Generally
There are several sources of information that you can consult to find the computer facilities available in the Department. All are included as options on the ITS website. First visit the User Guides section . This area contains a collection of user guides and transaction information on various topics ranging from general descriptions to very detailed instructions on specific topics. If you don’t know where to start or you are new to the Department then start with the New User Guide. Read the Frequently Asked Questions!! Here you will find short answers to frequently asked questions and pointers to more information. Visit the Helpdesk Announcements area where you can find the latest information on changes that have taken place or are taking place. Use the Search tool on the Helpdesk website for the topic you are interested in. There may be some information there, or problems that have already been solved.
Return all borrowed equipment. If you have signed for them, they are assigned to you, so indicate that they are officially returned. It is the University’s policy that a student’s account remain open for 3 months after his graduation. In the meantime, and before your account is deleted, make sure to organize your data so that it is saved on a medium that you can transfer, and clean up the data areas. Pay special attention to any data you may have stored in your personal storage space (home directory), in your email, and in OneDrive. All matters related to accounts are governed by the “Acceptable Use Policy for Information and Communication Technology Services and Systems.”
Websites
The following procedure applies to all members of the Department. Use the following procedure to create a personal web page that is accessible using the URL www.cs.ucy.ac.cy>/~. For students, the URL for accessing their personal web page is https://students.cs.ucy.ac.cy~.
In your personal directory (home directory) set permissions at least rwx……x. (execute for others). The commands in UNIX environment are:
- pwd (shows you the directory you are in) e.g. /home/students/cs/…./aandre99.
- Go one directory back with cd .. and run chmod +x replacing the username with your own.
Make sure you know what you are doing. From the moment you give more relaxed permissions you will allow other users to see and possibly destroy your work (not only your web page).
Create a subdirectory (directory/folder) in your personal directory (home directory in UNIX system or the U: drive in Windows systems) and name it: public_html. The command in UNIX environment is:
mkdir ~/public_htmlNext you must set the permissions of this new directory to rwxr-xr-x (755) using the command:
chmod 755 ~/public_html
The same permissions must also be set for all subdirectories you create afterwards under this directory. The above permissions set the minimum security for the website. Failure to comply with this procedure will result in your website being locked.
Create your pages in this directory. In order for someone to be able to access your page by simply knowing your login name it is necessary to name your initial page (home page) as index.html. In this way, your page is accessible with the URL: https://www.cs.ucy.ac.cy/~ or for students respectively at https://students.cs.ucy.ac.cy/~
Make sure that the files you create are publicly readable (The UNIX permission form must be rwxr—r– on all files. The MS-Windows permission form must provide read access to everyone). Do not set more relaxed permissions than the above on your work.
ATTENTION: Any file you place under public_html will be visible through HTTP publicly so do not put there files that you want to protect from other users.
More details on website development, available servers, methods, and best practices for website development are available in the Website Development Guide which you can find on User guides. (https://its.cs.ucy.ac.cy/guides/)
Software
More details about Microsoft Imagine, who is eligible and how you can become a member can be found here.
VPN is a software that provides a secure connection of your PC to the department’s network. It is used for remote connection (from home) and you will need it to access computers in the department, such as the Linux lab. You will also need it to be able to view your home directory files from home. For more information and how to connect check the VPN userguide
MATLAB & Simulink software for the University of Cyprus
Please be advised that staff and students of the University of Cyprus can obtain direct access licenses to MATLAB, Simulink and all related tools.
Use the MATLAB Portal as your home page for downloads, learning tools, and more:
https://www.mathworks.com/academia/tah-portal/university-of-cyprus-40702022.html
For a detailed video guide to installing the software, click here.
Operating Systems
As of September 2021, the procedure for changing passwords has been revised. Password changes via Linux, Windows, and the previously used website are no longer supported.
Password changes may now be carried out either through the website https://www.ucy.ac.cy/pwdportal, which is administered by the Information Technology Services (ITS), or in exceptional circumstances, through the IT Support Office of the department.
Users who wish to change their password must do so via https://www.ucy.ac.cy/pwdportal, selecting OAuth 2.0 / OpenID Connect (role-based) as the authentication method.
In the event that a user has forgotten their password, access may be restored by selecting the Login with Passcode option.
Password Reset Procedure:
Access www.ucy.ac.cy/pwdportal
Select Login with Passcode (Reset password)
Enter your username
Complete the CAPTCHA verification
Select Generate new passcode
Enter your personal email address
A passcode will be sent to the provided personal email address
Enter the passcode and proceed to Password > Manage Passwords > Set new password
Personal account and space
The quota is the limit you have for storing data in your home directory in the linux environment. The quotas for the student’s of the Computer Science Department are the following:
Personal data spaces (home dirs):
It refers to the U: drive you see on Windows labs, which is the same as Linux’s /home/students/cs/<path>/<username>
Year of study | Limit |
| Freshman | 10 GB |
| Sophomor | 15 GB |
| Junior | 20 GB |
| Senior | 25 GB |
| Masters – PhD | 30 GB |
| Researchers | 30 GB |
| Minor Students | 15 GB |
| Students of other departments | 3 GB |
Information on this topic can be found in the User Guide , in the “account activation” section.
I can solve the problem in three ways:
- If I am in one of the Linux teaching labs (B103, 103, 101), from the login screen of a machine I press Ctrl+Alt+F1. I am transferred to a “text console” where I enter my username and password. I run the command:
du -sh $(ls -A) | sort -h
This command gives me the size of every directory and file located in my personal space, including hidden files and directories. This way I can see all files and directories along with their sizes.
Usually, the .local directory has the largest size. Run the command:
cd .local/share/Trash
and confirm with the command:
pwd
that you are inside the .local/share/Trash directory. Run:
ls -la
to see the files that are stored inside and which you have previously deleted (they were moved here). You can delete specific files using:
rm -rf <file or directory name>
or you can run:
rm -rf * BUT always confirming that you are in the correct directory. The command rm -rf * deletes ALL files and directories in the current directory. Then I run the command:
exit
and I will be transferred back to the graphical environment, where I can try to log in again.
See below how you can empty the “Wastebasket” at regular intervals easily from the graphical environment.
2. Another case is when the Firefox directory is too large. Firefox stores its data in the .mozilla directory. From the command you ran above, if the contents of .mozilla are large, then run:
rm -rf .mozilla
Then run:
exit
and you will be transferred back to the graphical environment, where you can try to log in again.
3. If I am in one of the Windows teaching labs (B121, B123, 101, 201), I select the U:\ drive and from the menu choose:
Organize → Folder and search options → View → Show hidden files, folders, and drives.
There I can select .mozilla and delete it, or check the size of each directory individually and delete it.
4. If I am at home, I can connect to one of the Linux lab machines with PuTTY and ssh, and then follow the steps described in case 1, in order to check the size of directories/files and delete them accordingly.
Every time you delete files or directories from your graphical environment, they are moved to the “Wastebasket”, but they still remain there and continue to take up space. It is recommended that you regularly delete the contents of the “Wastebasket”.
So, whenever you want to empty it, you can do so by clicking on it and then right-clicking. You will see the option “Empty Wastebasket” — select it, and the contents will be permanently deleted.
First, don’t turn off the computer. In this way, the changes you have made to your profile, as well as new files you have created, will not be saved!
1st Step: Many large files are created when you run some programs, which you should delete from your profile.
You will find them in C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Application Data (Windows XP) or C:\Users\<username>\AppData (Windows 7)
Application Data is hidden and to see it, from any folder go to: Tools Organize → Folder and search options → View → Show hidden files, folders, and drives
If you use specific settings for some of the applications that appear in Application Data, it is better not to delete the folder of the specific application. For example, if you have bookmarks in Firefox, sites in Macromedia, saved sessions in XWin, etc.
2nd Step: Delete .eclipse, .java, .borland cookies from your profile, if of course you no longer use these applications.
3rd Step: If you have completed the Oracle course, delete the Oracle Jar Cache folder.
4th Step: If you cannot solve the problem then use the Helpdesk (electronic help tool) to send the problem to OTY or to ask them to create a new profile for you.
You must first connect to the VPN. Then use an FTP program (eg FileZilla) or SCP (eg WinSCP) and connect to port 22 on any Linux machine using your username and password in the section. You can find more details in the Linux Lab User guide
The printing, photocopying, and scanning service is provided by the Information Technology Services (ITS) and is implemented in accordance with the University of Cyprus policy on the allocation and use of multifunction printing devices.
Students are entitled to 200 free black-and-white prints per semester (Autumn and Spring). Charges for additional printing are as follows:
€0.05 per A4 black-and-white print and €0.15 per A4 color print
€0.10 per A3 black-and-white print and €0.30 per A3 color print
Members of the academic, research, and administrative staff may print without charge.
The University of Cyprus has implemented a unified printing system. Students may print, photocopy, and/or scan using any multifunction printing device across the University of Cyprus under the same printing quota (e.g., laboratories, the Library, academic departments, etc.).
Windows Profile
All students are subject to a storage limit on their Windows profile of 130 MB in total. Specifically, a quota of 100 MB applies to the combined size of the Desktop and My Documents folders, while the remaining 30 MB is allocated to other Windows system data (e.g., Application Data, etc.).
First of all make sure you are using the correct driver. Then from the printer properties (printer properties) choose the double sided setting (double/both sided).
Network
The Department manages an open-access wireless computer network identified by the SSID cs-wifi. The network is accessible within the buildings that house the Department. Detailed connection instructions are available at the provided link, where users should consult the Wireless Network User Guide.
Please note that the wireless networks identified by the SSIDs Ucywifi, Ucyguest, and Eduroam are administered by the Information Systems Service (ISS). For any issues related to these networks, users should contact the ISS.
Services
Most Unix systems are automatically synchronized via the Network Time Protocol (NTP is a service for external fixed clocks). You can easily synchronize your computer’s clock by going to the NTP website of the service. Notice how this is a moment of synchronization that will need to be repeated every time you detect that the time on your machine is not the real one.
In order to gain access to a database, a user must fill in the form “Request to create a website for studies/conferences ” which can be printed and presented to the Technical Support Team (forms). The following must be stated in the application:
1. The type of database (MySQL, Oracle, or MS_SQL)
2. The base name
3. The desired user name (username) that will have access to the database
4. Start and end of the program/conference
In cases where the request is submitted by a student or researcher, then the requirement to create the database must also be supported by the academic who is responsible for the specific project/website/course.
Instructions to connect to SQL Server can be found in the user guides, specifically in the Database Development guide.
You can also find more information at this link.
