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2009 Technology Update Schedule
A schedule of known infrastructure changes is cataloged here for use by information technology consultants on campus.
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On the Horizon... |
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| September 2009 | ||||
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Details
September 2009: DBToolBox service set to retire on
September 30
At 5:00 p.m. on September 30, 2009 the DBToolBox server webdb will cease
to accept connections, and any attempts to use the service will be redirected
to an out-of-service page. If anyone reports that they have reached the DBToolBox
out-of-service page, in all probability they have an old DBToolBox address
bookmarked in their web browser or it is contained in a website link. Please
update any web pages or bookmarks under your control to point to the address
of the new web application. Please see
kb.princeton.edu/4102 for more
information.
September 2009: New employee development opportunity from
OIT Training
OIT is pleased to announce the availability of The Business Technology
Certificate Program (BTCP), a unique employee development opportunity available
this fall. The Business Technology Certificate Program is a new program featuring
classroom training, on-the-job assignments and manager input/feedback within
a three-year technology training curriculum. For more details regarding this
new program and to ask questions, see:
www.princeton.edu/btcp.
Fall 2009: E-reader Pilot Program at
Princeton
Princeton is using the Kindle DX electronic reader to pilot the use of an
e-reader in a small number of classes during the Fall term of 2009. The project
is sponsored by the Princeton University Library, the Office of Information
Technology at Princeton, and the High Meadows Foundation, whose mission is
“to support environmental sustainability; and to support a community
of human interest through collaboration, inclusiveness and common values.”
A major aim of the pilot is to help determine if e-readers can cut down on
the use of paper at Princeton, without adversely affecting the classroom
experience. To learn more, please see:
www.princeton.edu/ereaderpilot.
August 2009: New offering from OIT: Data Destruction
Services
To assist departments in assuring data security when computing equipment
is retired or surplused, OIT is offering a new service to destroy old hard
drives as well as CDs, DVDs and floppies. Using software to delete the data
from a hard drive may not erase everything completely -- even if the files
are invisible and you can't see them yourself. The only way to absolutely
guarantee your sensitive data doesn't get into the wrong hands is to physically
destroy the drive, and, believe it or not, a sledgehammer and hacksaw are
often recommended to do the job! For more information please see:
kb.princeton.edu/9913.
July 2009: PUaccess, with enhanced login security,
becomes available
The University strives to provide the most secure computing environment possible
and to protect the confidentiality of sensitive information. As part of this
effort, a new bank-like login procedure has been implemented to protect your
personal information and Princeton's confidential data. The new system, known
as PUaccess, is now available. Users who log in to HR Self Service applications,
PeopleSoft human resources and student records applications, or SCORE are
able to create an enhanced security profile consisting of a new password,
a personal image/phrase, and three security questions and answers.
After creating your profile, whenever you log in to these systems, you will see your personal image and phrase, to assure that you have reached a valid Princeton site. The security questions will be used when you access protected systems from different locations and will allow you to reset a forgotten password without calling the OIT Help Desk. Once you have set up your new security profile, you will use your new password to access your e-mail and other applications. More information is provided from the PUaccess page; then click on the Help link.
July 2009: Woodrow Wilson TV Studio moves to the Lewis
Science Library
The TV studio at the Woodrow Wilson School has moved to the Broadcast Center
in the Lewis Science Library. The TV Studio re-opened in its new location
on July 6, 2009. The Broadcast Center will maintain, operate, and provide
access to the TV Studio. The studio is available during regular business
hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) and is free of charge to members of the University
community. For service outside of normal business hours, there is a charge
of $50. Requests for use by the general public cannot be accommodated. To
reserve the TV Studio, please e-mail bctv@princeton.edu or call 258-7872.
For more information about other services provided by the Broadcast Center,
please see: www.princeton.edu/bc.
June 2009: MacSoft server retires on June
30
Software distribution delineated by operating system is no longer necessary
due to the availability of
the Princeton Software Repository
(PSR); therefore the MacSoft server is being retired. Look to the Repository
for all the Macintosh specific software available for that operating system.
June 2009: Computers for Princeton students
If you're planning to buy a new computer before coming to campus, the Student
Computer Initiative (SCI) program will be of interest to you. The online
SCI store, with its 2009-2010 models,is scheduled to open June 9, at 12 noon.
SCI is a computer purchase program that offers notebook computers specially selected and priced for Princeton University students. The program offers several computer models and includes both Macintosh and Windows computers. You can check out www.princeton.edu/sci for more information about the program. Check back for the final details on the 2009-2010 SCI program offerings.
May 2009: University Central Authentication Service (CAS)
for web-based applications
OIT is proud to announce the launch of CAS (Central Authentication Service)
-- a single sign-on authentication mechanism for Princeton web administrators
to easily create login capabilities to their sites. CAS authenticates using
a Princeton University netID and password, and if an online site or application
is CAS-enabled, you are guaranteed that your credentials are not being collected
or gathered for malicious reasons. Online sites will automatically re-direct
you to the CAS web page to enter your credentials, or you can navigate to
the CAS login page by going to
www.princeton.edu/cas. Watch for
the "green" markers in your browser's location field. See
kb.princeton.edu/9921 for more
information about CAS and how to identify a safe site.
April 2009: Princeton Disk Encryption (PDE) Services
announced
The Princeton Disk Encryption (PDE) service is the University recommended
method to protect data by converting it to a format that is unreadable by
anyone except those with a special key. To use a DeSC laptop computer, you
must use this University recommended encryption method. Currently, the DeSC
encryption standard is McAfee Endpoint Encryption software. For more information,
please see:
www.princeton.edu/encryption.
March 2009: Get help installing McAfee software at an
OIT Antivirus Clinic
The University has negotiated a campus-wide site license with McAfee for
their product VirusScan to replace Symantec on all University Windows and
Macintosh computers. You can download and install McAfee on your own from
www.princeton.edu/antivirus,
but if you would like help, bring your computer to special OIT Antivirus
Clinics scheduled for March and April. For details about these clinics see
the OIT Antivirus Clinics
schedule. Antivirus software provides the University community a pro-active
means of battling computer viruses and is free to all faculty, staff, and
students.
March 2009: P-Synch Change Password update improves
password security
To strengthen our password defense and simplify password maintenance, the
P-Synch Change Password Service will be updated on Monday, March 9 to improve
its interface and functionality. The Change Password Service will be streamlined
so that when customers activate or change their University password, all
related passwords (LDAP, Windows, P-Synch) will be reset simultaneously.
This will improve security for all systems and will allow users to easily
update all passwords. The easy-to-remember web address for this service is
www.princeton.edu/changepassword
and helpful hints for changing passwords are at:
kb.princeton.edu/9928. Please
contact the OIT Help Desk at 8-HELP or helpdesk@princeton.edu if you have
any questions or concerns.
February 2009: Proofpoint appliance upgrades
OIT Collaboration Service Group has concluded an evaluation of spam protection
systems and services and has announced that it will continue to rely on
Proofpoint for the latest generation of e-mail security. Proofpoint appliances
will be used to provide a complete spam protection through at least Fall
of 2010. Migration to the new appliances (version 5.5.3) are scheduled for
Thursday morning, February 26th, between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. There are no major
changes for user digests and web administration.
February 2009: McAfee antivirus project: First
Steps
This project is designed to establish McAfee as the University's site licensed
antivirus protection software, replacing Symantec AntiVirus, for all
institutional and all personal machines, including home computers and student
computers.
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For machines joined to the Princeton domain:
OIT will distribute the McAfee software to all machines joined to the Princeton domain including graduate student machines in department OUs. Shortly before the distribution, an e-mail will be sent to departments, with schedule and distribution particulars including the website where faculty and staff can download the McAfee software to their home machines in self-serve fashion.
Note: Undergraduate student machines will transition to McAfee in a separate process. Graduate students machines that are not part of the department OU may come to Frist Clinics scheduled for March and April. -
For non-domain and home computers:
You need to act now. To prepare for the distribution in March, install the McAfee agent on all non-domain Windows computers and personal home Windows computers. You can install the agent directly from \\files\software\mcafee\windows\FramePkg.exe. The install will require Administrator access to the computer but not a reboot. Machines at home will need a VPN connection to access this shares folder on the Files server.
On March 12, 2009, McAfee software will be available through the Princeton Software Repository (PSR) web store at www.princeton.edu/psr. OIT will also discontinue the availability of Symantec AntiVirus software as a new installation. The full transition to McAfee is expected to take a few months; support for Symantec AntiVirus will continue through June 2009 to ensure overlap. Please contact picss@princeton.edu with any questions and for information about McAfee software for Apple Computers.
January 2009: Java software upgraded on public Linux
servers
On Wednesday, January 28, the version of Java on the public Linux servers
(hats, arizonas, sixtyfour and lxiv) was upgraded from Java 1.4.2 to Java
1.6.0. This upgrade was necessary to keep current with recent releases to
the software.
January 2009: The Princeton Employee Learning Center
goes live
On Wednesday, January 14, 2009, the University training registration system
was replaced with the new Employee Learning Center. University staff now
have improved web access to register for classes, keep track of their training
history, and much more. The Employee Learning Center is available online
at:
www.princeton.edu/training.
Archived technology updates are also cataloged, beginning June, 2003.
- Archived technology updates for 2008
- Archived technology updates for 2007
- Archived technology updates for 2006
- Archived technology updates for 2005
- Archived technology updates for 2004
- Archived technology updates for 2003
- E-mail tech-updates@princeton.edu to have a change included in this list.
Last Updated:Tuesday September 29 2009