OIT performs routine maintenance on servers and systems every Sunday from 8 a.m. to noon. Many IT services may be offline intermittently during this time. Network access and computing resources availability (Banner, E-Learning, Exchange server, etc.) may also be affected. Since this is a low-usage period, fewer UA customers will be impacted. For questions, contact the IT Service Desk at (205) 348-5555 or itsd@ua.edu.
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Office of Information Technology Services
IT Service Desk
The IT Service Desk provides technical support to campus faculty, staff, and students. Customer Service agents are staffed 24/7 to provide technical assistance. For information on additional services, visit the IT Service Desk website, call (205) 348-5555, or email ITSD@ua.edu.
UA Resnet/Wireless
The University has a wireless network available in many areas across campus. To have access to the UA Wireless, you must have a computer with a wireless network adapter and register your computer on the network. To register your computer, refer to the wireless network registration webpage.
The Residence Hall network (ResNet) provides student residents with a high-speed connection to the University’s network and the Internet within UA residence halls. For more information on ResNet, refer to the ResNet information webpage.
Alternative Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) Wireless Network
The use of wireless networks on campus is growing with the addition of multiple wireless smart devices to the existing wireless laptop activity. Security vulnerabilities have existed for years that enable another wireless user to hijack your wireless session and actually “become you” as you connect to different unencrypted websites. Recently, malicious tools have become readily available making session hijacking extremely easy. Many websites are encrypted (e.g. they use https or SSL) to protect communications. The University has deployed a secure SSID (wireless network identifier) that utilizes Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) – Pre-Shared Keys (PSK) to protect all of your website connections. Visit mybama.ua.edu to retrieve the password, and follow the instructions linked below to secure your wireless connections while on campus.
Software Licensing and Distribution
OIT administers and distributes many campus-wide and volume licensing software agreements, such as McAfee anti-virus software and Microsoft Office, for use by academic and administrative departments, faculty and staff. Some titles are available free of charge, while others require a small annual fee. To learn more about software available through OIT, please visit Software Licensing.
Project Management
OIT’s Project Management Office provides a unified methodology standard for managing a project at the University of Alabama. A methodology is a set of step-by-step instructions that outline and detail how to accomplish a desired goal. For more information, visit the OIT Project Management Office website.
Center for Instructional Technology
The Center for Instructional Technology (CIT) provides: support and consultation services for faculty using instructional technology tools such as eLearning (Blackboard Vista), Tegrity lecture capture, Turning Technologies clickers, Turnitin, and Wimba; creative services including video production, photography, and graphic design; and design, maintenance and support of a variety of audio/visual resources across campus such as digital signage, public address systems, and multimedia classrooms. CIT is made up of the Faculty Resource Center, Audio/Visual Solutions, and Multimedia Services.
Research Support
The Research Support group is part of the Office of Information Technology. This group works with new technologies for use in the classroom and in research such as lecture capture, learning management systems, visualization, virtualization, simulation, and gaming as well as high performance computing.
Telecommunications
OIT’s Telecommunications Department is the University’s telephone company, supplying telephone service to all campus offices and residence halls. Telecommunications currently maintains 13,000 voice and data connections. It also offers long distance calling plans and cellular phone service at a discounted rate as part of the University’s contract. For more information call (205)348-6300 or visit the Telecommunications website.
Fee-Based Departmental Hardware and Software Support
OIT provides a number of fee-based services to University departments for hardware and software support of University-owned computing equipment. Most of the services are provided via annual contracts.