PuTTY - SSH Client
SSH stands for secure shell and is a method of connecting to a server that has SSH (normally linux) so that you are able to execute commands.
Using an SSH client is almost exactly the same as logging into a computer without a GUI. You are able to issue text commands to do almost anything. SSH is the most common method of managing and running servers, because when you log in you can do anything from install software to reboot the server.
To log into a server via SSH, you need to have an SSH client. The most used, and probably best, SSH client is PuTTY. It is simple, easy to use, free and does everything that is needed.
You can download the PuTTY SSH Client here: PuTTY Download
If you are a Windows user, you should download the top version, labelled “PuTTY”, the file is just putty.exe
If you don’t use Windows, then you should download the version correct for your operating system. Once PuTTY is downloaded you should open it up.
On the main page that opens when you start PuTTY, there is only one or two important things, so it is very easy to connect to your server.
In the box labelled “Host Name (or IP Address)” enter the IP address or host name/domain name of your server. In the box to the right of that, labelled “Port”, the default setting is 22. By standard, SSH runs on port 22. However, for security some server and large hosts such as HostGator run SSH on a different port, you will need to contact them to find out what port this is (but try 22 for now).
Now at the bottom click the “Open” button. A black window with white writing should now open. You will be asked for a username, type it in and click enter. You will then be asked for a password, type your password in (you shouldn’t see it typing, but it is).
You should click enter again and you will now be logged into your server using SSH. If it logs in correctly then it means you have done everything right.
If the prompt to enter your username never appears, or you get a network or connection error, then it means that it can’t connect to your server. This means the server either doesn’t have SSH, SSH runs on a different port or you are having connection problems. In all cases, you should contact your host or service provider.
If, when you enter the host name and click open, you get a prompt about a host key no being cached in the registry, just click yes.
If you get an error about an incorrect username or password, then try a few times and then contact your host for help if it still doesn’t work.
How to Uninstall Linux
Installing Linux can be a fairly easy process, create the partition and just boot to the CD, but when you want to uninstall it when you might get stuck.
Unlike normal software and programs, there is no uninstall button. You may think that you can just wipe the partition that you installed Linux on, but this will result in a corrupted MBR (Master Boot Record).
In this guide I will go through how to uninstall Linux when you are dual-booting with Windows XP and I will also go through how to uninstall Linux when you are dual-booting with Windows Vista.
Windows XP
- Make a backup, just in case something goes wrong.
- Windows XP is quite simple, at least its easier than Vista. First you have to revert the boot loader back to the default XP boot loader (right now you will be using the Linux boot loader, Grub). To do this just boot from you XP recovery CD that came with your computer and issue the commands “FIXMBR” and “FIXBOOT”.
- Now restart your computer and it should automatically boot into XP. If it does not then you need to make sure that you issued the commands from before using the XP recovery CD.
- Now you need to use some hard disk partition managing software to wipe the Linux partition and format it as NTFS for Windows. You can do this with almost all partitioning software (Partition Magic is good).
Now you are done. Next time you turn on your computer it should boot into XP and you should be able to use all the space that Linux occupied before.
Windows Vista
- Make a backup in case there is a problem.
- Boot into Vista like you normally would.
- Download EasyBCD from http://www.neosmart.net/
- Install and run EasyBCD.
- In EasyBCD, on the left, click “Manage Bootloader”. Then in the “Bootloader Installation Options” part of the window, choose “Reinstall the Vista Bootloader” and then click the “Write MBR” button. This will overwrite the Linux Grub boot loader with the default one for Windows Vista.
- In Vista, click the start menu and then control panel. In the control panel click “System and Maintenance”. Scroll down to the bottom and click “Create and format hard disk partitions”. In the window that opens you should see all the partitions on your hard disk. Right click on the partition that you have Linux installed on and then click “Delete Volume…”. You should also have a smaller Swap partition for Linux, do the same for that.
- Now right click on the new empty space and click “Format”. Give the new partition a name, select NTFS as the File System and click ok.
- Once that has finished, reboot your computer and it should boot into Vista and you should have an extra partition with all free space that Linux used to be on.
So now you can uninstall Linux 
Make sure that you take a backup, you only realise what you have when it is gone.