Archive for January, 2005
January 31st, 2005 by Dana Roode
NACS is working hard to ensure that a robust and secure UCInet is always available to do the University’s business. To that end, we will occasionally deny access to systems which threaten the safe operation of the network.
Whenever a system connected to the UCInet is discovered attacking other computers, or engaging in other forms of inappropriate behavior (such as the illegal distribution of copyrighted material), NACS may block that system from further network access. Occasionally, NACS may also block systems that have not been patched in a timely manner against particularly nasty viruses.
There are two simple strategies you can follow if you suspect your system has been blocked. You can search the blocked systems list athttp://www.nacs.uci.edu/ucinet/blocked/ (usually, you’ll need to use an unblocked system to do that). Or, you can call NACS at (949) 824-2222. Our helpful consultants will explain why your system was blocked, and what to do to correct the problem. Generally, once you have taken the appropriate steps, the system can be unblocked within a few hours. Please note, however, that unblocking can only be performed during regular business hours except in emergency situations.
NACS is responsible for UCInet, but you are responsible for the proper operation of your own systems. By staying up to date on security patches, and by carefully abiding by the Computer and Network Use Policy at http://www.policies.uci.edu/adm/pols/714-18.html you can preserve your access to the UCInet and help guarantee a secure and reliable service for the entire campus.
January 31st, 2005 by Dana Roode
CalIT2
The opening ceremony for the new UCI Calit2 building has taken place, and UCI researchers are starting to make use of the high-end network and telephone infrastructure installed there — the most advanced technology installed on campus.
The Calit2 building is the first building where NACS has installed high-performance category 6 cabling to every communications outlet to support gigabits/second network speeds to the desktop.
NACS installed the highest performance and most robust network equipment of any UCI building to date. Every network connection in the building will support gigabit speeds. This was accomplished by installing Cisco’s flagship Catalyst 6500 chassis-based switches on each floor. Communications between the floor switches and the main building switch, as well as between the building switch and the UCInet backbone are at 10 gigabits/second, unprecedented at UCI.
In addition to the Internet and phone wiring installed in any new building, NACS has also installed a separate, parallel network infrastructure which allows researchers to set up their own special-purpose network connections. And, as the building becomes more fully occupied, NACS will position wireless base stations so that all points in the building have wireless access.
Calit2 also benefits from redundant communications equipment and power supplies, so that the network and telephone can continue in the face of most equipment failures.
NACS installed the first full-production voice over IP (VOIP) telephone system available to UCI researchers. IP phones connect to UCI net rather than directly to the campus Ericsson phone system. This results in some immediate benefits to users as well as opening the door to ongoing software development to create new features.
NACS is confident that all of this leading-edge network and telephone technology in the Calit2 building will meet or exceed the research requirements now and well into the future. Based on experience gained with Calit2, NACS hopes to extend similar advances to other parts of the campus in the future.
January 31st, 2005 by Dana Roode
NACS Telecommunications Customer Services (TCS) group provides customer support for an array of communications services.
NACS TCS responds to requests for telephone and data installations, repairs, and “Moves, Adds and Changes”.
In addition, NACS TCS provides advice and consulting on the campus telephone and voice mail systems, assistance with billing, telephone and voice mail training classes, the campus telephone directory, campus operator services, and support for the 800MHz radio system.
Did you know that NACS has a wide variety of telephone sets and related features available to the campus? We are here to serve your individual department’s needs. We are happy to make a site visit to your department to review your service needs and to help you select the features that can make your job easier. If you have the services you need, but are unsure of how to use the telephone and voice mail systems to the fullest extent, we offer training free of charge. Please contact NACS Telephone Customer Service at (949) 824-5123 or nacs-tcs@uci.edu to request a consultation or to sign up for training.
January 7th, 2005 by Dana Roode
There are a great many ways malicious users of the Internet are devising to sneak software onto a computer. It can be simply annoying but benign (adware), invasive of privacy (tracking visited web sites), and even destructive.
Security patches and firewalls are excellent defensive measures, but if something gets past those defenses, it’s important to find out before any data can be stolen or destroyed. And if your department runs a server, any disruption can be far-reaching.
Wouldn’t it be nice if something monitored the software installed on a key computer, and the configuration of the system, and notified the appropriate person any time it spotted a change? He or she could ignore changes that were deliberate, but take swift action when something was changed without permission.
This is just what Tripwire offers. Tripwire takes a snapshot of a computer, and stores this “baseline configuration” in a database. It then makes regular “integrity checks” and reports any changes (what changed, when, and by whom). Authorized changes become part of a new baseline configuration.
Tripwire is available for Linux, Sun’s Solaris, HP’s OSF1, IBM’s AIX, and Microsoft Windows. NACS systems administrators, as well as Computing Support Coordinators in some other campus units, are deploying Tripwire to protect their key servers. The NACS Distributed Computing Support (DCS) group is also deploying Tripwire on servers it has under contract, thereby making the benefits of the software available to DCS clients.
A recent UC system wide agreement has made the Tripwire software very affordable. Departmental computing support staff and others interested are invited to contact NACS to discuss deploying Tripwire in their units.
January 7th, 2005 by Dana Roode
Webmail now will let you work with attachments up to 20MB in size. Keep in mind that attachments of this size may take a while to download to your computer, depending upon the type of connection you have.
January 7th, 2005 by Dana Roode
NACS is always on the lookout for opportunities to bring technical expertise and demonstrations of useful tools and solutions to campus.
Last month, Sylvia Bass coordinated a presentation from Macromedia for campus Web developers. Jaimi Groothuis and John Schuman of Macromedia showed their content management software, “Contribute.” Contribute is an easy-to-use, full-featured web site management package which costs much less than similarly versatile alternatives. Participants included staff from Adcom, Parking, Humanities, ICS, Engineering, Biological Sciences, Housing, Department of Undergraduate Education, Campus Recreation, and Communications.
Attendees were treated to an in-depth tour of Contribute and their Web publishing system. John also demonstrated two new software packages. Macromedia Captivate allows you to record all onscreen actions to create interactive tutorials. He also showed us Breeze, a tool to have online meetings or training courses over the Internet using Powerpoint and Flash.
If you missed this demonstration and would like to learn more, or if there are other technology companies or products you would like us to invite to UCI, please contact NACS.