Central Linux Introduction
This article applies to Linux systems built after 2026 by the central build system, primarily used by Atomic & Laser and Condensed Matter. For new builds you will be directed to this page when picking up the machine.
Systems are built with Debian stable and the XFCE desktop.
The currently supported operating systems are
| Codename | Version | EOL |
|---|---|---|
| Bookworm | 12 | 2026-06-10 |
| Trixie | 13 | 2028-08-09 |
When your system is EOL it cannot be supported on the main network, please email itsupport@physics.ox.ac.uk to discuss your options. If you are running the previous version (old-stable) this is usually a simple upgrade and reboot, for legacy systems it will require a rebuild.
There are specific pages for:
If you are coming from Windows you may also want to look at the Common Applications page which highlights Windows software and their nearest equivalent.
Remote Access
There are two supported methods to remote connect to Linux systems, either can be used depending on your requirements.
It is also important to note whether your system is on an outer or inner network as inner machines can only be accessed by machines on their respective outer network.
Shell Access (SSH)
SSH Access to machines gives you a text-only interface to the machine to run commands. This is generally preferred by experienced users but new users or people familiar with a GUI may use RDP instead.
To configure SSH please follow the SSH Guide.
GUI Access (RDP)
All Linux systems are running an RDP service, this means they can be connected to from any OS, please follow the relevant documentation: