Database, Network, Shared Drive, Server, Virtual Machine

What Is It?

The Database, Servers & Virtual Machines service provides hosting, administration, and technical support for College-managed infrastructure used to support teaching, research, and administrative operations. This includes database services, virtual and physical servers, web hosting, file storage, backups, and related infrastructure. Services are available for approved College departments, applications, and projects.

Other Service Names

Help Desk, IT Support, Infrastructure Services, Server Administration, Database Services, Virtual Machine Hosting, Web Hosting.

 

Services Offered

• Virtual machine (VM) provisioning and management.
• Windows and Linux server administration.
• Database administration, including Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, and FileMaker.
• FileMaker Server hosting, administration, and maintenance.
• Web server hosting and administration.
• Network file storage and shared departmental storage.
• Server monitoring, maintenance, and performance optimization.
• Operating system installation, configuration, and patch management.
• Security hardening, vulnerability remediation, and compliance updates.
• Backup, disaster recovery, and data restoration.
• SSL certificate installation and renewal.
• DNS, DHCP, Active Directory, and Group Policy administration.
• Server migrations, upgrades, and lifecycle management.
• Technical consultation for departmental infrastructure and application hosting.

 

Who Is Eligible To Use It?

College of Education:

• Departments
• Faculty
• Staff
• Students (some services requires authorization)

 

Where Can I Get Support?

• Please submit a service request for your questions.
• If you need in person support, please stop by at 1040 W Harrison Street (ETMSW building, 2nd floor, room 2027).

 

How Much Does It Cost?

No charges to College of Education affiliates. Some services may require additional approvals.

 

How Do I Use It?

Virtual Computing:

Virtual Computer Lab allows College of Education students, faculty, and staff to access specialized academic software anytime, anywhere, from their own devices. Whether you’re working on research, coursework, or data analysis, you can conveniently use tools like SPSS, MATLAB, R, ArcGIS, Mplus, Nvivo, HLM, WINSTEPS, Facets, STATA and other educational applications with no need to install them on your computer.

Through remote desktop access, the Virtual Computer Lab provides high-performance servers that support academic, statistical, multimedia, and research software. This means you can run demanding applications directly from home, in the library, or on the go—ensuring you have the tools you need for success in your studies.

• Since 2012, this service has been free for UIC College of Education Students, Staff and Faculty.
• As of 2024 this service is limited to campus network. If you need to connect outside university network please download Cisco VPN from the Webstore.
• Please back up your files periodically. Server files may be deleted during the end-of – semester cleaning cycle.
• Sessions that are idle or disconnected for long will be logged off.
• Please note that this is a shared resource, so please log off after using the session.
• All campus IT policies apply, and all computer use is logged.
• If you abuse this privilege, we will block you from using the service.
• We reserve the right to schedule downtime for maintenance on the machines.

Instructions: 

1. VPN instructions can be found here: https://help.uillinois.edu/TDClient/37/uic/KB/ArticleDet?ID=974
2. Please contact us with your class information or your instructor to have access to the application server.
3. Open Microsoft Remote Desktop. Apple users, please download the app from Mac App Store.
4. STATS & other Servers Name: Email us or the one you received from your instructor.
5. User Name: You will need UIC NetID and UIC common password. (Example: ad\mpant | password: UIC common password)
6. Detailed Instructions for Remote Desktop.
7. Please SIGN OUT to save resources for others. Don’t simply close the remote desktop. Click start > Click on user icon > Click on “Sign out”.
8. New users: If you do not see any applications, please wait for a few minutes, since the server may still be busy setting up your new account.
9. Sometime applications may not show up on search. Please click on start > scroll to the application that you need. Righ click and pin the apps for easier access. There is also a desktop folder with app shortcuts.

 

How Can I Get Support?

If you are having an IT problem, review the guidance on the most commonly reported problems and then select the Request Service button on this page to ask an IT question.

Alternatively, you may email etlprob@uic.edu or call 312-996-0133. We recommend you to use form to submit service requests.

 

Commonly Reported IT Problems

Please try these suggestions before contacting us. These are common fixes that solve the majority of the problems that customers contact us to report:

1. Restart your device.
2. Check the Technology Solutions Service Status Page to see if the problem is related to their services.
3. Clear your browser cache and cookies.
4. For password issues, visit identity.uillinois.edu, select "I forgot my password", and use your recovery options to reset your password.
5. Check your network and VPN settings – if you're on WiFi, make sure you are connected to the correct wireless network (usually UIC-WiFi).
6. If needed verify your VPN connection.
7. Check all physical connections to make sure they are securely connected; often a loose cable or connector (power, network, keyboard, mouse, speaker, monitor cable, etc.) is the cause of the problem.
8. Look for a Help function within the program – the online Help in most programs can provide how-to explanations and solutions to common problems.
9. Verify your computer meets the listed system requirements for the application.
10. Search this site, specifically the Knowledge Base, for help with your problem – many general and specific computing solutions are available here.

 

Service Levels