# VM Provisioning

```{warning}
This section is for participants from academic institutes to use the self-service portal.
Please contact support@naic.no to get a virtual machine if you do not have access as described below.
```

```{objectives}
- Create MyAccessID using Feide account
- Provision a short lived VM on NAIC Orchestrator
```

## MyAccessID

To access orchestrator.naic.no we need to use MyAccessID via Feide as of now.
Anyone affiliated to institutes in the list below would have access, but you might have to register your Feide account with MyAccessID first.

<p><label for="institution">Check if you find your institute in the list below:</label></p>
<select id="institution" name="institution">
  <option value="" disabled selected> MyAccessID registered Institutes </option>
  <option>University of Oslo</option>
  <option>UiT The Arctic University of Norway</option>
  <option>University of Agder</option>
  <option>University of Bergen</option>
  <option>University of Stavanger</option>
  <option>NTNU</option>
  <option>Meteorologisk institutt</option>
  <option>NILU</option>
  <option>NMBU Norwegian University of Life Sciences</option>
  <option>NORCE Norwegian Research Center</option>
  <option>Norsk Regnesentral</option>
  <option>OsloMet – Oslo Metropolitan University</option>
  <option>Sikt - Kunnskapssektorens tjenesteleverandør</option>
  <option>Simula</option>
  <option>SINTEF</option>
  <option>Veterinærinstituttet</option>
</select>
<p></p>

```{warning}
If you do not find your institute, this means that your institute is not registered with MyAccessID and your Feide account would not work with NAIC orchestrator. Please contact your institutes admin to get your institute registered. If this is not possible and you want to follow the course, please contact "support@naic.no" to get a VM, we might be able to assist depending on capacity.
```

Details on registering with MyAccessID: https://puhuri.neic.no/user_guides/myaccessid_registration/

## Create a VM using NAIC Orchestrator

Please make sure your MyAccessID is active before this step. If you did not manage to get it working, you should have got an alternative solution from the organizers.

### Step 1: Login to https://orchestrator.naic.no/

<img src="/images/orchestrator1.png" alt="Step1" width="40%" />

### Step 2: Navigate to create

<img src="/images/orchestrator2.png" alt="Step2" width="40%" />

### Step 3: Naming the VM and create a key file and download it

- Provide simple name, with only alphabetical characters and without spaces
- Give a name for the key and download it to your local computer. Orchestrator would not store this key, so if you lose it then you would lose access.

<img src="/images/orchestrator3.png" alt="Step3" width="40%" />

### Step 4: Configure the VM

Fill in the remaining settings as shown in the annotated screenshot below:

- **Duration**: Select how long to keep the VM alive (12-20 hours is typical for a workshop)
- **Access**: Select your university network and/or "Your IP" to whitelist your connection
- **Provider**: Select **NREC UiO** or **NREC UiB** (recommended)
- **VM type**: Select **"Virtual machine"** (CPU only — this course does not require GPU)

<img src="/images/orchestrator4.png" alt="Step4" width="60%" />

```{warning}
**Provider selection**: Use **NREC UiO** or **NREC UiB** only. The Google Cloud and IBM Cloud options are experimental and not stable — do not select them for this course.
```

```{warning}
**IP Whitelisting**: You can only SSH to the VM from the IP addresses you select in this step. If you later connect from a different network (e.g., home vs office, VPN, or mobile hotspot), you will be blocked. If this happens, log back into https://orchestrator.naic.no/ and add your new IP address.
```

### Step 5: Wait for the provisioning to complete

### Step 6: Access the customized help page to see how to login

### Step 7: Login to the VM

````{tabs}
```{tab} macOS / Linux
chmod 600 /path/to/your-key.pem
ssh -i /path/to/your-key.pem ubuntu@<VM_IP_ADDRESS>
```

```{tab} Windows (Git Bash — Recommended)
Install [Git for Windows](https://gitforwindows.org/) which includes **Git Bash**, a terminal with built-in SSH and Unix commands.

Open **Git Bash** and run:

    chmod 600 /c/Users/YourName/Downloads/your-key.pem
    ssh -i /c/Users/YourName/Downloads/your-key.pem ubuntu@<VM_IP_ADDRESS>

Git Bash uses Unix-style paths: `C:\Users\` becomes `/c/Users/`.
```

```{tab} Windows (PowerShell / CMD)
Windows 10/11 includes OpenSSH by default, but `chmod` is not available. Instead, fix key permissions via the file properties GUI or PowerShell:

**Option A — File Properties (simplest):**
1. Right-click your `.pem` file → Properties → Security → Advanced
2. Click "Disable inheritance" → "Remove all inherited permissions"
3. Click "Add" → "Select a principal" → type your Windows username → OK
4. Grant "Full control" → OK → Apply

**Option B — PowerShell (icacls):**

    # Remove inherited permissions and grant only your user access
    icacls "C:\Users\YourName\Downloads\your-key.pem" /inheritance:r /grant:r "%USERNAME%:R"

Then connect:

    ssh -i "C:\Users\YourName\Downloads\your-key.pem" ubuntu@<VM_IP_ADDRESS>
```

```{tab} Windows (WSL)
If you have [WSL](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install) installed, open your WSL terminal:

    # Copy the key into WSL filesystem (Windows filesystem has permission issues)
    cp /mnt/c/Users/YourName/Downloads/your-key.pem ~/your-key.pem
    chmod 600 ~/your-key.pem
    ssh -i ~/your-key.pem ubuntu@<VM_IP_ADDRESS>

**Important**: Always copy the key into the Linux filesystem (`~/`) rather than using it directly from `/mnt/c/`. Windows filesystem permissions are not enforced correctly under WSL.
```
````

```{tip}
**Which option for Windows?** Git Bash is the simplest — it gives you a Unix-like terminal with SSH, chmod, and scp built in. WSL is more powerful but requires separate installation. PowerShell works but key permissions are harder to manage.
```

```{keypoints}
- MyAccessID via Feide is required for Orchestrator access
- Download and secure your SSH key immediately after creation
- Select **NREC UiO** or **NREC UiB** as provider — do not use Google Cloud or IBM Cloud
- Select "Virtual machine" (CPU only) — this course does not require GPU
- Your IP must be whitelisted — if you change networks, add your new IP in the orchestrator
- On Windows, use Git Bash (recommended), WSL, or PowerShell with icacls for key permissions
```