Setting Up a Desktop Session

This page is dedicated to instructing you on how to use Rescale Desktops. In order to access the Desktops feature, log in to your Rescale account (Rescale Platform). If you don’t have a Rescale account, you can create an account at no charge here: Rescale Signup.
Please contact us if you’re having trouble.
To proceed with setting up a Desktops session, click on the Desktops tab and select + Create New Desktop.

You can give your session a unique title to locate it easily later. Next, you’ll select the type of software you want to run on the desktop. For this tutorial, we’re using ParaView GUI. You’ll note that once you select the software, the Hardware section below will automatically update to offer only hardware compatible with the work you want to do.
At this point, you can add any already-existing jobs you’d like to the desktop.
Finally, select the hardware you want to use and set an appropriate walltime limit.
Once you’ve made your selection, you can click Launch and it will start the session. This will typically take a few minutes.
Here’s what the desktop setup page will look like:

Connecting to your desktop
Once the server has started, you can connect either in-browser or via a client on your local machine.
Connect in-browser.
Connecting in-browser is frequently the lowest-effort connection, but it provides a lower-resolution desktop session. To connect in-browser, click the Connect button once it appears, as shown below. It should appear once the OS is installed and updated and the Rescale runtime is configured.
After you click the Connect button, you can use the remote desktop right in your browser.

Connect with a client
Connecting with a client on your own computer can offer much better graphics than an in-browser connection, but it requires a little more setup. The process is very different for Windows and Linux desktops, but in both cases, these are the required ports for visualization:
RDP: Port 3389
VNC: Port 5900/5901
DCV: Port 8443
If your company does not allow traffic through one of these ports, that method of desktop visualization will not work!