Like the majority of people, most likely have a few virtual computers on your local network. But what if you need to access them remotely?
Thankfully, it’s easy to do with Ubuntu. This post will demonstrate How to access virtual machines remotely Ubuntu, so you can work on them from anywhere.
Contents
Introduction on How to access virtual machines remotely Ubuntu:
A virtual machine (VM) is an emulation of a computer system. Physical hardware components are replaced with virtual equivalents. This enables a single physical machine to run multiple isolated virtual systems (guests).
To access and use a VM, you must connect to it through a remote desktop protocol (RDP) service such as XRDP.
XRDP is an open source implementation of the Microsoft Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) that allows users to control a remote system graphically. It is available for download from the Ubuntu Software Center.
Once you have installed and configured xrdp, you can connect to your VM from any RDP client.
For Windows, the built-in Remote Desktop Connection application can be used. For Linux, you can use any RDP client such as Remmina or KRDC.
Setting up a remote connection
To remotely access your virtual computer, you must establish a remote connection. This can be done using the SSH (Secure Shell) protocol.
A remote connection can be established in two ways: with an SSH client or an SSH server.
If you are using an SSH client, you will need to connect to the IP address of your virtual machine. You can do this by opening a terminal and running the following command:
ssh username@ip_addressReplace username with your actual username and ip_address with the IP address of your virtual machine.
You will be prompted for your password. Once you have entered your password, you will be logged in and can begin working on your virtual machine.
You will need to configure port forwarding on your router using an SSH server. Port forwarding allows incoming connections to be forwarded to a specific internal IP address.
To do this, you must log in to your router and add a port forwarding rule. The specific steps will vary depending on your router, but in general, you will need to forward port 22 (the SSH port) to the IP address of your virtual machine.
Accessing virtual machines remotely
If you want to access your virtual machine remotely, you can use SSH to connect to the machine. You will need to have an SSH client installed on your local machine.
To connect to a virtual machine, use the ssh command followed by the username and IP address of the machine:
ssh username@ipaddressOnce you are connected, you will be prompted for the password for the user account. Enter the password and press enter.
You should now see a command prompt for the virtual machine. You can now run commands on the remote machine as if you were logged in locally.
Tips and tricks on how to access virtual machines remotely Ubuntu:
If you need to access your virtual machine remotely, a few options are available. With a little effort, you can set up a secure connection that will allow you to access your machine from anywhere in the world.
One option is to use a VPN (a virtual private network). A VPN will encrypt all your traffic, ensuring that no one can eavesdrop on your connection.
You’ll need to install the OpenVPN software on your local and virtual machines to set up a VPN.
Once both machines are connected to the VPN, you’ll be able to access your virtual machine as if it were on the same local network.
Another possibility is to utilize SSH. SSH (Secure Shell) is a technology that allows you to connect to another computer via an unsafe network securely.
To use SSH, you’ll need to install an SSH server on your virtual machine and connect to it from your local machine using an SSH client.
Once connected, you’ll be able to access all of your virtual machine’s files and applications as if you were logged in locally.
Both VPN and SSH can be used to access your virtual machine remotely. Which one you choose will depend on your needs and preferences.
FAQs on How to access virtual machines remotely Ubuntu:
- What is a virtual machine?
- What are the benefits of using a virtual machine?
- How do I access my virtual machine remotely?
- How do I connect to my virtual machine using SSH?
- How do I connect to my virtual machine using VNC?
- How do I restart my virtual machine?
- How do I shut down my virtual machine?
Troubleshooting
If you are unable to connect to your virtual machine (VM) with SSH, there are several possible causes:
- The VM might not be running. Check the status of your VM in the Azure portal.
- A firewall or other network security restriction might block access to port 22, the default port for SSH. For more information, see Allow inbound traffic on a virtual machine.
- The network security group (NSG) for your VM or subnet might not have an exception for SSH traffic. For more information, see Configure network security groups.
- You might be using your VM’s wrong DNS name or IP address. The DNS name is usually in the format .cloudapp.azure.com, and the IP address is located on the overview page of your VM in the Azure portal.
Further reading
After following the steps in this article, you should be able to connect to your Ubuntu VM from another computer on the same network using either SSH or RDP.
If you want to learn more about setting up and using Ubuntu Virtual Machines, we recommend these additional resources:
- The Official Ubuntu Documentation: This comprehensive guide covers everything from installation to advanced topics such as cloud computing, containers, and more.
- The Ubuntu Wiki: The wiki is a community-maintained collection of helpful articles and documentation for all things Ubuntu.
- Ask Ubuntu: Ask Ubuntu is a great place to get answers to your questions from experienced users and developers.
Conclusion on how to access virtual machines remotely Ubuntu:
This article shows you how to access virtual machines remotely Ubuntu from another computer.
We have also shown you how to configure Ubuntu for remote desktop connections. We hope this article has helped get you started with remote desktop connections on your Ubuntu machine.
