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Ok, you have a spare computer. You want to setup SSH. Maybe this is because your laptop is Windows and WSL doesn't yet support the Go compiler (or Elm compiler for that matter. Edit: It does now). So you want a Linux box always on in your dorm.

Problem: The port is blocked.

Solution: You wish there was a way to perform a reverse shell on yourself over ssh. You know that firewalls usually only block connections from the outside coming in, but they leave the same ports open if you're connecting from the inside going out. This is because the client application has to connect somehow. So you want to connect to yourself starting from the linux box and connecting to... to.... shit.

Problem: You don't how to connect to yourself

Solution: Yes, you'll need a third computer. Your Windows laptop's IP is always changing. You can't connect to that! You need a computer that can act as a reliable go-between. You have a teeny-tiny VPS which you pay less than $20 a year for. It has a stable IP.

Conclusion: Reverse SSH it's fucking cool. I didn't have time to write up the tutorial I wanted. But I got this to work and had a blast setting it up. Give it a try.