HopX Connector is a Windows app that sits in the tasktray to help with SSH connections and port forwarding to the PSI LAN through hopx.psi.ch. See also SSH-Access into PSI

Installation

The provided executable files are regular Windows installers. Simply double-click the installer and follow the prompts. Administrator priviledges are not required to install the program.

If you regularly connect to PSI from home, it is recommended that the enable the option to Run at startup. This way, the program will be available when you need it.

Usage

NOTE: Detailed help documentation and usage information for HopX Connector has not yet been created. The program is fairly intuitive, however, so feel free right click the icon in the task tray and explore the main menu. Here is a limited usage description to help you get started.

While running, HopX Connector sits in the Windows tasktray. Right-click the icon to bring up the main menu.

The first time you run the program, the settings dialog should show up, allowing you to customize your settings. Enter your PSI username and feel free to adapt the list of forwarded ports. The default configuration includes all LCLRS machines, Merlin 6, and the Windows terminal server. A dynamic SOCKS proxy will also be created, which may be used to access the PSI intranet from your local browser. Feel free to read PSI's SSH with Windows instructions to better understand how the connection to hopx.psi.ch works.

NOTE: You will need to configure your two-factor authentication so that you do not need to type anything while connecting to hopx.psi.ch. In general you must configure the system to send you a notification on your mobile device, which you can then accept. See also Change to MFA.

When connecting to the PSI network, the program will first ask you for your password. This password will remain in memory for up to 5 minutes. While still in memory, you will not be prompted for your password. This way, you can connect to the PSI network as well as multiple servers on the LAN using SSH (e.g. LCLRS machines and Merlin) without having to re-enter your password.