If you are use the U of M Secure wireless network on the Twin Cities campus, you will need to make a slight configuration change so that you may continue connecting to this network.

Technical Explanation
In February, OIT engineers are installing a new security certificate for "wireless.netaccess.umn.edu," used to authenticate the "UofM Secure" wireless network. This means users of that network must change their computer configuration settings to trust the "AddTrust External CA Root" certificate authority. After February users may remove trust configurations for the previously used "Thawte Premium Server CA" certificate authority.

User Guides
For help configuring your computer, visit the wireless setup guides. Select the user guide for the operating system that you are using, and follow the steps to get to the section titled "Enter network settings." The steps in this section of the user guide will show you how to trust the correct certificates.

Need help?
If you have any questions about this process, contact 1-HELP.

Posted 11:37 AM | Permalink

Current customers with Centrex lines will receive an email notice about the upgrade on January 17, 2011.

If you are a current customer with Centrex lines, these may be your primary phone service, your primary service but behind a telephone PBX, key or hybrid system or simply provide power failure back-up and specialty lines. Any telephone number beginning with 612-627- is a Centrex line. Having extension numbers or multiple lines on individual phones would indicate that you are on a key or hybrid system along with Centrex. If you are on one of these systems, it is important to know that directions associated with your telephone equipment will not change. If you use Centrex lines behind specialty equipment, such as fire, security or monitoring equipment, please check with your equipment vendor as to whether an interruption in dialtone will affect their service to you.

Centrex service will experience an upgrade on January 17, 2011. At the moment of the upgrade, calls in progress should continue, but there may be a slight interruption in dial tone. Every effort will be made to complete the upgrade outside of business hours. Centrex users should not experience any loss of features, but there are a few things to be aware of.

Centrex Voicemail will remain in service. There is no need to re-record greetings. Messages that are there on January 16th will be there on January 17th. Existing Centrex lines will retain whatever dialing capabilities they currently have. Dialing instructions and feature codes, for access to each feature, will not change. Directions for their use are included in the Telephone Guide section of the OIT Voice Services web page. Copies will also be provided via Campus Mail to each location.

Please contact technology help (1-HELP) should any service problems occur. Concerns regarding this change may be addressed to knapp@umn.edu.

Posted 3:07 PM | Permalink

• February 17 "OIT Technology Fair"
• 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
• Mississippi room, third floor, Coffman Memorial Union
• Twin Cities, East Bank
• No registration required

Please come to the Office of Information Technology (OIT) Technology Fair to:

• Meet OIT's vendor partners who will showcase their products and services that support your studies and work.


• Learn about technology support services available to you at a discount or no charge such as 1-HELP, Tech Stop, and Technology Training.


• Discover your eligibility for technology discounts on hardware, software, and services available through OIT's UMart and UTools services.

Refreshments will be available and visitors can qualify for a prize drawing by getting Technology Fair "passports" stamped at three information booths. "Passports" will be issued at the door.

Posted 11:03 AM | Permalink

On Tuesday, January 4, 2011, from 5:20 - 7:20 p.m., over 800 University of Minnesota websites became unavailable, including OneStop, Google Mail, and Gophermail.

Cause

At 5:20 pm, a critical component of the data network became temporarily unavailable. As a result, a number of critical web servers were offline.

If you have any questions, contact OIT Help and Support.

Posted 1:29 PM | Permalink

The Business Intelligence (BI) initiative is a collaborative effort between the Office of Planning and Analysis (OPA) and the Office of Information Technology (OIT) aimed at improving how data is gathered, analyzed, and shared across the University with the goal of fostering a culture of collaboration and data-driven decision-making. The BI initiative at the University has three components: improved processes, increased collaboration, and easier to use technologies.

Process
The BI initiative will initiate a data governance practice to improve data definitions and implement consistent practices for gathering and analyzing data across the University. In addition, an emphasis on training and development will help staff and faculty members obtain the knowledge and skills necessary to acquire and use data effectively.

Collaboration
BI will provide a common home for institutional and unit data, facilitating the transparency and availability of data. In addition, new capability to distribute the development of reports and dashboards will allow users to share their ideas and knowledge and disseminate their insights and innovations throughout the University.

Technology
The BI initiative will provide users with easier to use reporting tools, empowering faculty and staff to access the data they need to make evidence-based decisions. In addition, centrally supported tools empower units to develop their own reports and data-driven processes without needing heavy IT infrastructure investments.

Why Business Intelligence?
Now more than ever, the decisions we make at the University need to be rooted in data. The costs of many of the resources needed to sustain the University are escalating. State appropriations are unlikely to rebound significantly. We must look for ways to continue to advance the excellence of the University at lower cost. Meeting this challenge requires us to innovate and develop strategies to improve efficiency and productivity.

The BI initiative can help by providing decision makers at all levels of the University with relevant, accurate, and consistent data as well as the tools and skills to analyze them. Examples of ways in which BI can be useful include: monitoring and predicting enrollment to inform course scheduling and support, and analyzing unit spending by category or item to improve allocation of resources. Most importantly, BI ensures that University faculty and staff have accurate and consistent data to make the best possible decisions.

If you have any questions about the BI initiative at the University, please send an email to opa@umn.edu. If you would like to receive updates on the progress of the BI initiative, you can join the listserv at bi-implementation@lists.umn.edu.

Posted 8:48 AM | Permalink