FASOnDemand is a VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure) that allows a user to securely connect to a cloud compute instance hosted by FAS Research Computing (FASRC) in Harvard. SEAS Computing and FASRC have bundled a few software (Solidworks, Comsol, Abaqus, etc.) as applications which authorized SEAS users may utilize.

Before you start using the Virtual Desktop (VD), please take note of the following:

• The VDIs are to be used only for class work. 
• All commercial software made available on the VDI should be used only for academic course work in the class for which the VDI is made available.
• All the VDIs will be decommissioned at the end of class. Please transfer materials you want to keep out of the VDI. 
• Please close any licensed applications (comsol, solidworks, abaqus, granta, etc.) once you are done with your work. That way the licenses will become available for other users.

Connecting to your virtual desktop 

If your class is given access to FASOnDemand Virtual Desktops (VD), follow the instructions below.

1. Login to your class Canvas site. (Use Google Chrome or Firefox.)

2. Click on the  "FAS OnDemand" item on the canvas landing page (should be on the left side). It should open a screen as shown below:

3. The screen should show an "Interactive Apps" menu on the side. You can also see the same menu by clicking on "Interactive Apps" at the top (see above).

The App you will choose depends on the software needs of the class. The relevant item should already be highlighted. Some examples:

1. For Solidworks –  Windows Solidworks
2. For Comsol – Comsol Multiphysics
3. For Abaqus –  ES 128 Remote Desktop
4. For Python Jupyter Notebooks – Jupyter Notebook - General

Choose the time (select the smallest time consistent with your expected usage), check (for using a new image) or uncheck (if you have made changes to the image from a previous session) the box in front of "Start from a new copy of the image" and press "Launch" at the bottom.

4. Starting a VDI session

This will provision a VDI and present the following screen. Connect to the VDI by clicking on "Launch noVNC web Client".

This will launch a Windows Desktop, Comsol, or an ES 128 desktop in a separate tab on the browser. Once you are done using the remote app, you can close the tab and delete the session by clicking the "Delete" red button on the first screen.

Installing new software by yourself:

This is possible only on Windows VM where you are logged in as administrator.  In order to use your image instead of the default one, you need to uncheck the item "Start from a new copy of the image" on the landing screen before you launch the VDI. If you try installing  software and the image gets corrupted, you may not be able to boot. In that case you need to start from a fresh image by choosing "Start from a new copy of image" on the landing page.

File transfers

Windows VM: You can transfer files as attachments to your email. You can also use Google Drive/OneDrive/Dropbox. You should be able to install Dropbox client or work via a browser. 

ES128 Remote Desktop and Comsol Multyphysics Apps: The following PDF has sections on uploading and downloading files from Linux VDI.

FAS OnDemand Tutorial.pdf

If you encounter difficulties with VDI, you should contact your TFs or instructors.