{"id":2847,"date":"2018-09-04T08:30:09","date_gmt":"2018-09-04T07:30:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.threesl.com\/blog\/?p=2847"},"modified":"2022-10-07T16:40:05","modified_gmt":"2022-10-07T15:40:05","slug":"remote-workers-and-cradle-connecting-with-ssh-tunnels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.threesl.com\/blog\/remote-workers-and-cradle-connecting-with-ssh-tunnels\/","title":{"rendered":"Remote Workers and Cradle – Connecting with SSH Tunnels"},"content":{"rendered":"

Your company is using Cradle, but you’re a remote worker – how do you connect to the Cradle server?<\/p>\n

If you have the Cradle client utilities<\/em> installed locally without a local CDS<\/em> then one method, if you have an externally accessible Linux\/Unix system is SSH tunnels<\/em>.<\/p>\n

To use SSH tunnels you need to “lock down<\/em>” the Cradle server<\/em> to use specific ports, so they’re not randomly allocated from a wide pool.\u00a0 You can do this in the $CRADLEHOME\/admin\/ports<\/samp> file.<\/p>\n

Make a note of the internal IP address<\/em> of the Cradle server<\/em> – we’ll use CDS_IPADDR<\/em> later in this post to reference this address. (In this test environment it is 192.168.11.168)<\/p>\n

Cradle Configuration Changes<\/h3>\n

As an example of a small Cradle<\/em> system with 6 users we can configure the ports file as such. (We’re setting ports for each possible user and an extra)<\/p>\n

CDS_UDP_PORT_NUMBER = 23960<\/tt>
\n<\/tt>TOOL_UDP_PORT_NUMBER = 23961<\/tt>
\n<\/tt>PRJMAN_UDP_PORT_NUMBER = 23962<\/tt>
\n<\/tt>
\n<\/tt>CDS_TCP_TOOL_PORT_NUMBER\u00a0\u00a0 = 16161<\/tt>
\n<\/tt>CDS_TCP_PRJMAN_PORT_NUMBER = 16162<\/tt>
\n<\/tt>UTILITIES_TCP_PORT_NUMBER\u00a0\u00a0 = 16163-16169<\/tt>
\n<\/tt>WBENCH_TCP_PORT_NUMBER\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 = 16170-16176<\/tt>
\nCWS_TCP_PORT_NUMBER\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 = 21211-21217
\n<\/tt>PRJMAN_TCP_PORT_NUMBER\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 = 16177<\/tt><\/p>\n

This ports file needs to be copied to all the clients using this CDS.<\/p>\n

Putty Configuration Changes<\/h3>\n

Now we can look at configuring the SSH tunnels. To do this we’ll be using PuTTY – probably the most popular Windows SSH client.<\/p>\n

First off, click on the Category Session<\/strong> and enter the hostname<\/em> or IP<\/em> of the externally accessible box in the Host Name<\/strong> field.
\nNow expand the category SSH<\/strong> and click on Tunnels<\/strong>.
\nFor each of the ports configured in Cradle we need to add an entry.
\nSo, for the first one:
\nSource port<\/em>\u00a0 23960<\/tt>
\nDestination<\/em> CDS_IPADDR:23960<\/tt>
\nYou can leave the radio buttons alone (set to Local<\/tt> & Auto<\/tt>)
\nNow click the Add<\/strong> button.<\/p>\n

In the Forwarded Ports<\/em> box you should now have an entry similar to:
\nL23960\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 192.168.11.168:23960<\/tt><\/p>\n

Repeat this for all the other ports and we end up with a Forwarded ports<\/em> section which looks like (if you scroll up and down):<\/p>\n

\"Cradle<\/p>\n

L23960 192.168.11.168:23960<\/tt>
\nL23961 192.168.11.168:23961<\/tt>
\nL23962 192.168.11.168:23962<\/tt>
\nL16161 192.168.11.168:16161<\/tt>
\nL16162 192.168.11.168:16162<\/tt>
\nL16163 192.168.11.168:16163<\/tt>
\nL16164 192.168.11.168:16164<\/tt>
\nL16165 192.168.11.168:16165<\/tt>
\nL16166 192.168.11.168:16166<\/tt>
\nL16167 192.168.11.168:16167<\/tt>
\nL16168 192.168.11.168:16168<\/tt>
\nL16169 192.168.11.168:16169<\/tt>
\nL16170 192.168.11.168:16170<\/tt>
\nL16171 192.168.11.168:16171<\/tt>
\nL16172 192.168.11.168:16172<\/tt>
\nL16173 192.168.11.168:16173<\/tt>
\nL16174 192.168.11.168:16174<\/tt>
\nL16175 192.168.11.168:16175<\/tt>
\nL16176 192.168.11.168:16176<\/tt>
\nL16177 192.168.11.168:16177<\/tt><\/p>\n

Click back on the category Session<\/strong>, then add a name to the Saved Sessions<\/strong> and click on Save<\/strong> – so we don’t have to do this again.<\/p>\n

If you now click on Open<\/strong> and login to the Linux host.
\nYou can now use your local Cradle client with it pointed to the CDS<\/em> as being on your local IP.<\/p>\n

While you have this SSH<\/em> session active, you will be able to access the CDS<\/em> over the SSH tunnels<\/em>.<\/p>\n