This article goes over some best practices, required settings, and tips for having the best experience on Paperspace for virtual machines as well as Gradient users.
In general...
...you have full control over your Paperspace machine. However, there are some pieces of software and default settings that must remain unmodified for your machine to operate properly. If you have modified any of the components, you are welcome to submit a ticket to our Support Team, but we may not be able to recover the machine for you.
Tip: If you are concerned that a change might break the machine or your connection to Paperspace, we recommend taking a Snapshot so you can revert to a previously functional state.
Windows
When using the Paperspace streaming technology
Tip: Other protocols like RDP and VNC are supported. This section only applies to using the Paperspace streaming technology to access your VM.
It is not possible to rename, modify, or remove the Paperspace account within Windows. The Paperspace user is an essential component how we are able to log you into your VM and stream your desktop to you. You can add another user account with separate permissions but must remain logged in as the Paperspace user. The only way to reveal or safely change the password of the VM is with this tool. If for some reason you must remove or change this user, then you will not be able to access your machine through Paperspace (but you're welcome to do so through RDP or other streaming protocols).
Required Paperspace Software
Paperspace requires the following software to run:
- Paperspace Agent
- Paperspace Service
- NVIDIA Graphics Driver
- Razer Surround audio driver
- Salt Minion
- Various Citrix Xen/Xenserver programs & services
- .NET Framework
Please do not update, uninstall or modify any of this software.
Firewalls
- Please refer to this article on how to configure a firewall to ensure you don't lose access to your Paperspace machine.
Display Settings (Windows)
- The resolution of the remote machine cannot be changed from within the machine itself. You can change the resolution by resizing the remote window (in the browser or native app).
VPNs
- Please refer to this article on how to configure a VPN.
IP Address & Internet Settings
- Do not modify the IP address within your machine.
- Do not modify the ethernet or network settings on your VM -- they will disconnect your VM and cannot be restored.
Hostname
- Windows: The VM hostname cannot be changed.
- Linux: You can set a new hostname following this guide.
Linux Machines
Linux machines have less required settings than Windows machines, but there are a few things to be mindful of:
- If you change the default/temporary password that is emailed to you, that password cannot be recovered if you lose or forget it
- Do not upgrade major versions what's also known as a dist-upgrade. Even if prompted, don't upgrade from Ubuntu 14.04 to 16.04 or from 16.04 to 18.04. Your terminal machine will not work correctly and if you have a Machine Learning in a Box machine with a desktop you will lose access to the GUI.