News Archive

 

Please note that this is an archive of past news items. The text and links in these news items have not been updated, and some may refer to web resources that have since disappeared.

 

Jump to news items from:
2005
2004
2003
2002

CITES Help Desk Announces Online Support
Online Support provides faculty, staff, students, and visitors access to the CITES Help Desk's problem tracking and knowledgebase software. [1 July, 2005]

New CITES Service (COSMOS)
CITES is pleased to announce the CITES Open Source Mirror of Operating Systems (COSMOS). COSMOS provides security patches for the more popular open source operating systems. [1 July, 2005]

CITES Spam Control Stops 5 Million Spam Messages
CITES is celebrating the blocking of 5 million spam emails in just 30 days [13 June, 2005]

Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) compatible Cisco VPN client released
As of May 24, a new Macintosh OS X 10.4 (Tiger) compatible Cisco VPN client is available for download by UIUC students, staff, and faculty. [24 May, 2005]

2005 Summer Break Hours
Hours for the various CITES facilities may vary from the norm during summer break (May 14, 2005 -Aug. 24, 2005) [13 May, 2005]

Email Delays From Virus Attack
New information regarding the email delays can be found on CITES News. For continuing information on email delays, see the CITES Status page. [6 May, 2005]

Mac OS 10.4 Incompatible with Cisco VPN
Users for whom VPN-based access to UIUCnet is vital may wish to delay upgrading to Macintosh OS X 10.4. [21 April, 2005]

CITES Spam Control
CITES unveiled new customizable anti-spam tools to combat junk email. CITES Spam Control reduces the amount of spam users receive and automatically deletes viruses sent by email. [20 April, 2005]

Interinstitutional Faculty Summer Institute
FSI May (16-20) is a retreat on campus that includes nationally recognized speakers, afternoon workshops, friendly collaboration, good food, and is free to attendees. [18 April, 2005]

Service Awards
Two CITES staff members, Lynne Ellis and Diane Arnold, received the Chancellor's Distinguished Staff Award for their service to CITES and the University. [13 April, 2005]

Spring Computer Security Day
On April 28 CITES will host Spring Computer Security Day from 10 am to 3 pm in Illini Union Room C. There will be opportunities to learn more about keeping your computer safe. Also, there will be hands-on training for the new CITES Spam Control email filtering service. [11 April, 2005]

New Director of Network Communications
Mike Smeltzer has been appointed Director of Network Communications. He will focus on coordinating campus input and collaboration on the Campus Network Upgrade Project, as well as on broader ongoing network issues.
More Information [24 March 2005]

Spring Break Schedule
Hours for the various CITES facilities may vary from the norm during the spring break, which begins Saturday, March 19, 2004 and ends Sunday, March 27, 2004. [21 March 2005]

2004 CITES Survey
Results of the annual CITES survey are now available online [21 February, 2005]

New Firewall Groups
Two new firewall groups have been created for use by campus system and network administrators. These groups allow remote administration from off campus. [21 February, 2005]

New Training Opportunity
A new course, "New Features of the Solaris[tm] 10 Operating System," is being offered at no cost through the Sun Learning Center [18 February, 2005]

Status pages for the Campus Network Upgrade Project updated
For the latest information on the progress being made on the upgrade, go to the Campus Network Upgrade page [4 February, 2005]

Remodeled Security Site
The Security section of the CITES website has been revamped to include easier-to-find emergency instructions, a wizard to help you determine the best way to secure your operating system, and links to the previous security pages. [20 January, 2005]

Blackboard End of Service
The CITES Blackboard service will be retired on Dec. 23. Neither instructors nor students will be able to access http://blackboard.cites.uiuc.edu after this date. [16 December 2004]

PH Query Service Retirement
On February 1st, 2005, CITES will retire the PH query service, which provides <netid>@uiuc.edu address lookup capabilities to sendmail-based SMTP servers. [14 December 2004]

2004 Winter Break Schedule
Hours for CITES facilities may vary from Sunday, December 19, 2004 through Tuesday, January 18, 2005 [13 December 2004]

2004 Thanksgiving Vacation Schedule
Hours for CITES facilities may vary from the norm during Saturday, November 20, 2004 to Sunday, November 28, 2004 [19 November 2004]

Directory Services
CITES is in the midst of a multiphase process to redesign a central electronic directory registry and associated directory services. More [17 November 2004]

Campus Network Upgrade
An FAQ and related information about the project to modernize network wiring and electronics on campus are now available online. More [8 November 2004]

CITES Highlights
Information on the latest upgrades, updates, and modifications o CITES services [15 October 2004]

CITES Computer Security Day
On October 25, you can learn more about keeping your computer and the data on it safe [14 October 2004]

Fresh Start 2004 Pictures

CITES Strategic Plan Available Online
This strategic plan sets forth the mission, values, and goals of CITES, defining the organization and how it serves the campus community [26 August 2004]

Software Gateway
Search for software titles available from CITES. Select criteria such as the name of the software, operating system, category, and more. [18 August 2004]

Campus CIO Speaks Out On Patriot Act
Pete Siegel, Campus CIO, shares his views on the USA Patriot Act. Read the article [10 August 2004]

Backup Basics
CITES recommends that all computer users regularly back up their files & documents. Learn more [5 August 2004]

Software Requirements
A new interactive page is available to help you find system requirements for the University-related software you use [5 August 2004]

Cluster Retirement Complete
The student/staff cluster (students.uiuc.edu, staff.uiuc.edu) is now retired. The Guide to Cluster Replacement Services contains information on post- cluster considerations. [30 June 2004]

2004 Summer Break Schedule
Hours for the various CITES facilities may vary from the norm during summer break (May 15, 2004 through Aug, 25, 2004) [13 May 2004]

CITES Security MassMail
Learn how to keep your computer safe & on the network during finals week

What Can I Do About Spam?
There is a new section on the CITES web site devoted to spam. It includes an overview, FAQ, best practices, what CITES is doing about spam, and much more.
http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/spam/ [20 April 2004]

Planned Network Outage
Due to necessary maintenance, a network outage will occur between 1:00am - 7:00am on Saturday, March 27th. [26 March 2004]

Spring Break 2004 Schedule
Hours for the various CITES facilities may vary from the norm during the spring break, which begins Saturday, March 20, 2004 and ends Sunday, March 28, 2004. [9 March 2004]

Cluster DNS Files relocated
Copies of the DNS data files are now available at http://www-dns.cites.uiuc.edu/dnstools/ as well as on the student/staff cluster. For more information, see http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/dns/. [5 March 2004]

CorporateTime Now Oracle Calendar
The calendaring product known as CorporateTime is now called Oracle Calendar. The product still offers the same calendar and scheduling features as before. See the updated documentation. [26 February 2004]

Indiana University DNS change
Indiana University will be changing the name and IP address of the DNS server used for backup for the UIUC DNS servers. If you currently use 129.79.5.100 as a DNS server, you will need to remove that entry by the end of February 2004, when Indiana University will no longer reply to external DNS requests made to that IP address. If you are running the DNS for your department/unit, you have received an e-mail from hostmgr indicating the changes you need to make in your DNS files. Please contact hostmgr@uiuc.edu for with any questions regarding that e-mail. For more information, see CITES' DNS documentation [23 February 2004]

CITES Filters Over Two Million Viruses!
In a little over two weeks time, CITES filtered out approximately 2,372,920 copies of viruses from Campus email. Learn more about the recent virus filtering. [13 February 2004]

UPDATED 1/28/04 Computer Virus Alert!
As you may have read in either local or national news, universities and businesses around the country are seeing a significant increase in email-distributed computer viruses this week. The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is no exception. You can protect yourself (and others at the University) from these viruses by taking the following steps.

1. Do not run or execute file attachments received via email. Try to avoid using email to distribute files. If you receive a file you were not expecting from anyone do not open the email message. If you suspect the message is valid, contact the sender to confirm that they sent it.

2. Install or update your anti-virus software. Free anti-virus software is available to all faculty, students, and staff at the UIUC campus. Visit http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/antivirus/ for complete instructions on installing or updating anti-virus software. If you have already installed anti-virus software develop the habit of updating it daily - updates take only a few seconds to minutes to apply and are very effective. CITES Security will disconnect infected computers from the network to protect other users when an infected computer is detected.

For more information on any of the latest viruses or other aspects of computer security visit http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/security/index.html.

If you suspect your computer is already infected or need additional assistance, please contact the CITES Help Desk. [28 January 2004]

Computer Virus Alert!
A new computer virus ("Bagle") has appeared on campus as of 1/17/2004. This virus is spread by email; messages whose subject line begin with "Hi" should not be opened but deleted. Please be sure you update your anti-virus software as soon as possible. If you are returning to campus with a new computer or have not updated your anti-virus software since you left campus, please visit http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/antivirus for instructions on installing free antivirus software and updating your system. It is particularly important that you perform this update before checking or reading your email.

If you suspect your computer is already infected or need additional assistance, please contact the CITES Help Desk at (217) 244-7000 or toll-free (800) 531-2531. Walk-in help is available in room 1420 of the Digital Computing Lab.

Toll-Free Number for CITES Help Desk
The CITES Help Desk now has a toll-free number, 800-531-2531, that you can use when you are away from the local calling area. For details see the Contact the Help Desk web page.

New Computer Support Organization Formed
The Help Desk Consortium is a new organization of campus staff who provide direct computer consulting support at the departmental or personal level. The organization is sponsored by CITES and will meet monthly to discuss common support issues shared by members. Membership is open to all campus support staff. For more information, see the Help Desk Consortium homepage or contact CITES Help Desk Manager Terry Wilson (ftwilso@uiuc.edu, 265-5125). [15 January 2004]

CITES Hours During Winter Break
Please see the 2003 Winter Break Schedule page for more information on hours of operation of various CITES facilities from December 21 through January 20. [17 December 2003]

Campus Gradebook Service Extended
The Campus Gradebook service will be extended for one more semester, through spring 2004. For information on specifics of the extension, please see the Extension of Campus Gradebook Service web page. [15 December 2003]

Don't Let Spyware Invade Your Computer
The CITES Help Desk has reported an upswing in the number of people requesting help with Spyware on their computers. Learn what you can do proactively fight Spyware. [15 December 2003]

CITES Hours During Thanksgiving Vacation
Please see the 2003 Thanksgiving Vacation Schedule page for more information on hours of operation of various CITES facilities from November 24 through November 30. [24 November 2003]

The UIUC News Server Has Been Retired
The UIUC news server was retired on October 27, 2003. For information about alternatives, go to the UIUC News Server Retirement Guide. [03 November 2003]

Walkup Computing Available Again
The Walkup Computing service at libraries and other common areas around campus is again available. CITES apologizes for the extended service outage. The service is now running on entirely new hardware and software that should make Walkup Computing much less susceptible to similar outages in the future. The Walkup Computing Locations page provides a map and list of where this service is available. [23 October 2003]

Campus VPN Server Upgraded
The campus VPN (virtual private network) system has been upgraded with a new server. Current users of the system will need to install the new VPN 3000 client before the VPN 5000 server is retired on January 2, 2004. more [23 October 2003]

New File Storage and Web Publishing Service Now Available
University students, faculty and staff can now have 100MB space on CITES NetFiles. To start using NetFiles, you will need a computer with a network connection, a web browser that supports encryption, and an Active Directory (AD) password. See Using CITES NetFiles for the First Time for details on getting started. Once you are set up, you can use the Cluster Files Migration Tool, which is described and linked from Moving Files from the Student/Staff Cluster to CITES NetFiles. [22 October 2003]

Apple extends campus AMP subscription license deadline
Macintosh OS X users can still purchase an upgrade license covering all new releases of Mac OS X for the next three years. See Macintosh OS X AMP subscription information for additional details. [October 13, 2003]

Microsoft issues Cumulative Patch for Internet Explorer
On October 3, Microsoft announced a critically rated patch. This patch addresses the Qhost Worm that effects all versions of Internet Explorer. CITES Security request that all computers connected to the UIUC network be properly patched immediately more [04 October 2003]

Meetings to Determine Date for Decommissioning UX6
Meetings are being held to determine a final date to decommission UX6, the system that hosts statistical research accounts. If you have accounts on this system, please plan on attending one of these meetings. For further information, see UX6 Retirement. [19 September 2003]

Microsoft announces a major security vulnerability
Microsoft has recently announced a major security vulnerability which could permit an attacker to seize complete control of a victim's system. This news item explains how to make sure your Windows system is safe. [18 September 2003]

Illinois Compass powered by WebCT Vista chosen as new online learning service
After a year of evaluating campus needs for an online teaching and learning system, CITES announces Illinois Compass, powered by WebCT Vista, as its new online learning service. A full-scale release is planned for Fall 2004. (More) [10 September 2003]

Fall 2003 CITES Schedule
For a summary of the hours of various CITES services and facilities, please see Hours for Fall 2003 [26 August 2003]

Use the new CITES Help Desk CD to protect your system from the latest worms and viruses
If you haven't yet updated your system with the proper patches and antivirus definitions, we recommend that you go to the CITES Help Desk (1420 DCL) and get a free System Update CD.

Although CITES staff and others have advised downloading fixes from the Internet, we've had recent reports that some computers are becoming infected while they are downloading the patches. It may therefore be safer to get the CD from the CITES Help Desk, or even to obtain assistance from Help Desk staff, in installing the patches or cleaning your computer.

Click here for more information about the most recent worms. [22 August 2003]

Dialup Prevented for Exchange Users
You may not be able to read your Outlook or Outlook Express email if you attempt to dial up from off-campus. In order to protect Exchange users from the recent worms and viruses, we had to restrict Exchange Server access by dialup users. You can still read email by using Outlook Web Access (OWA). For instructions on how to use OWA, see http://exchange-accounts.ad.uiuc.edu/manual_owa2000.htm#access. For further assistance, please contact the CITES Help Desk at 244-7000. [21 August 2003]

New version of the MS-RPC DCOM Worm infecting machines
A new worm that exploits the same security weakness as the Blaster worm (also known as "lovsan" or "msblast") has been released on the Internet. This new worm, dubbed "nachi", "welchia", or "msblast.d" does not infect systems that have been updated to counter the Blaster worm in accordance with Microsoft's instructions at http://www.microsoft.com/security/incident/blast.asp. This worm affects Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and NT 4.0. Click here for more information. [19 August 2003]

Web Interface for CITES Express Email Not Working
The web interface for CITES Express Email is not working. This problem has been reported since the CITES Express Email system was upgraded this weekend. If you are unable to access your CITES Express Email account through the web interface, please send the following information to consult@uiuc.edu: [18 August 2003]

• Your NetID
• The browser(s) and browser version(s) you used to access your account
• The operating system(s) you are using
• Specific error messages you received or behaviors you observed
• What time of day you attempted to connect

Critical Windows patch available on-campus
Due to the prevalence of the internet worm known as "W32.Blaster.Worm" or "sobig.e" or "lovsan", CITES is providing a local copy of the Microsoft patches, available from the on-campus Software Update Server. Microsoft's own update site appears to be offline as of this writing. Note that everyone on campus can download these patches from the CITES SUS server and install them manually without formally subscribing to the CITES SUS service. Please update your systems immediately. Note that the current Internet worms affects Windows XP, 2000, and NT, but does not affect Windows 95, 98, and ME. Apple Macintoshes are also not affected. [15 August 2003]

Improved Password Home Page
CITES has improved the Password Home Page. Improvements include a random password generator and a tool that checks your prospective password for compliance to the recently updated Requirements for Acceptable Passwords. The Password Home Page is at http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/services/password/. [15 August 2003]

Voicemail Outage
The voicemail system will be taken down on Saturday, August 9th at 5:00 am for a hardware and software upgrade. The outage is expected to last 12-15 hours. All existing messages, greetings and passcodes will be retained. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. [07 August 2003]

New UIUC-configured antivirus software package available for recent Windows systems
CITES Security is pleased to announce the release of a new VirusScan 7 package that has been customized for UIUC users. This new package is preconfigured to check for updates at the new antivirus.cites.uiuc.edu location. VirusScan 7 is supported on Windows 2000, NT 4, and XP systems. To download this package, see the CITES Software WebStore. For more information, see the VirusScan 7 page. [07 August 2003]

UI Archive to be retired August 15
Due to budget cuts, the UI Archive service will be retired on August 15. Site-licensed antivirus updates will be moved to ftp://antivirus.uiuc.edu/antivirus/nai/ and a list of on-campus Linux distributions will be maintained at http://www.uiuc.edu/ro/lag/uimirror.html. Most other UI Archive-hosted software will no longer have an on-campus distribution point.

For more information, including how existing antivirus software users will be affected, see http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/news/2003/uiarchive.html.

W32/Sobig.E@MM Worm
A new email worm variant called W32/Sobig.E@MM has been spreading on the Internet and has been seen on campus in the last 2 days. For more information about about this new sobig variant, visit http://www.cio.uiuc.edu/security/sobig.html [27 June 2003]

CITES invites participation in campus Active Directory
Campus departments and units are invited to join the UIUC Active Directory (AD). This campus-wide service, hosted by CITES Departmental Services, is a proven technology for efficiently managing computing resources. During its 3 years of service, the UIUC AD has consolidated IT operations on platforms in over 70 departmental Windows NT domains. Participation can lower IT costs and is available at no charge. For more information, including a list of participating units, see http://www.ad.uiuc.edu/. [23 June 2003]

CITES of Interest: Location Change
The second CITES of Interest presentation - A Day in the Life of... - will be Thursday, June 19th, 2003, 10 AM-NOON, in the Music Room on the 2nd floor of Levis Faculty Center. Read more about the program at http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/ofinterest . [11 June2003]

Bugbear-B Virus
As of approximately 07:45 pm, 06/05/03, mails delivered to accounts on the Student/Staff cluster are being filtered to eliminate mail which appears to have the bugbear-B virus. A filter was added on 6/6/03 to include mail delivered to Express Email System. The filter will discard any such mail. For more information about the bugbear-B virus, visit this web page: http://www.cio.uiuc.edu/security/bugbear.html [6 June 2003]

Sobig-C Virus
As of approximately 03:45 pm, 06/04/03, mail delivered to accounts on the Student/Staff cluster are being filtered to eliminate mail that appears to have the sobig-C virus. The filter will discard any such mail. For more information about the sobig-C virus, visit this web page: http://www.cio.uiuc.edu/security/sobig.html [5 June 2003]

CITES UIUCnet Wireless Service goes into production
The CITES UIUCnet Wireless service has now gone into production. Individual users who have devices with wireless capabilities will be able to use the service at no charge. Departments and units that requested access points now will be charged a small monthly fee per access point to cover on-going UIUCnet Wireless network maintenance. For more information about the UIUCnet Wireless Service, see: http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/wireless/ [28 May 2003]

CITES of Interest
The second CITES of Interest presentation - A Day in the Life of... - will be Thursday, May 29th, 2003, in the Grainger Commons. Read more about the program at http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/ofinterest . [7 May 2003]

CIO begins copyright education campaign
Pete Siegel, the campus Chief Information Officer, has begun a copyright education campaign. The initial step was to send out a letter to all student making students aware of recent lawsuits brought by the RIAA against students on other campuses. In the letter, Siegel also discusses the problem with using peer-to-peer technologies to disseminate copyrighted material. For more information about campus policies and copyright issue see the CIO's web site at http://www.cio.uiuc.edu/ [6 May 2003]

UIUC Senate approves Information Security Policy
At its April 28, 2003 meeting, the UIUC Senate approved an Information Security Policy. One purpose of the policy is to identify ways to help prevent the compromise of University data, applications, networks and computer systems. The entire policy can be viewed at http://www.admin.uiuc.edu/cam/cam/viii/viii-1.2.html

CITES VPN service goes into production
The CITES VPN service is now a fully supported, production-quality service. We appreciate the feedback provided by dozens of people during the several-month beta testing period, and have used that input to improve the service and its documentation. For more information about the VPN service, see: http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/vpn/ [2 April 2003]

VPN reconfiguration for improved reliability
Some users have been experiencing intermittent problems with VPN connections. A simple configuration change (recommended for all VPN users) may fix your problem. For details, see step #3 of http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/wireless/wirelessfaq.html#t4. [Feb 28, 2003]

NetID Passwords
On Wednesday, January 22, in response to auditors' requirements to make NetID passwords harder to guess, CITES will begin phasing in annual NetID password changes. The expiration process will be implemented gradually through calendar year 2003 and will eventually affect all campus faculty, staff, and students.

A detailed explanation of the procedure and the reasons for its implementation can be found at http://www.cites.uiuc.edu/passwords/expire.html.

Parking for ICS Labs
With the assistance of the Chancellor's Office, CITES Instructional
Computing Sites (ICS) has made arrangements with Campus Parking for free all-night parking at lot E-3 (next to the Grad Library), providing safe access to the 24-hour ICS lab at the English building. [January 21, 2003]

CITES First Six Months
The December 6, 2002 issue of Inside Illinois contains reflections on the CITES reorganization. For the complete article, see www.news.uiuc.edu:16080/ii/02/1206/cites.html. [December 12, 2002]

CITES Spring Break Hours
Hours for the various CITES facilities may vary from the norm during the spring break, which begins Saturday, March 22, 2003 and ends Monday, March 31, 2003. There are no University holidays during this period. For more information, see our Spring Break Hours.

New to Campus?
Visit our New to Campus page (www.cites.uiuc.edu/newtocampus) for a concise orientation to CITES services, including your NetID and email account [January 21, 2003]

Winter Break Schedule
Hours for CITES facilities may vary during the campus winter break, which begins Sunday, December 22, 2002 and ends Tuesday, January 21, 2003, the first day of class for Spring Semester, 2003. Here is the complete schedule. [December 19, 2002]

CITES Telecommunications web pages
CITES Telecommunications web pages have been moved to the main CITES web site. The new format and shorter URLs should make it easier to find the information you are looking for. You can also search the Telecommunications pages using the CITES search engine.

Rate limit for Walkup networking
To more equitably apportion the bandwidth available among all users of Walkup, a rate limit of 256 kilobits per second (256 Kbps) has been implemented for each connection. At this speed, the server can handle simultaneous connections from many more users than at the previous unrestricted rate. [November 26, 2002]

CITES EdTech Course Web Site Creation
Faculty wishing to teach online with Mallard, WebCT, Blackboard, or WebBoard should use the Educational Technologies online course request form. Student rosters are currently being uploaded to all courses, and late students will be added each Monday for the next few weeks. [August 27, 2002]

New CITES Express Email Service
CITES is pleased to announce the inception of its new Express Email service. Incoming Fall 2002 students are the first group on the Urbana campus to have accounts on the Express Email server. Read More... [August 9, 2002]

Grant Solicitation
CITES Ed Tech, under the endorsement of the Ed Tech Board, is soliciting brief proposals for in-depth consulting grants for faculty interested in developing the web elements of their courses. Read More... [July 12, 2002]

New Network ID Password Requirements
In response to state auditors' recent request that the University strengthen passwords for critical systems or systems requiring high levels of security, CITES will be implementing heightened requirements for Network ID (NetID) passwords effective July 1. See the "Introduction to Your Passwords" for details. [June 28, 2002]

CIO in the News
Pete Siegel, The University of Illinois' Chief Information Officer, was interviewed by NetworkWorldFusion News. You can read the interview online at http://www.nwfusion.com/yourtake/2002/0617yourtake.html [June 25, 2002]

CITES Help Desk
The Help Desk is the gateway to all CITES' services. Contact us for solutions to computing problems, answers to simple questions, or even if you don't know who else to call. Phone or email us at 244-7000 or at consult@uiuc.edu. We're at 1420 DCL 8:30-5, weekdays.

Summer Hours
Many CITES facilities have special summer hours. Here is a listing of those hours.