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Defining ITS Networking Equipment
The
KUSM-W network is protected from unauthorized access and possible computer
attacks by a variety of network
devices. Oftentimes, ITS staff will refer
to devices such as "the firewall," "routers," and other
terms that may not be familiar to the casual computer user. Below are some
details
on the various network devices utilized on the KUSM-W network. Switches – Each
computer on the KUSM-W network is connected back to a central location, but
distance, logistics, and physical limitations
of networking cable prevent this connection from being made directly by all
computers. Rather, switches are placed in strategic locations throughout the
building extending the distance a computer can be located from the server room.
Routers – are
devices responsible for controlling (routing) the flow of data on a network.
While switches can be thought of as merely an
extension of the network cable, passing the data along its path, routers actively
make decisions about where particular pieces of data should be sent, or routed.
Routers serve a variety of functions in our network, from handling communications
between our network and Kansas City, to providing network access to the remote
Midtown and CRI offices.
Firewall – While
the majority of our network is not directly visible from the Internet for
security reasons, servers and clients
can still be at risk, mostly from viruses that may infect a computer and attempt
to bypass security protocols. The firewall is a device that monitors incoming
traffic from the Internet, giving us granular control over what types of traffic
we want to allow, and what we want to block.
IDS – IDS is short for Intrusion Detection System.
The IDS monitors network traffic for suspicious patterns that might indicate
virus or other malevolent software activity. The primary function of the IDS
is to serve as an “early warning system,” helping us to identify
and more quickly react to possible virus infections before they get out of
hand.
VPN Concentrator – VPN
stands for Virtual Private Networking, in general, the concept of accessing
internal network files or resources from
the Internet, using encryption to protect communications. The VPN concentrator
is the device that handles the user authentication and communications between
the remote clients and the internal resources they wish to access.
Sniffer – Sniffer
is a device used to log and monitor communications between two computers
(or a computer and server) when technicians
are troubleshooting various technical issues. Sniffer is capable of capturing
and displaying network traffic at some of its most basic levels, allowing us
to see exactly how a computer is trying to communicate, and hopefully, determine
why it is not communicating successfully.
 Top Using Laptops with Hotel Broadband
When
traveling, either for business or pleasure, staying connected with work
is becoming increasingly important for many KUSM-Wichita employees. Hotels
have been quick to recognize this need, as more locations offer broadband
or wireless Internet access for their patrons. Hotels try to make using
their broadband/wireless Internet as easy as possible, but problems can
still arise. Here are some tips to help:
Before leaving on your trip, check with the hotel to confirm what type
of Internet access it provides. Some hotels offer broadband via a network
cable in-room; some offer broadband via a wireless connection; others may
offer both. Unless your laptop is more than three- to four-years-old, you
should have a network card built-in, but you may want to make sure it has
wireless capabilities if the hotel where you are staying offers only wireless
access. If you are not sure how to check your laptop for networking capabilities,
bring it down to ITS and a technician can help identify your equipment.
Take some time
to familiarize yourself with how Windows connects to networks. Oftentimes
it is necessary
to change or adjust certain settings in Windows
Networking to successfully connect to a hotel’s broadband or wireless
connection. For detailed information on navigating and configuring Windows
Networking, please see http://wichita.kumc.edu/nts/windows_networking.pdf
If you need to access KUSM-Wichita resources that require VPN access (S
drive, full client Groupwise, Library resources), you may want to contact
the hotel and ensure that they allow VPN connections from their broadband/wireless
Internet. Most hotels will allow VPN connections, but if accessing your
work data remotely is critical, it may be wise to make sure ahead of time,
in case other arrangements (copying data to your laptop, choosing another
hotel) need to be made.
For further information, contact the Help Desk at ext.
3-2605, option 1.
Top Updating Your Home Virus Scanner
Virus scanning programs are essential to keeping your home machine virus free, but did you know it is equally important to update your virus scanner regularly? Whatever virus scanner you use, it is vital to update it on a regular basis. A good rule of thumb is at least once a week, more often if there are reports of a heavy virus outbreak circulating the internet.
Virus scanners use special files commonly known as DAT files, which are essentially descriptions of all known viruses. Your virus scanner is constantly monitoring all activity taking place on your computer, and the DAT files are used as a reference by the scanner, to see if any activity might be virus related. When new viruses are released, these DAT files must be updated, or your virus scanner will not be able to protect your computer effectively.
Most virus scanners offer a way to automatically update DAT files by downloading updates from the internet. Norton Antivirus offers the LiveUpdate service, which can typically be accessed through your computers Control Panel. McAfee also offers a service called AutoUpdate, which is accessed through the Windows Start Menu. DAT updates can also be downloaded directly from the manufacturer’s website.
Top
Did you know that what you do with your computer can impact everyone else on the network?
KUSMW and KUMC networking staff take every precaution to protect our computer systems from Internet threats; however, we must also rely on our users to help protect our network as well. Recently there have been a handful of new security vulnerabilities related to Internet email, resulting in this reminder on sound email practices and procedures. Below are descriptions on some of the more common email-related security threats you might receive in your Inbox, and recommendations on how to deal with them.
Spam: All of us have received spam email at one time or another, and while the majority of it is mearly annoying, spam can also be used by hackers to try and compromise your computer. Hackers can often use Spam to entice a user into clicking on a link to visit a certain website, with the intention of downloading a virus or spyware to your machine. This could potentially give the hacker remote access to your computer. In many recent cases, simply opening a website in your browser, or even viewing a picture file, can be enough to infect your machine.
It is recommended that you never click on any link found in a spam email, even the "Unsubscribe" links, and instead simply delete the email. Unsubscribe links in spam emails are rarely legitimate. They are usually used to alert the spammer that your email address is active, and will result in more spam as they sell your email address to others. They might also lead to a malicious website that could infect your computer with a virus.
Phishing techniques: "Phishing" is a term used to refer to a special breed of emails, that proclaim to be from a bank, PayPal, eBay, and other websites or financial institutions. Phishing emails attempt to trick a user into believing they are getting an email from their bank or PayPal regarding their personal account. Typically the email will want you to click on a link to update your account information, approve a transaction, or even claim a prize. If you click on the link, your web browser will open to a website that may look like PayPal or your bank's online account page, but is in reality a fake webpage created by the scammer. If you were to enter your PayPal login information, or your bank account number, scammers can use this to steal money from your account.
It is possible that you might receive legitimate email from your bank or PayPal, but due to Phishing threats like this, they should not ask for your account information or online passwords, nor should they ask you to visit a specific website. If you have doubts about the authenticity of an email, it is best to visit your banks main website rather than following any links in the email.
If you ever have doubts about the source or authenticity of an email you receive, or have any other questions regarding email security, please contact the Help Desk via email at Help Desk Wichita, or at 293-2605 #1.
Top Did you know that what you do with
your computer can impact everyone else on the
network?
Listening to the radio over the Internet sounds like an
interesting thing to do because you can listen to so many different
radio stations. However, this is an activity that negatively
impacts network performance for everyone.
A
single data line between the Wichita campus and the Kansas City
campus handles all network traffic between campuses, as well as all
of our Internet traffic. That includes using PeopleSoft
applications, e-mail between campuses, shared files between
campuses; as well as Internet e-mails, file downloads, viewing of
web pages, and access to other resources like WebSPIRS, and MD
Consult. All that traffic goes across that one
connection.
When
you use our Internet access at the medical school for things like
downloading music files, listening to radio stations, or playing
games it affects the speed of the network for everyone. Also, these
things are considered to be inappropriate use of these resources
because they are not related to instruction, research, or public
service and they negatively impact network performance for
everyone.
For
more information on this subject please review the following
policies:
 Appropriate Use of
Information Systems Policy
Internet Use
Policy
IT Services can be contacted by sending e-mail to 'Help Desk Wichita' in GroupWise, or
at extension 3-2605.
Top
Are you getting 'Out of disk space'
errors?
The
space being used by your e-mail archive file is included in the
total space you are allowed on the file server. This can cause you
to run out of space on your U: drive if you don't manage your
e-mail archive.
Don't forget the trash! You must manually empty the trash in
your e-mail archive file to remove the deleted items.
Your Sent items are archived too. To see your archived
Sent items, click on the button on the toolbar with the red
arrow coming out of the envelope.
Top
Do you know what to do if a computer
virus is detected on your PC at the medical school?
Virus detection software has been installed on all PCs at the
medical school. This software runs on your PC all the time. In the
event that a virus is detected, the virus scanning software will
notify you. The software will then automatically remove the virus,
or give you instructions on further action that may be required to
remove it manually. In either case, whenever a virus is detected on
a PC at the medical school, you should always notify IT Services.
Eliminating the virus from your PC is just one small step in
getting rid of it. We also need to try to determine how the virus
got on your PC, and we need to make sure that you have not passed
that virus on to other PC's. If all of these steps are not
completed, it is very likely that your PC will be
reinfected.
Two
tips to help you avoid getting a computer virus:
#1 - NEVER, NEVER run a program you receive as an e-mail
attachment unless you are expecting it, and it is work-related,
even if you know the person that sent it to you. Programs being
sent throughout the Internet as e-mail attachments are now among
the fastest methods virus creators use to spread their 'creations.'
If a virus is hiding in one of those programs, while you're
watching the program run the virus is hiding itself in your
computer and preparing to spread itself to other files and other
PCs.
#2 - Don't download anything from the Internet unless it
is work-related and you know the source.
One
last thing: from time to time you may receive e-mails warning you
about computer viruses. Many of these 'warnings' are hoaxes. Next
time you receive an urgent virus warning message, do not send it to
other e-mail users. Instead, check it against the list of known
virus hoaxes at:
http://vil.mcafee.com/hoax.asp
You may also forward that e-mail to Help desk Wichita and we will
verify if it is real or a hoax for you.
Top
Would you like to receive an e-mail
notifying you when someone declines an appointment you sent them in
GroupWise?
Here's how:
From
the GroupWise main window:
Select Tools, Options from the menu bar
Select Send
Select the Appointment tab
Next to When declined, use the drop down menu to select Mail
Receipt.
Select OK, then Close.
After completing these steps, every time someone declines an
appointment that you've sent, you will receive an e-mail
notification. If the person declining includes a comment, you will
see those comments displayed in the message area of the
e-mail.
If
you don't want to receive e-mail notification on every declined
appointment, you may set this same option on individual
appointments by selecting File, then Properties on
any appointment before you send it.
Top
How do I delete GroupWise Archive "Sent Items"?
In the Main Window, click File, Open Archive.
If your toolbar is not already displayed, click View, Toolbar. Click the display settings drop-down list on the
toolbar Sent Items. Sent Items will display and can
be highlighted and deleted.
Sent Items deleted will move to Archive Trash.
Delete Archive Trash by highlighting Trash icon,
click on Edit, Empty Trash.
Top
How do I create a rule in
GroupWise?
Use
Rules to define a set of conditions and actions to be performed
when an item meets those conditions. You can specify actions such
as moving items to folders, forwarding and replying to items, and
more. Rules can help you organize your Mailbox, automate your
Mailbox when you are away, or delete unwanted items.
- Create a rule. Click Tools, Rules, New
- Name the rule. Type a name in the Rule Name box.
- Select an event. The event is the trigger that starts the
rule.
- Select the types of items that will be affected by the
rule.
- Add an action. The action is what you want the rule to do when
it is triggered.
- Save the rule.
You
can specify many more options to limit which items a rule affects.
For example, you can apply a rule to only accepted appointments, to
items with a certain word in the Subject box, or to items with a
high priority. Use Define Conditions to limit your rules
further.
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