Working Remotely
As you are working remotely, the following is a list of technology considerations to ensure continuity of operations and answer questions you may have.
For additional resources on working remotely, please visit the UIT’s online help center. At this time, UIT plans to keep regular operational hours as listed in the UIT Service Hours.
How to prepare to work from home - UIT Knowledge Base Article
Equipment Considerations
Employees are strongly encouraged to use UND-owned laptops and other devices (headset, webcam, cables, etc.). UND desktops are not configured to work effectively from off campus.The employee is still responsible for following all university practices and policies to maintain security on the devices. The personally owned devices are not insured for replacement.
Using Your Phone
Most UND office phones allow you to forward your calls to another phone. If you would like to have your office phone forwarded to another number please submit a service request ticket to Telecommunications.
Find out more about checking your voicemail from afar.
Securely Working Remotely
Keeping the UND community safe online is one of our top priorities and we want to make sure that you are provided with the information needed. Check out the resources below on how to securely work remotely.
More information on how to securely work remotely[BROKEN LINK]
SECURELY WORKING REMOTELY INFOGRAPHIC
Network Access
The employee is responsible for their network and phone access. Please discuss your usage/data plans with your internet service provider to ensure you will not encounter increased fees. If you do encounter overage, please track for possible reimbursement. Additionally, please verify your internet connection is secured (eg, password protected, wireless encryption enabled, https links).
If approved by your supervisor, you may be able to receive reimbursement for cell phone and/or hot spot usage during this time. Start by filling out the Additional/Reduce Pay Request form followed by the University Owned Mobile Device and Technology Allowance Authorization Form.
Additional/Reduce Pay Request Form
University Owned Mobile Device & Technology Allowance Authorization Form
Some applications at UND can only be accessed through the Virtual Private Network (VPN). The VPN allows you to securely connect to UND’s network when you are off site. VPN is only needed if you work with Perceptive Content, shared drives and HPC applications. Since most web applications are already encrypted and secure, you will not need to use VPN for applications such as Blackboard, Zoom, Office 365, and PeopleSoft.
To improve overall VPN availability on the current Cisco AnyConnect system, the following changes have been implemented:
- Session duration will be set to 10 hours. This means you will be removed from the VPN and will have to reconnect and reauthenticate using your NDUS.identifier credentials after 10 hours.
- Session idle time will be set to 30 minutes. This means after 30 minutes of no activity you will have to reauthenticate using your NDUS.identifier credentials.
VPN Etiquette
In order to help all of those working with the VPN we are asking that you:
- Only use it for applications that need it (Perceptive Content, shared drives and HPC applications) applications such as: Blackboard, Zoom, Office 365 and PeopleSoft do not need to be connected to the VPN.
- Log off of the VPN when you are not using it
- It is strongly recommended to move files to OneDrive so you do not have to be working off of shared files.
Find out how to use OneDrive in the UIT Knowledge Base
Find out how to share files and folders in OneDrive in the UIT Knowledge Base
- Log in to your router, check for firmware updates, and upgrade if one is available. Set up a monthly task, maybe alongside bill paying, as a reminder to log in to see whether any new versions are available.
- Verify that "Remote Administration" or "Administration from WAN/Internet" are disabled. If enabled, they allow access to the management UI from the Internet.
- Review firewall settings for any open or proxied ports. If you're unsure of the origin of a particular entry, disable it.
- Check Wi-Fi network settings, if applicable, and verify you're using WPA3 Wi-Fi security standard – if your devices support it – or, at least, WPA2.
- Make sure your network password is complex and not related to the network name. Users should disable the default router name and password.
- Review your attached devices list for anything suspicious, and verify the identity of unknown hosts.
- If possible, set up your home internet of things (IOT) devices on a separate network from your work computer connection
Documents, Communications & Collaboration
Communication Software
Zoom
Zoom allows you to hold virtual meetings wherever you are located through desktop computers, laptops, tablets and smartphones. Zoom is available to all faculty, staff and students for academic purposes.
What is Zoom and how do I get started?
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams allows you to chat, call and collaborate with those in your department no matter where you are.
Learn more about Microsoft Teams
Access Documents and Files
Employees are strongly encouraged to move files from shared drives (for example, P: or S: drives) to OneDrive. Files in OneDrive can be accessed without VPN, allow collaboration and share with others, and avoid sending large files via email.
How to share files and folders in OneDrive.
Printing
While we are working remotely, the need to print to campus printers should decrease significantly. If your office is unoccupied over the coming weeks, please make sure your printers are powered off or in energy saving mode.
Additionally, if you have a need to send a print job to a campus printer, you should refrain from printing documents containing private or restricted data if you cannot readily retrieve the printed documents.