This page documents how to run AIPS at ATNF’s sites. It only covers getting the software running. If you are having troubles with setting AIPS task parameters etc, you need to look elsewhere.
Availability
AIPS should be available on most Linux hosts. Some machines may need a small amount of setup before they can run AIPS. Please write to aipsmngr@atnf.csiro.au for assistance with this. It won’t take long to do.
Suggested hosts
The following server machines are good choices for running AIPS. To make use of them you will need to read about how TV servers work.
| Hostname | OS | Site |
|---|---|---|
| carina.atnf.CSIRO.AU | Linux | Marsfield |
| cetus.atnf.CSIRO.AU | Linux | Marsfield |
Starting AIPS
You should be able to start aips by just typing:0
unix% aips
However often you will need to run:
unix% aips tv=local:0
If you haven’t run AIPS before you should also read about TV servers.
Troubleshooting
I keep getting password prompts
AIPS now relies heavily on SSH for sending data between hosts. This has some advantages but requires a little setup on the part of the user.
AIPS freezes at startup
AIPS may freeze after printing a message like this:
START_AIPS: Checking if vulcan.atnf.CSIRO.AU is reachable via ssh...
This happens because AIPS is trying to use SSH to connect from the remote machine to back your local desktop. A freeze at this point indicates the SSH connection is is not working.
Try manually making a SSH connection from the remote server back to your local workstation. If that works, re-read the documentation on TV Servers. If manual SSH connection fails, seek help from ServiceDesk.
I get errors such as “Xlib: connection to “vulcan.atnf.CSIRO.AU:0.0″ refused by server”
First, check you haven’t exceeded your quota in your home directory. X uses a file called ~/.Xauthority to authorise connections to X servers. If you are over quota, X cannot add another entry to this file, and you will get messages like the one above. A quick way to fix this is to delete one file in your home directory.
Otherwise, on your local machine try:
local> xhost +<localhostname>
If that fails try:
local> xhost +<remoteservername>
ssh-agent is set up OK but AIPS still stops connecting to the local machine.
This happens rarely. It occurs because AIPS uses ‘short’ machine names instead of fully qualified domain names (FQDN). To check if this is the problem, try making a ssh connection manually from the remote machine to the local machine.
If that works, most likely one or the other ends is searching the wrong DNS domain for the short name. Contact ServiceDesk and ask them to check the default DNS search domain for the remote machine and your local machine.