How to get connected to LINCOMM

The recommended order for starting a LINCOMM 2.0 session: pick the least-busy node, connect, and start tmux so your work survives a dropped connection.

This guide gives you the recommended order for starting a working session on LINCOMM (Linux Community Servers). It points to the right connection guide for your computer and shows the one step people most often forget: starting tmux.

Prerequisites

A UW–Madison NetID and password.
If you are off the wired Taylor Hall network, the campus VPN (Virtual Private Network), set up and connected. See the connection guide for your computer below.

Steps

Pick a node. Open https://lincomm.aae.wisc.edu in a browser to see which node is least busy. There are three: lincomm-node01, lincomm-node02, and lincomm-node03 (each at .aae.wisc.edu). If you are returning to work you left running, skip this step and use the node you started on — you can only be on one node at a time.
Connect to that node using the guide for your computer:
Start tmux right away. As soon as you have a command prompt, run:
```
tmux
```
tmux keeps your programs running even if your connection drops. Without it, losing your connection stops whatever you were running. This matters most for long jobs, but it is a good habit every time.

Reconnecting later

To pick up where you left off, connect again to the same node you started on, then reattach to your tmux session:

tmux attach

Your programs will be just as you left them. For a full walkthrough, see Keep work running with tmux.

Verify it worked

After connecting, run hostname to confirm the node. After starting tmux, you should see a status bar across the bottom of the screen.

If something went wrong

You are told you are already logged in elsewhere: You can be on only one node at a time. Disconnect from the other node, then reconnect.
You cannot find your earlier work: Check that you connected to the same node you started on. Work on one node is not visible from another.