Getting Started for Students
Access
Students do not have to take any action independently to get access to log into Weblab. Instructors who request access will be grant all students enrolled in a class with them access.
You will have access to log into the web portlal at https://weblab.uni.edu with your CatID credentials. This will bring you to a page like this:
From here you have access to take action relating to a class you have or interact with MySQL database access.
Getting started with WordPress
All students can provision a WordPress site within a class they are enrolled in. Go to your class list on the homepage, and choose Manage. When you choose Create WordPress, the server will start build it. You'll receive a popup when the site is configured, followed shortly by an email.
If you have already been provisioned a WordPress site in your class, you'll see a link and the option under Manage will be WordPress Password Reset.
The email will look like this:
Sample New Wordpress Site email
Your new WordPress site has been successfully set up at:
https://weblab.uni.edu/weblabtest09/wordpress
You can log in to the administrator account with the following information:
Username: weblabtest09
Password: The password you chose during installation.
Log in here: https://weblab.uni.edu/weblabtest09/wordpress/wp-login.php
We hope you enjoy your new site. Thanks!
--The WordPress Team
https://wordpress.org/Either follow the link for Log in here: or go to the Weblab portal and choose Manage > WordPress Password Reset. At the login screen you can choose to reset your password and a link will come to your email.
Don't use your CatID Password as your WordPress password. You should set a unique password. You can always go to the Weblab portal and choose Manage > WordPress Password Reset under the right class to change your WordPress password.
Once your WordPress password is reset you get to the login page either from the Log in here: link provided in the email you received when your site was set up or by going to your site's URL (ex. https://weblab.uni.edu/weblabtest09/wordpress-101) with /wp-login.php on the end. You can also access the login page from the Weblab dashboard, by going to Manage > WordPress Admin Login.
Since you can have multiple WordPress installed per user, if it is not the first one it will have a three digit ending (see screenshot, https://weblab.uni.edu/weblabtest09/wordpress-101). This makes it easier to keep track of which site belongs to which class. Instructors will see the correct link attached to the class information panel they have as well.
Getting started with MySQL and phpMyAdmin
Accessing MySQL
Before you can access your database you'll have to choose to set (reset) your MySQL password. You can access this tool form the homepage of the Weblab portal (in the top menu is MySQL Password Reset) or from this link: https://weblab.uni.edu/tools/mysql_reset
A unique password will be set here and then emailed to you very shortly when you click the Reset My MySQL Password.
About WordPress or other database connections
If you're enrolled in one class working with MySQL and another with a WordPress site on Weblab, you will actually have two (or more) databases configured. You can have multiple databases under your user without any problems, HOWEVER you need to pay attention to your password! When resetting your password using the automated tool that emails you, your WordPress configuration will also be updated. If you change your password manually using phpMyAdmin or CLI you will break your WordPress connection.
See Common WordPress Issues for more details (and how to fix this issue!)
Accessing phpMyAdmin
To get to the phpMyAdmin login page you can use the menu link the Weblab portal, or go to https://weblab.uni.edu/phpmyadmin.
If you haven't been to the site or active on another UNI login site, you'll be prompted to enter your CatID login.
Once you've logged in, you'll get to the phpMyAdmin login page:
At this page, please use the credentials you either received in your email, or – if applicable – the ones you recently reset.
Getting started with file-based tools
Off-campus access
If you are access file-based resources from off campus please refer to this article about getting VPN access: Using the SSL VPN to access restricted services
UNI restricts port 22 access to weblab.uni.edu from off campus. This affects things like SSH, SFTP, and SCP.
All students are provided with a web folder in their home directory that will display at the URL, https://weblab.uni.edu/<username>
An example home directory for a new user
drwx------. 2 example domain users 4096 Mar 21 2021 .
drwxr-xr-x. 340 root root 12288 Feb 4 06:52 ..
-rw-------. 1 example domain users 18 Mar 21 2021 .bash_logout
-rw-------. 1 example domain users 141 Mar 21 2021 .bash_profile
-rw-------. 1 example domain users 376 Mar 21 2021 .bashrc
lrwxrwxrwx. 1 example domain users 14 Mar 21 2021 web -> /sites/exampleFTP/SFTP/SCP
Common file-based access tools utilize FTP, SFTP, or SCP protocols to provide access to directories and files. These might include:
For details about how to use these work see the respective manuals.
Connection details
URL | weblab.uni.edu |
|---|---|
Port | 22 |
Protocol | scp or sftp |
Web Directory |
|
SSH
You are welcome to use your favorite method to SSH to the server and manage files. You can use things like Visual Studio Code's Remote-SSH plugin to load your home directory and work from as well.
Data in the long term
Archives
Weblab is not a permanent host. Students are given access and hosting capabilities during their course terms, but in between semesters the server is cleaned and sites, databases, and files are removed to make way for the next semester. Should you want to save your resources created during the semester we offer archives that can be created and downloaded.
Once you create an archive you'll receive an email with links to follow to download – conversely you can scroll on the homepage and find a listing of available archive downloads by date.
You can only have 5 archives at a time. When you create a sixth, the oldest archive will be deleted.
Automatic archives and removal
In between semesters, Weblab is cleared to prepare for the next semester. This occurs automatically and will provide you with an archive that is downloadable for some time after you receive notice of it being created. Eventually if you don't have a class on Weblab for a period of time or graduate/cease enrollment with UNI your account on Weblab will be closed and you won't be able to access this download anymore.
Backing up
During your course work periods you may wish to save copies of files, databases, and/or whole sites. Each function can be different. Here's a simple list of methods you can go about each of those:
Files: the simplest way to back up files is to open an SFTP connection to Weblab and drap the files into your local machine. From there you can zip the files and then upload them to Google Drive or a similar storage point to make it easier to ensure they don't get lost.
Databases: phpMyAdmin allows you to easily export a selected database. Simply choose the database you want to backup and select Export in the top menu. Leave the "Output" options blank and you will be able to download a file.
Read more here: https://docs.phpmyadmin.net/en/latest/import_export.html#export
Sites: Many sites (WordPress, Drupal, Joomla) rely on BOTH a database and files. These are complicated to move, but can often be exported from one of the same to another of the same. For example with WordPress you can use WP All-in-One Migration to get a custom site file which can then be imported using the same plugin to a blank WordPress site.
For WordPress specific help checkout this guide: https://ids.uni.edu/advertising/exporting-wordpress-blog/
Each service and site are different you might need to look for specific guides on this.
You can always simply use the archive function to create a backup of ALL of your data (files and databases).