IT Update

A Message from the CTO:

IT continues to work hard to maintain a seamless infrastructure for all of Troy’s needs. We hope you enjoy reading the IT Update.

The 2012 IT Summit was a success. Over 400 employees attended the event in-person or remotely, via web-teleconference. We appreciate those who were able to attend the event. One of the more popular sessions was the teleconferencing tool, Webex. Since the IT Summit, many staff and faculty have employed the WebEx tool; in fact, use of the system has increased nearly one-hundred percent in a few months. Please visit the IT website for more information regarding this robust, interactive tool.

Feedback during and after the IT Summit have assisted in the development of the 2013 IT planning schedule. We appreciate your assistance and look forward to increased participation next year.

The technology refresh for the recruiting team was a memorable experience for IT. We had a unique opportunity to travel and meet the recruiting teams for Troy University. The distribution of hardware and training went very well – ideas were gathered from the team and implemented. The Troy IT team traveled nearly 5,000 miles in four weeks.

The winter break provides a unique opportunity to complete projects and bring closure to numerous efforts. The schedule of planned activities is posted to the Trojan intranet site.

New technologies emerge constantly; contact IT if you need assistance in reviewing devices and/or software before purchasing.

Further development to the customer resource management solution has been exceptionally productive in the past few months. Review the update and contact IT if your support group has interest in participating in the solution.

The redesign of the ITAPS (Information Technology Accountability and Planning System) debuted a couple months ago. Please visit the site, itaps.troy.edu, to follow large IT projects.

As always, continue to practice safe computing habits: do not share login credentials or personal data via email, do not leave applications running on an unattended PC.

This month’s issue of SANS Ouch! Newsletter is especially interesting for those who seek assistance with securing mobile devices.

Thanks.

W. Greg Price


 

University Wide News:

New Laptop and Desktop options

Technical Services has evaluated new laptop and desktop options for Troy University. The standard models that Troy was using approached end of life and needed to be updated to more current models.

IT Summit

IT Summit Opening Session

Opening session of IT Summit

The Troy University IT Summit was held August 6-7 2012 at the IT Facility in Troy, Alabama.

Thank you for your continued support of IT and our technology endeavors - we look forward to 2013. 

>> IT Summit Photo Gallery

 

 

Year-End Process

Technical Services worked working closely with vendors and end-users to complete quotes and orders by year-end deadlines.

FrontDoor Software Security

During the month of September 2012, eSystems assisted in testing the new security software that Troy University has purchased. eSystems contacted FrontDoorSoftware and had 500 licenses added to the our CID. The owner information and message was set up on the 500 licenses Installation guides were created for those that will be tasked with setting up the software on the new machines and end user guides were created detailing what a user should do if they find that their laptop has been lost or stolen.

Recruiter Laptops

These laptops will be used while traveling and promoting Troy University to perspective students. Several IT team confirmations took place to ensure accuracy and some included installing Datatel, Logmein, WebEx, McAfee, USB AT&T card, FrontDoor Theft Software and Office products.

During the month of September, Technical Services completed work on finalizing 76 laptop configurations for the recruiter project.

Technical Services completed the setup of fifteen eTroy recruiter laptops the week of October 12, 2012.

Parature Reports

Each month eSystems runs and updates reports for the divisions that have placed requests. New reports created are noted in the table below.

Month New Reports Created
April 2012
1
May 2012
11
June 2012
4
July 2012
1
August 2012
7
September 2012
10
October 2012
2

Imaging PC's

Using the imaging process saves considerable time in the deployment of widows’ operating systems and setting up a computer. This alleviates the amount of time technicians are needed to perform a lab setup, thus leaving technicians available to work on other technical issues. Labs usually take 2-3 days to setup depending on the amount of units in a lab. Imaging reduces time spent setting up lab computers immensely. Not only has Technical Services saved time with imaging, but has saved Troy University funds as well. The software used for imaging would normally cost the university, but with ingenuity, Technical Services used free software and techniques that would save IT from purchasing imaging software.

EchoSign Form Development

During June, eSystems worked with records to develop four new forms that will utilize EchoSign. eSystems deployed four new forms within EchoSign during the month of July.

OUCH! Newsletter

This is the latest issue to a security publication, OUCH!, published by SANS. The Troy IT department is a participant in the project, Securing The Human, as the SANS institute; a benefit of our participation is free distribution of the OUCH! security newsletter. The current issue details information regarding Losing Your Mobile Device.

Click HERE to read the OUCH! Newsletter

Web Redesign

Information Technology worked during the past summer to prepare for the launch of the new Trojan Website (http://trojan.troy.edu). A parallel effort by Marketing and Communication (in partnership with Seventh Point) was also underway to launch a new www.troy.edu (Joomla) Website. These two projects resulted in the creation of two new Web presences but the IT-managed Trojan site resulted in a significant reduction of additional, legacy Websites. Trojan is primarily intended for current students, faculty and staff while the new marketing site, now www.troy.edu, targets prospective students.

Preparations for these changes required that IT consolidate and migrate content from several different public-facing Websites including the previous version of www.troy.edu, the Alabama campus Websites, and the Global Campus Websites. IT also provided information and recommendations to Seventh Point to help reduce the number of issues that would be caused by this significant transition. Trojan was available for preview prior to October 19th.

On October 19th the Trojan and the new www.troy.edu Websites were fully launched. At that time the IT department setup several redirects to forward visitors from the previous location-based sites over to the new Trojan Website. The overall effort required cooperation among several divisions within IT and from other departments throughout the university.

Visitor feedback for Trojan was collected during the entire pre-launch and post-launch phase. Some changes have already been made based on end-user feedback. Additional changes are in-progress or undergoing evaluation.

Recruiter's Portal

Working with Admissions, IT developed the Recruiters Portal, which serves as an online hub of recruiter knowledge, materials and tools. The portal was first introduced to recruiters via on-site training in September of 2012.

The portal includes direct links to online services and documents (Active Admissions, Helpdesk, Leadmaster, and other resources), which are collectively referred to as the Recruiter Toolkit. In addition, the site hosts several videos of TROY faculty, staff, and students as well as a recruiter directory and digital copies of marketing materials.

The Recruiters Portal will continue to be updated to ensure that it provides the most relevant information and services for recruiters at all Troy University locations. The Recruiters Portal was developed by IT and is not accessible to the general public.

Trojan Webserver

The new server that will replace the system that previously hosted www.troy.edu is the home of the Trojan (http://trojan.troy.edu) Website. IT is planning to migrate additional Websites from the previous Webserver to the new Trojan Webserver in the near future.

Landing Page (troy.edu)

The troy.edu Website previously offered a simplified splash page that offered up a handful of links for the most-visited online resources. However, IT received a request to update the troy.edu landing page to instead replicate the appearance of the new www.troy.edu (Joomla) Website. Internally, IT developed a duplicate of the www.troy.edu Homepage from scratch. Seventh Point recently provided additional changes to IT, which have been incorporated into the IT-managed version of the page.

 

Phenix City Campus News:

Phenix City Campus New Employees

The IT department at Phenix City has two new employees. Tracy Legette has moved from a part-time computer lab assistant into a full-time position as a Technical Support Specialist / Computer Technician. This job was previously held by Dennis Smith who lost his battle with lung cancer. Also added is Michael Willis as the Computer Technician/Computer Lab Assistant position, vacated by the promotion of Ms. Legette.

McAfee ePolicy Orchestrator (ePO) Server Update

Phenix City IT continues to expand the deployment of McAfee’s ePO server which allows IT to centrally monitor campus computer security risks. One computer lab in Pitts Hall will be reimaged after the current term to resolve a registration issue with the ePO server.

Phenix City Upgrades the Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) Server

Phenix City IT has installed a new WSUS server, upgrading the operating system and storage capacity. IT is currently moving all classrooms and computer labs to receive Windows updates from the local WSUS. The next phase will transition faculty and staff computer to the local server.

Phenix City IT Department Begins Training Series

Training sessions began on the Phenix City Campus for faculty and staff. The first sessions covered Introduction and Intermediate PowerPoint 2010. Additional training will be offered on Microsoft Office 2010 applications during the month of November. Faculty and staff will be notified via email of the training schedules.

IT Security Camera System Upgrade

Phenix City IT upgraded core components of the IT Security Camera System. The upgrade introduces new recording features and increased storage space for video recordings. Several new cameras were also installed in Pitts Hall.

Windows Deployment Server

Phenix City installed and implemented the use of a Windows Deployment Server. This server will be used to create and manage computer images for the campus labs, classrooms, and faculty/ staff computers.

Classroom Technology Upgrades

Phenix City IT installed twelve new instructor station computers in various classrooms in Pitts Hall and Higginbotham Hall. Our campus goal was to replace all classroom computers that had been in service over three years.

 

Troy Campus News

Digital Displays

Technical Services assisted with the installation of digital displays at Trojan Center and MSCX buildings on April 10 through April 12, 2012. Each unit was configured to post announcements, weather, and pictures and will be used as an emergency alert notice if needed.

MS Office Word Training

Technical Services along with eSystems completed two days of MS Office Word training for faculty and staff on April 24th and April 26th. Some of the topics that were covered during the training are the new features in Word 2010, charts and graphs, inserting objects and screenshots, watermarks, SmartArt graphics and keyboard shortcuts and tips. If you were not able to attend this training session, IT will be scheduling other sessions throughout the year. You can also take advantage of IT’s online training portal, which is located at https://it.troy.edu/Staff/training/index.htm.

MS Office 2010 Upgrade Project

Technical Services has completed the Microsoft Office 2010 upgrade project for Troy campus in less than twelve weeks. If the end-user needs assistance for any Office 2010 product, please visit IT’s online training portal at http://it.troy.edu/services-support/training/index.html.

New Employee Orientation

eSystems participated in the HR’s New Employee Orientation on April 30, 2012. This training covered IT’s website, the IT Update, services offered through IT, the helpdesk, and forms offered through EchoSign.

Chemistry Lab

Technical Services upgraded 12 computers by imaging and loading Windows 7 on each unit for the Chemistry Lab. The upgraded will enhance the students learning environment with the advanced technology.

College of Education Labs with Faronics Insight

Technical Services reviewed Faronics Insight software for College of Education on May 1, and is working with faculty and staff on their expectations for the software. The department would like to implement this software in the COE lab’s so the instructors can monitor and control lab PC’s, assist students with problems and communicate to the entire lab from one central computer. Once all the potentials have been explored, Technical Services will schedule a time to install the 30 day trial software for faculty to use and evaluate before purchasing.

Apple Sessions for IT Summit

Technical Services scheduled with our Apple rep to present three sessions at the IT Summit on August 6th and 7th. The sessions consists of “Tips and Tricks on iPad”, “Beyond Textbooks using iTunes and iBooks”, and “Accessibility Reaching all Learners”, which will cover some topics such as closed caption, video chat for sign language, and MAC features for differing abilities.

IT Network IPS/IDS Updates

IT Network Division continues updates of the IPS/IDS with newer versions of filters. These filters assist in mitigating newer threats to all systems connected to the University’s networks. These updates continue to adjust for trending models of threat mitigation.

Student Firewall Upgrade Project

IT Network Division continues to update and maintain the new student network (RESNET) firewall with incremental updates and threat filters to stay fully up-to-date with industry.

MS Office PowerPoint Training

Technical Services along with eSystems completed two days of MS Office PowerPoint training for faculty and staff on May 8th and May 10th. Some of the topics that were covered during the training are the new features in PowerPoint 2010, templates, customizing presentations, customizing bullets, special effects and keyboard shortcuts and tips. If you were not able to attend this training session, IT will be scheduling other sessions throughout the year. You can also take advantage of IT’s online training portal, which is located at http://it.troy.edu/services-support/training/index.html.

Assisted Confucius Lab with installation of Programs

Technical Services assisted the Confucius Lab with the installation of Quick Time on May 10, 2012. This is a necessary program that will be used in conjunction with the Sanako Company software that will be set up for their language lab.

Human Services, Rehab and Social Work labs

Technical Services evaluated 45 PC’s in the two labs for the department of Human Services, Rehab and Social Work in May, 2012. They will be using exactly 55 PC’s for a special session this summer with students.

Women's Basketball

Technical Services completed five new computer setups for the women’s basketball coaches and office personnel during the week of May 14, 2012.

Wireless

Troy IT has completed replacing the problematic equipment for the student wireless network (RESNET) with newer controllers provided by the vendor through a “trade-up” program which ultimately did not cost the University any additional money and actually lower annual maintenance cost for the equipment.

Arena Project

Network Division has completed installation of switching and wireless equipment in the new Arena. The building is now active and ready for use and can accommodate all types of devices as well as credit cards in the concession areas, door access, security CCTV, and remote monitoring of venue equipment by select vendors for their installed products.

Recycled Computers

Technical Services re-formatted five PC’s for Upward Bound and TRIO programs for student usage. These computers were recycled from an old lab, re-configured and completed restored to replace much older and slower PC’s in this department.

Chemistry Lab

After battling a gas leak in the Chemistry lab on May 22, Technical Services successfully completed six PC setups for the Chemistry lab in MSCX. These computers are recycled PC’s from inventory and will be used by students accordingly in the lab.

Evaluating Helpdesk

Technical Services participated and reviewed a Web seminar on June 3, 2012, regarding outsourcing and evaluating helpdesk with Ellucian. This company works very similar to our Greenwood and Hall that we have in place now.

NAC Updates

The network division has worked with the NAC vendor to update a device list to be more inclusive of newer portable and mobile devices for better resolution and reporting. It has also now finger-printed newer android devices that were showing limited signs of connectivity issues through the NAC.

Online Knowledgebase

IT has been utilizing the Parature Helpdesk for some time now. The network division has been working on some “Self Help” Q & A that has now been posted in the “Knowledgebase” section inside http://helpdesk.troy.edu. Please make sure to visit and check this out and feel free to forward us what you think may need to be addressed as issues that would make self troubleshooting better for everyone.

Troy Student IMPACT

Technical Services and eSystems participated in the student IMPACT sessions which began on June 18, 2012. The sessions will explain what services IT provides to our students and supply important information such as policies, FAQ and whom to contact when requiring assistance with IT.

Biology Lab

Technical Services is re-evaluating Faronics Deep Freeze and some current issues in the Biology lab. Deep Freeze will be re-configured to support both biology labs in a wireless environment.

Counseling Lab

Technical Services has completed the installation of the Counseling Lab project for Psychology and Counseling Department on June 18, 2012. All equipment has been installed as well as the lectern and furniture for the control room. This lab will be used for teaching and evaluating students during counseling sessions with individuals. Each classroom/session will be monitored and recorded if needed.

Electrical Issues

Technical Services assisted in an IT Emergency project concerning electrical power on the west side of campus. On June 6th, Technical Services assisted network team with shutting down network equipment within 11 buildings on the Troy campus at 4:00 am and the power-on process at 7:00 AM.

Digital Display repair

Technical Services assisted LG and World Wide Tech Services with the repair of the digital display in dormitory Clements Hall.

Installation of six computers at SGA office

Technical services set up 6 new computers for the SGA office this week. These computers have replaced older, outdated systems. The replaced computers have been cleaned up and are now being used in the SGA lab as voting computers.

Installation of six computers in a Chemistry Lab

Technical services set up 6 recycled computers for a chemistry lab in the MSCX. These computers will help students in class and on projects by allowing them access to articles and online databases.

Art and Design Lab

Technical Services installed 21 new iMacs for the Art and Design Lab in Malone Hall 118. The old iMacs from room 118 will be recycled and used in a new Art lab in Malone 201.

Human Services, Rehab and Social Work labs

Technical Services completed the process of recycling and installing 25 additional PC’s in two small labs for the department of Human Services, Rehab and Social Work. These additional computers will be in conjunction with the 45 PC lab that was completed in February 2012 and will have Office 2010 and Deep Freeze installed as well. The additional 25 PC’s were imaged to save time on the recycling process.

Computer Science Lab

Technical Services setup and configured 23 new PC’s in the Computer Science Lab for students to utilize for their studies. Along with IT normal setup, Deep Freeze and Office 2010 was installed and configured.

Hard Drive Crusher

Technical Services disposed of outdated or unusable hard drives that have accumulated over time by using a motorized crusher that drills through the hard drive. The crushing of the drives ensures that sensitive data could not be released unintentionally.

College of Education Lab

Technical Services exchanged old desktops with new desktops for College of Education Lab. The configuration of the new setups consisted of installing Deep Freeze, Office 2010 and SPSS.

First Year Studies

Office of First Year Studies requested a quote from Technical Services that will enhance their area with a digital display. Technical Services assisted Howard Computers with the installation of a digital display in Eldridge Hall. The display will be used to broadcast daily news, local emergency notices, University announcement as well as departmental announcements and will include the Weather Channel hosted through local cable and special events for the department.

Game Day

Technical Services assisted Game Day support on all Troy’s 2012 home football games. The support team was stationed in the Press Box and provided computer and network support to outside media guests as well as Troy University personnel.

Accessment of two flooded labs in MSCX

Technical Services assisted in determining if any hardware was damaged in MSCX 103 and 108 due to a mishap with the chemical shower. Luckily, almost all of the technology in the rooms were unaffected.

ACCESS

Technical Services is assisting with new Mac setups for ACCESS while IT’s Network Administrator is traveling for the Recruiter training. The new Mac’s are for ACCESS teachers that travel to various high schools around Alabama.

IT Training Lab

Technical Services tested, updated and ensured that the PC’s in the lab is in working condition for upcoming Blackboard Training for the week of October 9 through October 12, 2012.

Chemistry Lab

Technical Services upgraded 12 computers by imaging and loading Windows 7 on each unit for the Chemistry Lab in September. An additional 15 computers were added this week to the Chemistry Department. These additions are recycled small form factor PC’s from the library. The upgraded will enhance the students learning environment with the advanced technology.

Library PC upgrade

Technical Services participated in the new PC upgrade for the library. The library received 75 new all-in-one computers to be used by students and staff. The units were imaged to decrease install time and increase productivity time.

IT Lab

The IT Lab is getting a face-lift in the month of October, 2012. Technical Services has completed the process of setting up 30 new all-in-one computers in the lab. These units have been imaged in order to save time and productivity.

Counseling Lab

On October 25, 2012, IT Technical Services and the Web Team videoed the training demonstration for the Psychology and Counseling Lab for future references and instructions. The video consisted of showing all three counseling rooms, the control room, describing the equipment and demonstrating how to use the equipment.

COE Lab

Technical Services completed an image for the College of Education Lab on October 24, 2012. The lab received the last group of 10 PC’s to replace old computers at use now. The last group was image for future use in case an OS is unusable; the image will save time on formatting the PC.

Harvard's Expedition through IT

This past summer Joel Jackson, Computer Support Technician, was selected to be funded for Harvard’s Leon Levy Expedition to Ashkelon. Troy University sent Joel and four other students to Ashkelon, Israel to get hands on experience in the field that they are interested in. In their time there, they were able to work with top PhD’s in their field and learn from the absolute best. Joel was excavating in the Iron Age or better known as the Philistine Era. They were able to uncover many artifacts that let them look into the lives of people that lived 5,000+ years ago. Joel is a member of the Troy Technical Support team.

 

Global Campus News

Servers Replaced

The servers at the Troy Albany and Brunswick Georgia locations have been replaced. These new servers will allow faster access to software and files for students, staff and faculty.

Brunswick Video Conferencing Classroom

Troy’s Brunswick Georgia location added a video conferencing classroom. This will allow small classes to join with other location for viable and dynamic classes.

Columbus Location Move

IT assisted in moving of the Columbus location into offices left vacant be the southeast region and eArmyu staff. The move was completed with no break in service for students, faculty and staff.

Polly’s Kids Missing Children Call Center

The Polly Center, located in Pensacola, Florida is a proactive missing child resource center. It was created to provide a preemptive response network to serve families of missing persons. IT setup a call center at the Troy Pensacola location for Polly’s Kids Missing Children. Troy supplied space, computers, phone and data network access for the call center.

 

University Wide Upcoming Projects:

WebUI Project

IT has assisted in the WebUI project by installing and configuring a “load-balancer” to assist in managing the number of connections to each server used for handling Datatel users. Networking is waiting for a third server to finish configuration in order to add it to the current load-balancing configuration for better performance and number of users.

 

IT Statistics:

24-Hour Days Worked by IT Staff Intrusion Prevention
Web Helpdesk
E-mail SOS
Security Video Streaming

 

24 Hour Days Worked by IT Staff

Time Period Days
Since January 2012
17

 

Web

Winter 2012

Server Average Hits
Per Day		 Unique Visitors Successful
Page Hits		 Visits Total Visits for 2012
www.troy.edu
39,118
995,553
8,371,275
3,372,171
5,376,134
it.troy.edu
959
24,134
205,128
85,415
140,868
library.troy.edu
1,842
33,323
394,222
110,643
179,250
trojanweb.troy.edu
210,355
395,576
45,016,002
1,043,422

3,957,868
wa3test.troy.edu
93
395,576
19,932
159
217
admissions.troy.edu
3,876
113,872
829,516
222,358

314,070
www.troy.edu/mobile
2,446
76,715
523,365
254,666
390,455
troy.edu Splash Page*
15,359
498,479
3,286,814
2,209,473

2,375,843
trojan.troy.edu**
15,019
361,993
2,891,668
1,381,780
1,381,780

 

E-mail

Description Total for 2012
E-mail Messages In/Out
221,667,000
E-mail Viruses Blocked
27,760
Spam Blocked Due to Content
87,700,000
E-mail Messages Blocked by RBL
49,825,000

 

Security

Description Total Total for 2012
Server Vulnerability Probes
7,287,951
11,572,141
Completed Security Investigations
11
38
Troy Electrical DR Tests
9
14

 

Intrusion Prevention

Description Total for 2012
FTP Attempts
161,050
Threats Blocked
528,000
Spyware Blocked
533,182
Viruses Blocked
108,908
Application Statistics "Top 5"
See Monthly Data Below
SSH Login Attempts
222,087

 

Helpdesk Stats

Quarterly Report (4/12012-10/29/2012)
Region
Quarter
***Total***
Alabama Campus
11,317
  Dothan  
1,396
  Montgomery  
1,304
  Phenix City  
734
  Troy  
7,883
eTroy
3,280
3,280
Atlantic Region (Troy Assist)
335
335
Southeast/Western Region
3,540
3,540
Pacific Region
74
74
Not Specified
712
712
Total
19,258
19,258

 

SOS - sos.troy.edu

Some events required multiple updates. This quarter there was a total of 72 individual updates published to the SOS Website/Twitter account.

Category Events this Quarter Total for 2012
System Notices
20
29
Safety Alerts
10
14

 

Video Streaming

Category Events Streamed Hits/Plays Minutes Viewed Bandwidth Usage (MB)
Commencement
3
2,021
30,970
87,639.11
Convocation
1
330
15,715
0
Lecture
1
94
1,985
6,549.08
Other
2
310
4,117

6,379.47
Total
7
2,755
52,787
149,145.24

 

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