---
layout: default
navsection: userguide
navmenu: Getting Started
title: Accessing Arvados Workbench
navorder: 1
---
h1. Accessing Arvados Workbench

Access the Arvados beta test instance available using this link:

"https://workbench.{{ site.arvados_api_host }}/":https://workbench.{{ site.arvados_api_host }}/

If you are accessing Arvados for the first time, you will be asked to log in using a Google account.  Arvados uses only your name and email address from Google services for identification, and will never access any personal information.  Once you are logged in, the Workbench page may indicate your account status is *New / inactive*.  If this is the case, contact the administrator of the Arvados instance to activate your account.

Once your account is active, logging in to the Workbench will present you with a system status dashboard.  This gives a summary of data, configuration, and activity in the Arvados instance.

Next, we will "configure your account for ssh access to an Arvados virtual machine (VM).":ssh-access.html
