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bwCloud-OS User Wiki

Welcome to the bwCloud-OS User Wiki — the central knowledge base for using the multi-region OpenStack cloud shared across the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. This cloud is jointly operated by the universities of Freiburg, Karlsruhe, Mannheim, and Ulm, and is available to users from all participating educational institutions in the state.

This wiki is primarily designed to answer frequently asked questions (FAQs) and provide practical guidance for common tasks when using the bwCloud-OS service. General information about the bwCloud-OS service and affiliated projects is available on the bwCloud-OS website.

If you need technical assistance beyond what is covered here, please open a support ticket via the bwSupportPortal.

Quickstart

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I. Register and/or Log in

1. Go to the bwCloud-OS Dashboard.
2. Select bwIDM via OpenID Connect and click Sign In.
3. Choose your home institution and log in with your university credentials.
4. If logging in for the first time: register for bwCloud SCOPE by accepting the terms of use.
5. After login or registration, you will be redirected to the bwCloud-OS Dashboard.

II. Upload or Create an SSH Key

1. Log in to the Dashboard.
2. Go to Project → Compute → Key Pairs.
3. Choose one of the following options:
   • To import an existing key: Click Import Public Key, enter a name, , select SSH Key type, and upload your public SSH key. Then click Import.
   • To create a new key pair: Click Create Key Pair, enter a name, select SSH Key type, and click Create. The private key will be downloaded automatically.
4. Ensure you have access to the private key on your local machine.

For help generating an SSH key, see our SSH Key Pair Generation guide.

III. Launch a Virtual Machine

1. Go to Compute → Instances → Launch Instance and fill out the tabs:
   1. Details: Assign a name
   2. Source: Choose an image (e.g., Debian 12)
   3. Flavor: Select a resource package (e.g., m1.small)
   4. Networks: Choose the network
   5. Key Pair: Select your SSH key
2. Click Launch and wait for the instance to finish building and enter Running state.

IV. Connect to Your VM

1. Find the public IP address of your running instance in the Instances overview.
2. Connect via SSH from your terminal using the following command:

ssh -i /path/to/private-key <user>@<IP-address>

For Debian/Ubuntu images, the default username is debian or ubuntu. See our full Username Overview for other images.

Theme Hub

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• 🔐 Registration - Entitlements, region selection
• 🖥️ Instances (VMs) - Start VMs, connect (SSH), flavors, images, snapshots
• 🌐 Network & Security - IPs, DNS & FQDN, networks, routers, security groups
• 💾 Storage - Volumes, backups, performance
• 👥 (Group-)Projects & Quota - Projects, group management, quota change
• ⚙️ Automation & Tools - Ansible, API access

Other Notes

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• Glossary - Key terms and concepts used in bwCloud-OS