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A step toward single sign-on...
Student assistant of the quarter...
Welcome to Fall and the 2005-2006 Academic Year. As we told the new faculty members during the recent Bronco Sunrise orientation in early September, we are at an exciting time at Cal Poly Pomona. Below are updates on some of I&IT's major initiatives and projects.
More than 250 laptops have been delivered to faculty members and 13 classrooms in five buildings have been modernized with the latest electronic learning tools as part of the IT Governance Committee's Learning-Centered Technology Initiative (LCT). The goals are two-fold: 1) upgrade every classroom on campus where technology will be used in the learning process; 2) give every tenured and tenured-track faculty member a laptop if they want one. The new LCT classrooms include a projector, computer, laptop cables, document camera, VCR, motorized screen, speakers, and a podium with an integrated control system. I&IT has been delivering these laptops since last spring. For additional details on the initiative, see http://www.csupomona.edu/~iit/facultylaptops/index.shtml and http://www.csupomona.edu/~ehelp/lct/index.html.
During the summer, the campus' main Exchange servers were upgraded. The benefits are more efficient centralized email and calendaring, improved security, a streamlined Outlook Web Access (including better spell checking and signatures) and the ability to forward meeting requests. I&IT sent individual notices to more than 2,500 staff and faculty members and completed the upgrade in record time. Although staff hit a bump with hardware failure on a transfer server, the upgrade was completed ahead of schedule. Thanks go to many in I&IT, with special kudos to Dave Drivdahl, Luke Lanting and Chris Crudo. Full details are at: http://www.csupomona.edu/~ehelp/email/
exchange2003.html.
On June 29, 2005, computer hackers gained access to servers affiliated with the Division of Student Affairs and the Division of Administrative Affairs, apparently to use them as platforms to attack other machines. The university's response was coordinated and swift. Information security experts removed the affected servers from the campus network and a full-scale investigation was launched to determine the extent of the information that may have been compromised by this attack. Cal Poly Pomona's computer security incident response team concluded that while the affected servers contained personal information such as names and Social Security numbers of 31,077 current and former students, faculty and staff members, there was no evidence that the hackers had obtained this personal information. Such unauthorized computer access is a crime under section 502 of the state penal code. According to Debra Brum, Vice President for Instructional and Information Technology, during the course of this investigation, an incident report was filed with the Public Safety. Campus officials also consulted with the FBI. Despite the fact that there was no evidence that personal information was compromised during the attack the incident response team contacted all whose information was contained on the affected servers. Notices were sent electronically to the Cal Poly Pomona email addresses assigned to these individuals and/or by written letters to home addresses. These letters described the incident and recommended that, as a precaution, affected individuals obtain free copies of their credit report. Members of the Computer Security Incident Response Team (CSIRT), including Dr. Brum herself, were among the individuals affected by this attack. "I was one of the many people whose personal information was stored on one of the hacked systems, and while I knew enough not to be overly concerned, I decided to take precautions," says Dr. Brum. "I requested a credit report for the first time in my life. Even though I did not believe that anyone's information had been compromised, I knew that the possibility existed for me personally, as well as many others, and I decided to take a small step to protect myself." In addition to sending notifications, the university immediately posted a security incident alert on its home page, created an eHelp page with links to the credit reporting agencies where free credit reports can be obtained and set up an 800 number staffed by I&IT Support. To date, approximately 500 calls have been fielded. There have been no reports that any of the individuals affected have experienced any misuse of their personal information. The university's response, believes Brum, was as effective as it was efficient. "I'm proud that my staff identified the existence of the hacker and shut him down very quickly," she says. "I'm proud of the investigative work they did. And I'm proud of the fact that we figured out how to contact 31,000 people in a relatively short amount of time." The big question is: Has this security incident better prepared Cal Poly Pomona for similar incidents, assuming they should ever occur, in the future? Dr. Brum is confident that the university is. "We are a lot better prepared than we were when this incident occurred," she says. "We have more prevention in place, so we believe that we're less likely to fall victim to such an event. But there's no 100 per cent protection." That doesn't stop Brum from regarding the future optimistically. "If it does happen to us again, we'll be better prepared to notify our campus community and those affected," she concludes. "Being better prepared is a positive outcome of a very difficult incident." For more information on this security incident, see http://www.csupomona.edu/notices/security.
Beginning October 1, 2005, new applicants became the first group of students inducted directly into the university's new LDAP (Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) networking authentication system for BroncoDirect. In short, LDAP is a code-light (meaning there is less code, hence it is called "lightweight") software protocol which enables authorized users to locate informational resources in a network. By implementing LDAP authentication in BroncoDirect, BroncoNumbers will no longer be the required login ID. Instead, LDAP allows users to enter their BroncoName (this is the prefix which appears before @csupomona.edu in all Cal Poly Pomona email addresses) and BroncoPassword (this is the password users can set for themselves on the Intranet Services page). In other words, most can now use the same login information for BroncoDirect as you use for WebCT, Blackboard and electronic mail. The best part is LDAP authentication for BroncoDirect isn't just available to new applicants-it's available for all current students, faculty and staff, as well. For further information, consult the following eHelp page: http://www.csupomona.edu/ehelp/idm/bd-ldap.html.
During the summer, I&IT added more stringent screening of incoming electronic mail messages. The result has been the elimination of thousands of "spam" emails. Basically, a "reverse DNS lookup" was instituted. Under this process, each incoming email message is quickly verified so that its IP address matches the registered Internet domain name. If so, the message passes. If not, it is returned undelivered. I&IT did this because most spammers use false domain names. The results have been generally positive, except for a number of instances in which legitimate email was tagged as spam. For these, I&IT has set up a verification process. If you feel you have not been receiving emails that you should, or have been notified by legitimate organizations that email to you is not going through, contact the Help Desk (909.869.6776) during standard business hours. There are trained specialists to work this. For full details see http://www.csupomona.edu/~ehelp/email/reverse-dns.html.
Whoever says summer is a slow time for universities is obviously unfamiliar with the Infrastructure Terminal Resources Project (ITRP). Summer witnessed not only the completed installation of 26 buildings, but the cutover to new gear for Buildings 4, 8, 89 and 92, and the installation of wireless access points throughout campus classrooms in Buildings 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 13, 89 and 98. There are now a total of 27 buildings that are on ITRP equipment and 25 left to convert. Included in this latter group is the classrooms side of Building 98, which will receive its new ITRP equipment and be cut over after some required physical (fiber) remediation is completed. The expected completion date for this is the end of November. More detailed information on ITRP and a complete schedule is available on eHelp and can be accessed at http://www.csupomona.edu/~itrp/ .
I&IT has embraced the Learning Centered Initiative with gusto. In addition to leading the laptop distribution and classroom upgrade project (above), I&IT has formed a task force with a goal of permeating Learning Centeredness (LC) into everything the division involves itself in. Gil Brum, Biology professor and the university's enterprise-wide Learning Centered coordinator, facilitated sessions that set goals. A committee that will represent I&IT on the LC university-wide initiative group was recently formed. It includes Denny Mosier, H Keita, Karen Brzoska, Chris Crudo and Rita Haerr. This unit is the liaison for I&IT's Learning Centered Task Force that includes more than 40 staff members.
To better serve the campus, I&IT shifted a few staff members during the summer. A new Web Development department was formed under Curtis Clark, the university's web coordinator. This unit includes Dr. Clark, Karin Schott (formerly of Applications), Jerry Lerma (formerly of Learning), Shirley Holder and student assistants. Media Distribution (Terry Simmons and Toni Miller), the people who function as the university's audio-visual unit, are now in I&IT Operations. The campus phone operators (Anne Walton, Sandi Everett and student assistants) are now also in Operations. Finally, Candie McDougall , formerly of Debra Brum's staff, is now lead over the Help Desk in Support.
24 hours a day, seven days a week eHelp is there as an informational resource for students, faculty and staff. Have you noticed lately that you've been receiving less spam and wondered why? Then try the eHelp alerts section on for size. Chock full of content compiled and constantly updated by I&IT, eHelp is the place for everything from password help to security matters. And to ensure eHelp is always growing in response to the issues most salient to the university community-thereby making it as helpful as possible-I&IT welcomes your feedback and suggestions at http://www.csupomona.edu/~ehelp/contact/feedback.shtml.
WIRELESS: NATIVE LEAP VS. AEGIS
Want on-campus wireless access? Then know your network card. If you're a student, faculty or staff member, the university offers wireless network access available at many campus locations. All you need to have is a BroncoName, your network password and a computer equipped with a wireless network card that supports LEAP authentication. LEAP is a technology developed by Cisco Systems that offers a high level of security for transmitting electronic signals over a wireless network. Most wireless cards introduced within the last two years have built-in LEAP capabilities, so you should have no problem accessing the university's network. A list of network cards known to support LEAP authentication is available on eHelp at: http://www.csupomona.edu/~ehelp/wireless/faq.html. Even if your particular network card is not LEAP compatible, you can still access Cal Poly Pomona's wireless network. You'll simply have to download free software provided from Aegis, which is accessible at: http://www.csupomona.edu/~ehelp/wireless/
reqsw_noncisco.html. If you intend to use Cal Poly Pomona's wireless network it is important that you properly determine whether or not your network card is LEAP compatible. Problems will arise if you install and run Aegis on a computer with a network card that does not support LEAP authentication. More detailed information, including a wireless access FAQ, coverage map and a guide to setting up your wireless connection, is available on eHelp: http://www.csupomona.edu/~ehelp/wireless/index.html .
STUDENT ASSISTANT OF THE QUARTER
I&IT would like to congratulate Heath Caldwell, who has been named I&IT's Student Assistant of the Quarter for Fall Quarter 2005. For more than a year, Caldwell has worked as a student assistant in our web group (now called I&IT Web Development), the unit responsible for the maintenance and coordination of Cal Poly Pomona's web pages university-wide. "I mainly develop web applications, which are usually CGI programs that perform certain tasks," Caldwell offers by way of explanation. "Another large part of my job is figuring out solutions for various problems, and solving them, and I also administer the web applications development server." Caldwell was nominated for this distinction by Dr. Curtis Clark, Director, I&IT Web Development. "I nominated Heath because of the outstanding job he has done for web development," says Dr. Clark. "His analysis of browser cookies in BroncoDirect helped us crack and ultimately solve the Firefox problem. Right now, he is working on a method for automatically creating the PDF phone book from a database. This will be an important part of the new Cal Poly Pomona white pages system." Though he is a Computer Science major, Caldwell is quick to point out that his work with the Web Team has paid off in dividends both in and out of the classroom. "When I first started here, I barely knew how to do anything with Perl, and I had no concept of what structured markup was," he says. "Now I would consider myself quite adept with each." Caldwell, who is graduating this quarter, says he will be sad to end his tenure as a student assistant. He would like his colleagues in I&IT to know it was they who made his experience with the Web team invaluable. "The best part of working for I&IT is the people," he says. "All of the people that I have worked with in Studio 6 have always been very nice to me. And everyone in the new Web Development department that I have recently 'moved' into is incredibly nice and interesting." Caldwell also reserves special thanks for Dr. Clark, his manager. "Curtis Clark has been exceptionally encouraging and educational to me. He has been somewhat a mentor over the past year and I am very thankful for the impact that he has made on me. "Reflecting upon his experiences here at Cal Poly Pomona, principally as a Computer Science major, Caldwell has a few words of wisdom he'd like to offer to future generations of students. "Computer Scientists are scientists," he says. "Scientists don't search for jobs, they search for truth."
| Debra Brum Interim Vice President, I&IT |
dabrum@csupomona.edu 909 979-6300 |
| Mauricio Calderon Interim Technical Director, CMS |
macalderon@csupomona.edu 909 979-6388 |
| Curtis Clark Director, I&IT Web Development |
jcclark@csupomona.edu 909 979-6371 |
| Stephanie Doda Associate Vice President, I&IT |
sndoda@csupomona.edu 909 979-6322 |
| Peter Deutsch Director, I&IT Systems |
pdeutsch@csupomona.edu 909 979-6419 |
| Carol Heins-Gonzales Interim Director, I&IT Applications |
cheins@csupomona.edu 909 979-6335 |
| H’Sundiata Keita Director, I&IT Operations |
hkeita@csupomona.edu 909 979-6427 |
| David Levin Director, I&IT Learning |
dslevin@csupomona.edu 909 979-6304 |
| Denny Mosier Director, I&IT Support |
dbmosier@csupomona.edu 909 979-6334 |
“I&IT Newsletter” is a publication of the Instructional & Information Technology (I&IT) division of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, CA.
Send comments to Denny Mosier at (909) 979-6334 or dbmosier@csupomona.edu.
