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Free Linux shell accounts, now known as Tildes
If you were actively using internet in the end of 90s/beginning of 00s, you may remember websites with tildes in the URL, like this one:
https://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/
This is a Putty software page, hosted on chiark.greenend.org.uk
shared hosting by sgtatham
account.
That setup was fairly common in that days shared hostings, due to web server configuration simplicity: tilde in Unix means the home directory of the user that goes after tilde. In the URL above, ~sgtatham
refers to sgtatham
user home directory path. All shared hosting needed to do is to create new user, which will automatically result in shell and/or FTP access and web hosting access, no additional configuration needed.
You can try tilde on your Linux box: cd ~root
is an equivalent for cd /root
; cd ~mysql
will do cd /var/lib/mysql
.
If you were interested in Linux, VPS or web hosting that days, you may remember free shell account offers, which gave you non-root SSH access to Linux or FreeBSD box, to learn the OS, its commands and software.
Nowadays, these two ideas reincarnated under the tilde name, which usually means Linux shell account access and a web hosting under your /~username.
Tilde is not a type of an access or something, it's just the name of original server tilde.club, created by Paul Ford in 2014. Read the story of its creation.
So, if you want Linux shell account and a web hosting for free, here are some tildes:
- tilde.club — the original tilde server. Had signups closed for a long time, now accepts new users.
- tilde.team — has great wiki
- hashbang.sh — this one has very extensive server hardening ansible configuration paybooks on their github, very useful information for configuring shared shell access on your own server.
- tilde.town
- tilde.black
- ctrl-c.club
- tildecow.com
- tilde.institute
- hackers.cool
Some servers apply rather limiting configuration on number of background processes, memory and CPU consumption, some are pretty lax.
Tilde is not only about technologies, it's also about community: many Tilde servers are joined into one large Tildeverse, with their IRC chat, wikis, educational information, blogging and microblogging services, etc.
Wikis on Tildas are the storehouse of useful information. Check Command Line Shell, for Absolute Beginners article on tilde.team, it's the link I give to people with no experience with the shell, and they ask me no questions after it.
Even if don't really need shell access, apply for some of it to see the user profile/bashrc configuration. Some of the servers have really convenient setup which you can re-use on your servers.
Comments
Haha I used to have dozens of those (in the age of eggdrops and warez)...
There were days.
rootshell.be - you always remember your
fistfirst.@ValdikSS
Thank you, VSS.
Kids these days with free shell accounts. Why I remember when you had to pay $10/month for a shell account. And had to walk uphill both ways (1200 baud modem)!
I recall looking at tilde.club a couple of years ago and it seemed stagnant (no way to sign up, etc.). Glad to see that they're trying to revive it.
@WSS ?
Now that you brought it up, I am totally surprised to see https://sdf.org/ is still alive!
.
sdf is the place to be. smj is doing an awesome job running the show. Their masto instance is pretty busy too mastodon.sdf.org.
+1 for sdf
Don't know: my impression of the tilde project(s) was/is that it/they seemed/seem a bit too niche or odd or underground. sdf is a good choice if one wants an old-fashioned shell account (with email!), and one doesn't feel as though one had joined some niche or odd or underground movement as a result.
But perhaps my impression is incorrect.
hmm... forgive me, what is the purpose of this when many of us here have multiple idling VPSes?
To have some idling shell accounts in addition, sweetheart!
Oh yeah kiddo? I had to do the walk with no legs.
Or at least it felt that way.
sdf.org is great but cant beat my shell.cjb.net .
LET providers should give free linux shells instead of free servers.
Unless you're doing acoustic coupling you've got legs...
shell ... shared root ... it's all good
(6 and 2/9ths of one vs 14/27ths of a dozen of the other, ammirite?)
Rip devio.us
No.
@AuroraZ I think i eventually cracked the mystery.
As i once ate Romanian canned meat pate i found lying somewhere at home, while contemplating life, the taste of liver and kidneys was so strong, i had a revelation and during this moment of clarity, it finally hit me:
@WSS is a World War II waffle company.
@Janevski I appreciate the credit, now if I only knew what mystery I cracked, maybe me and the rest of the Scooby gang can go celebrate.
Those Belgians are gonna be pissed about the competition.
We know you are harbouring him on upto32. We know.
If you mean @WSS then no I am not @AnthonySmith is, I harbor him at primarydns.net.
I hope that you're wrong because that wouldn't speak so favorably of him.
You know, I'd prefer to think that "WSS" simply stands for "Why So Serious(?)".
Even if it is so, i'd guess it's a metaphor, regarding his blitzkrieg way of posting.
I honestly think @WSS is a good person.
When somebody is an evil fuck, it's usually noticeable after a while.
What can I do with this ?
Everything! Sky is the limit.