You can use the Management Terminal, also known as VNC, to connect to an ECS instance. This method is suitable for when other remote access software programs such as PuTTy, Xshell, or SecureCRT, do not work.

Scenarios

The Management Terminal can be used to:

  • Check the status of an ECS instance.
  • Reconfigure the firewall if a remote connection fails due to software error within the ECS instance.
  • End abnormal processes that consume excessive CPU usage or bandwidth.
Note The Management Terminal can be used to connect to an instance even if no public IP address is assigned to your instance.

Prerequisites

Procedure

The following figure illustrates how to use the Management Terminal to connect to an ECS instance.



To connect to the ECS instance by using the Management Terminal, follow these steps:

  1. Log on to the ECS console.
  2. In the left-side navigation pane, click Instances.
  3. Select the target region.
  4. In the instance list, find your instance and then, in the Actions column, click Connect.
  5. In the Management Terminal page, follow the instructions to connect to the Management Terminal:

    • If you log on as an Alibaba Cloud account to connect to the Management Terminal for the first time, follow these steps:

      1. In the VNC Connection Password dialog box, copy the password and click Close.
        Note
        • The VNC password appears only once. You must save the password immediately and store it securely for future use. If you need to change the VNC password, see change the VNC connection password.
        • If you log on as a RAM user to connect to the Management Terminal for the first time, you will not see this dialog box.
      2. In the Enter VNC Password dialog box, paste the VNC connection password that you have copied, and click OK.
    • If you log on as a RAM user to connect to the Management Terminal for the first time, or if you have forgotten your VNC connection password, follow these steps:
      • Change the VNC connection password.
      • In the upper-left corner of the Management Terminal page, select Send Remote Command > Connect to Management Terminal.
      • In the Enter VNC Password dialog box, enter the new password and click OK.
    • If this is not your first connection to the Management Terminal, enter the VNC connection password in the Enter VNC Password dialog box and click OK.
  6. To log on to the ECS instance, follow these steps according to the operating system:
    • For a Linux instance: Enter the user name (root) and the logon password.
      Note
      • If you do not know the logon password of your instance, reset the password.
      • The logon password input is invisible.
      • If you want to perform additional operations within the instance, in the upper-left corner of the Management Terminal page, select Send Remote Command > CTRL + ALT + Fx, of which Fx can be any key from F1 to F10, to switch the interfaces for different operations.
      • If see a black screen, the Linux instance may be in sleep mode. To exit sleep mode, click your mouse or press any key.
    • For a Windows instance: In the upper-left corner of the Management Terminal page, select Send Remote Command > CTRL+ALT+DELETE. The Windows logon interface is displayed. Enter the user name (Administrator) and the logon password.
      Note If you do not know the logon password of your instance, reset the password.

Other Operations

Change the VNC connection password

If you do not know your VNC connection password, follow these steps to change the password.

Note If the instance that you are connecting to is not I/O optimized, you must restart your instance in the ECS console to apply the new VNC password. The restart operation stops your instance and interrupts your business operations. Therefore, proceed with caution.
  1. Open the Management Terminal page.
  2. Close any dialog box that displays.
  3. In the upper-right corner of the Management Terminal page, click Modify Management Terminal Password.
  4. Enter a new password. The password must be at least six characters in length and can contain letters and numbers only.
  5. Depending on the instance, the new password takes effect as follows:
    • For an I/O-optimized instance, the new password takes effect immediately.
    • For a non-I/O-optimized instance, restart the instance in the ECS console.
      Note Restarting the operating system does not apply the new password.
Input commands

If you are connecting to a Linux instance, use the Input Commands feature to type long text, such as a complex command or a URL.

To use Input Commandes, follow these steps:

  1. Open the Management Terminal page.
  2. In the upper-right corner of the Management Terminal page, click Input Commands.
  3. Enter the commands and click OK.
  4. Press the Enter key to run the commands.

FAQ

  • Can multiple users simultaneously connect to the Management Terminal?

    No. Only one user can connect to the Management Terminal at a time.

  • Why am I unable to connect to an instance by using the Management Terminal even after changing the password?

    Make sure that you enter the correct VNC password. If the instance that you are connecting to is not I/O optimized, you must restart the instance in the ECS console. This action helps the new VNC password to take effect.

  • Why do I see a black screen after logging on to my instance?

    A black screen indicates that the instance is in sleep mode.

    For a Linux instance, click your mouse or press any key to activate the screen.

    For a Windows instance, click Send remote command > CTRL+ALT+DELETE to view the logon interface.

  • Why am I unable to access the Management Terminal?

    Open your browser, connect to the Management Terminal, and press F12 to open the developer tool. You can then go to the Console tab to analyze the Management Terminal information and locate errors under.

  • Can I use IE or Firefox to access the Management Terminal?

    IE version 10 and later support the Management Terminal. Only certain versions of Firefox are supported.

    Note We recommend that you use Google Chrome as it offers the best support for Management Terminal.