What web hosting options are available for departments and groups?

Overview

This article lists and explains several web hosting options available at UIC.

Departments, campus organizations, and research lab groups have several options to choose from for web hosting needs. For these options, organizations, research groups, and faculty can request domains in the *.org.uic.edu, *.lab.uic.edu, and *.class.uic.edu domain zones as well. Campus and administrative units can request URLs in the *.uic.edu domain.

Table of Contents

Red Multisite

red.uic.edu is a free WordPress Network hosting option that can be used for academic and administrative units, as well as conference and research groups. Request a UIC Red site.

Features

  • Authentication to manage your site is done via Bluestem once the site is created. 
  • Access via SSH or SFTP is not supported.
  • The UIC theme design can be moderately customized for your site.
  • Plugins and themes are managed by the WordPress Network administrator. 
     

Google Sites

Google Sites offers free template-based websites and content management systems for individual faculty, staff, and student pages as well as groups like departments, campus units, student and professional organizations, as well as conference and research groups. Visit Google Sites to create your site. The default URL for a UIC Google Site is https://sites.google.com/a/uic.edu/site where site is the name you give your Google Site. We can set up custom domain mapping for your site. 

Google Sites can only be accessed from the web (SFTP access is not available).

UIC Connection

UIC Connection is a resource exclusively for student organizations and campus events that uses OrgSync, a web service designed as a platform for online campus communities. It features easy-to-use templates for organizations to display standardized information, such as a description, board members, meeting dates, and community service opportunities.

Virtual Server

Using a virtual server is recommended for large, complex, or highly trafficked websites as well as sites hosting content management systems. Depending on which tier of support is requested for the virtual server, Technology Solutions can offer additional support such as software installation and configuration. 

Pricing is based on an operating system, memory, disk space, CPU cores, and service level desired. To request a virtual server, please use the virtual server service page.

  • Virtual servers are available as Linux (CentOS) or Windows Server installations.
  • Access to your site can can be restricted using Technology Solutions-managed Shibboleth authentication, or your custom authentication.
  • Your site can be accessed and modified using both SSH and SFTP.
  • Full system restores from once-daily backups can be initiated by the virtual server's administrator.
  • The Technology Solutions will perform backups of the server at regular intervals. 

Microsoft IIS

Microsoft IIS is shared web hosting on Windows Server 2008 that is available to departments and campus units that have specific needs for using technologies such as .NET and ASP. A one-time fee of $300 is required for setup.

  • Microsoft IIS sites can be accessed with both SFTP and Windows File Sharing.
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Web Hosting
Web hosting is an online service that allows you to build websites and make them available on the internet. Technology Solutions provides several options for hosting.