Before you can start accessing SENS and UB computing and network resources from home, there are a few necessary prerequisites. This page will help you prepare for successfully connecting remotely.
Here are some questions and answers that may help you evaluate if you are ready to work from home:
A: If you do not have a computer in your home or other remote working location, please contact SENShelp and we will try to loan you a computer if we have any in our inventory.
A: UBIT has minimum computer recommendations for students, which can apply to faculty and staff as well for purposes of working from home.
A: If you wish to take your work computer home, it must be approved by your department, per University policy (look for the security section). If allowed, you must complete and submit a property removal form to your department office, and the computer must be reconfigured by SENS to allow working from outside UB's network environment.
A: Some of the steps below will require your computer to appear as though it is on the University network, and, as such, conform to our security standards. At a minimum it should be up to date (please run Microsoft Windows Update, Apple software updater, or whatever is appropriate for your operating system), have antivirus software running, and have a good password for the account that will be used for working remotely.
A: If you do not, and you intend to record lectures using Panopto or do interactive sessions using Webex or Zoom, you will need a webcam and microphone. If you do not, please contact SENShelp and we will loan you them if we have any available. If not, we can provide recommendations on types to purchase.
A: We really hope that you don't keep your UBIT password on a Post-It note stuck to your monitor or under your keyboard, but, just in case, please be sure you know your current password.
A: If you are not using your smart phone to perform Duo authentication, please make sure you have your hardware token with you.
A: This is not particularly an IT question, but a good question nonetheless. Please make sure you have any necessary documents or other items from your workspace that you may need at home.
A: You can access voicemail remotely, forward your work phone to another number, and perform other tasks that may necessary for working from home. UBIT provides a VoIP phone guide that explains how to perform these tasks. Some basic information is also provided below.
A: The following sections will assist you in installing and configuring software you may need to successfully work from home.
To protect the integrity of SENS and UB computing and network services, direct connections from computers outside of the local UB network are blocked. However, UB supports the Virtual Private Network (VPN) protocol, which allows for secure access from off-site systems. The UB VPN page has instructions on how to configure your computer to use the Cisco Secure Client software.
There are two basic ways you can access the software and other resources you need from home:
To use software directly on your home computer, continue with the following sections.
If you have a personally-owned Microsoft Windows computer, please refer to UBIT's Downloading Software for Personally Owned Windows Computers page for instructions on how to download Symantec Endpoint Protection (antivirus) and/or Microsoft Office 2019 Professional Plus. If you have a UB-owned computer that was configured by SENS, these software packages are already installed.
If you have a personally-owned Apple Macintosh computer, please refer to UBIT's Downloading Software for Personally Owned Macintosh Computers page for instructions on how to download Symantec Endpoint Protection (antivirus) and/or Microsoft Office 2019 for Mac. If you have a UB-owned computer that was configured by SENS, these software packages are already installed.
UBIT provides access to the Box Drive client, which is useful for accessing files stored in UB Box.
UBIT provides additional software that might be useful for remote learning, such as Panopto, Webex, and Zoom.
Many UB phone features can be accessed from home or another remote location.
To check your voicemail remotely:
More information about the UB phone system can be found on the UBIT VoIP phone guide.