StudentWeb Access Guide

Overview

Certain classes will have access to StudentWeb, which is webhosting for the purpose of completing assignments. This guide will go over how to connect to StudentWeb as well as troubleshoot some common issues you may encounter while trying to connect or during usage.

If you do not have access to StudentWeb, please contact your professor. Your professor will need to request access for the class by going to https://depaul.service-now.com/sp, pressing “Get Help”.

Downloading an FTP Client

1.  To connect, you will need to download an FTP client, such as FileZilla.
2.  To keep it simple, this guide will be using FileZilla.
3.  You may download it from FileZilla's official site: https://filezilla-project.org/download.php?show_all=1
4.  Download the version for your operating system.
5.  Then install it using the downloaded installer.

How to Connect to StudentWeb

1.  Now we will need to configure your FileZilla to connect to StudentWeb.
2.  Open the Site Manager by going to File -> Site Manager.
3.  Make a new connection by pressing the New site button.
4.  Change the Protocol dropdown box to SFTP - SSH File Transfer Protocol.
5.  In the Host field, enter: studentweb.cdm.depaul.edu
   
6.  In the Port field, enter: 22
   
7.  Change the Logon Type dropdown box to Ask for Password.
8.  In the User field, enter your Campus Connect username
   
9.  If you would like to save your credentials (including password) you may set Logon Type to Normal, and then enter your Password into the Password field. 
10.  After the information above has been configured, press Connect and it should prompt you for your Campus Connect password.
11.  On the first login you may encounter a popup asking above an Unknown Host Key. This is normal. Please press OK to continue. If you don't want this to appear every time you may check the Always trust this host... option before pressing OK.

Basic Usage

• Once connected, your local files (your computer) will be displayed on the left side of the client. The right side will be the web server. 
  
  
• To upload a file to the web server, simply drag-and-drop the desired file from the left side to the right. To download, do the opposite.
  
  
• You may also right-click on one or more files and choose upload or download.
  
  
• You can also delete files, create and remove directories, and other standard file management procedures
  
  
• The server requires that all files must be inside "public_html" folder. It should already be created. But if it is not, simply create it before continuing

The URL of Your Account

• The URL of your account will be as follows:
  http://studentweb.cdm.depaul.edu/~YourUsername/fileName.html
  
  
• Please note the Tilde character before your Campus Connect username. If you do not have the Tilde, the URL will not work.
  
  
• The public_html folder is NOT part of the URL

Other Information/Restrictions

• Only web page documents should be in your folder on the web server.
  
  
• Unless otherwise specified by your professor, the only files that should be uploaded to the web server are:
  
  
  • HTML files
  • Images
  • External CSS files
    
    
• Do not use the FileZilla copy URL to Clipboard function. This has caused issues in the past where it copies a URL that does not work.

Other Issues

• You may encounter 404 Permissions errors, meaning you do not have the proper permissions to view a file. If you do encounter one, the fix is simple. Please read through this document.
  
  
• If there is a simple 404 error, this means the server was unable to locate your file. Please make sure the URL you are using is correct or that the file you are trying to access is preset on the server.
  
  
• Another issue you may encounter during attempting to connect to the server is the "fzsftp could not be started" error. This indicates your computer has yet to connect to the studentweb server and something is either corrupted or blocking the fzsftp server from starting on your computer. Please try reinstalling FileZilla or restarting your computer, then try again.

If you are still encountering issues after going through this document:

1. First, please contact your professor. They should be able to help weed out any common issues that you may be having. 
2. If you have worked with your professor on the issue and it still has yet to work, please contact CDM Tech Support at techsupport@cdm.depaul.edu and please attach a screenshot of your FileZilla error log when you do, and describe the problem you are having.