link across the internet |
| Encryption | scrambling data so that only the right people can read it |
| RDP | remote desktop protocol, which shows you the screen of another computer |
| LOM | lights-out management, a separate controller that manages a server even when it is switched off |
| SSH | secure shell, an encrypted way to type commands on another computer |
| Host | a computer or server on a network |
| Key pair | a public key and a private key that work together to prove who you are |
| Authentication | proving who you are, for example with a password or a key |
The cells students fill in are left blank in this preview.
By the end of this lesson
Note
I can describe VPN, RDP, LOM and SSH, say how each protects data and choose the right one for a job.
Starter
Have a go
Starter
3 questionsYour answers are marked here and are not kept. A college account keeps every student’s marks.
VPN: a private tunnel
A VPN joins you to the college network across the internet. The network is private, and the link is encrypted.
Anybody who watches the link sees scrambled data. Only people with the right key get in. You then use the college network as if you were in the building.
RDP: control the desktop from afar
RDP shows you the screen of another computer, and sends back your keyboard and mouse.
All the work happens on the computer being used. Only the picture travels to you. So the files stay where they are, and none are copied to your machine.
SSH: secure commands
SSH gives you a command line on another host. The link is encrypted, so only the two hosts can read what is sent.
It can check you with a password. A better way is a key pair: the server holds your public key, and you keep the private key secret.
Quick check
Have a go
Quick check
3 questionsYour answers are marked here and are not kept. A college account keeps every student’s marks.