Frequently Asked Questions

Contact the Residence Life office for assistance with the computer or printer in a workroom.

The seminar rooms in all of the Minerva Houses are managed by Media Services. Please contact them at 388-6438 for assistance.

Electronic classrooms may be scheduled by faculty and staff through Central Scheduling or by calling 388-6098. Training is required for anyone using an electronic classroom. Arrangements for training may be made by calling ITS at 388-6293.

The majority of the electronic classrooms on campus are managed by ITS. For immediate assistance in a classroom, call x1011 (Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm). To report a problem that is not an emergency, please call the Academic Help Desk at 388-6400 or fill out the Problem Reporting Form on the clipboard on the lectern in the classroom.

The majority of the public technical facilities on campus are managed by ITS. For assistance in the labs, please do one of the following:

• Go to the Academic Help Desk in Steinmetz 104.
• Call the Academic Help Desk at x6400.
• Stop by the ITS office in Steinmetz Hall
• Email ITS at helpdesk@union.edu

A color laser printer is available for student use from any of the public computing facilities located in Steinmetz Hall. The printer is located in the Steenstrup Multimedia Lab located in Steinmetz 100.

It costs $.50 per page to print a color document. The "pay-for-print" system uses the student ID card.  Funds may be put on your account using the kiosks located in the Library or in the 24 lab in Wold.  For more information, see Printing Information from the Library.

The public computing facilities have a variety of specialty software such as eViews available in them. For more information, see Public Computing Facilities.and click on the link for each facility to see a list of software installed in that lab.

There are several public computing facilities managed by ITS. For more information, see Public Computing Facilities. Facilities are located on the first floor of Steinmetz Hall. They are available 7 days a week, 24 hours and are accessible with your Union College ID.

USTAR is the student-run program providing technical support to other students. USTAR will assist removing viruses and installing the Union College licensed virus protection. USTAR is located in Steinmetz Hall room 108A and is open Sunday - Thursday 6:00pm - 10:00pm. Assistance can be requested through USTAR's website (http://ustar.union.edu/) or by calling x7096.

Union College is no longer providing virus protection to students. Here are links to free antivirus programs that Windows users can download and install:

• AVG: http://free.avg.com
• Avira: http://www.free-av.com/
• Avast: http://www.avast.com/free-antivirus-download
• Mac: You can go to the Apple menu and click on "Software Update" to obtain the newest patches and updates.

Here are links to free antivirus programs that Mac users can download and install:

• ClamXav: http://www.clamxav.com/
• iAntiVirus: http://www.iantivirus.com/

Where can a student go for assistance with their personal computer? USTAR is the student-run program providing technical support to other students. USTAR will assist with evaluating both hardware and software problems and answering general questions relating to technology at Union College. They will not repair hardware problems.

USTAR is located in Steinmetz Hall room 108A and is open Sunday - Thursday 6:00pm - 10:00pm. Assistance can be requested through USTAR's website http://ustar.union.edu or by calling x7096. For a fee, the Bookstore can often perform hardware repairs. Contact Computer Sales at x2402 for more information. If you need help with ResNet please contact them at ResNet Support.

Login to Postini Message Center by going to http://postini.union.edu

Select My Settings, then Approve Senders. Enter the email addresses and then select Update Approved Senders.

Click on the corresponding Deliver link in the quarantine email.

In any web browser, go to http://postini.union.edu

Login using your email address and password.

Union College uses Google Postini Services as its email protection service. This service intercepts virus-infected and junk email before it arrives in your inbox. Suspected messages are automatically quarantined. The Postini Message Center allows you to release these messages and to whitelist senders whom you don't want blocked.

If you are interested in how to change privacy and junk email settings in Umail please follow these instructions.

If you are interested in forwarding your email from UMAIL to another provider please follow these instructions.

You need to fill out an Application for Computer Account and return it to the ITS office. You can either download the form here or pick up the form in the ITS office. It will take 24 hours to create your account.

If you are either a student or faculty member from the Union Graduate College, please pick up the appropriate forms from the Registrar's Office in Lamont House.

In order to access on-campus resources from off-campus, you need to have a VPN account.  Information about the VPN may be found here.

Go to http://mypassword.union.edu/ and click on the link to change your password. If this is the first time that you are attempting to change your password, you must enroll first before using this service.

If you encounter problems, please contact the ITS office at 388-6293 (Mon-Fri 8:30-5:00) or visit the ITS office located in Steinmetz Hall.

Each student has network storage space that is available to them. To learn how to access your network storage space, please select the appropriate link based on your computer's operating system.

Click here to find all Union College available software.

Click here to find all of the available ITS documentation. 

Yes. We have a variety of equipment that is available for loan. If you are borrowing equipment for something other than an academic class there is a nominal fee. See a partial list of equipment here.

There is no charge if the equipment is for an academic class. If the event is not for an academic class there is a nominal fee and you must provide an account number or provide payment in advance. See the charges here. If you request that a technician be present for the event there will be an additional charge.

We’d like 5 business day’s notice if at all possible. We try our best to meet all needs so the more advance notice you give us, the more likely we will be able to meet your needs.

1. Call our office at 388-6438 or
2. Email Marie, Jermaine or Ginny or
3. Order online here (coming soon!)

There is no wireless in individual dorm rooms. Wireless is available in common areas in Residence Halls. For more information, visit the wireless website.

Yes, there are regulations for the usage of the Union College campus network. Upon registration, you will have to carefully read and agree to the current terms of use. If you require a current copy of these terms of use, please contact ITS at X6293. A copy of the policies can be found here.

Support for all network issues is provided to students free of charge. Please note that we cannot help with operating system and/or hardware issues (e.g. hard drive crashes).

We support the Windows and Mac operating systems running current versions (e.g. Windows XP, Mac OS X).

ResNet can be reached at 388-8707. Be sure to leave your name, on-campus contact number and when it is a good time to reach you.

ResNet helpdesk support hours vary from term to term. Hours can be obtained from the ITS front desk personnel at 388-6293.

Contact ResNet for assistance in getting connected (or reconnected) to the Union College network in your dorm room. You can contact ResNet through their website (http://its.union.edu/networking/residential-network-services-resnet) or by calling 388-8707.

Yes. Xbox, Xbox360, Playstation 2, Playstation 3, Playstation Plus, Gamecube and Wii are all allowed. However, all gaming systems must be registered or they won't work on the network.

All Apple computers can connect to the Internet. Apple computers using OS X can connect to our internal network.

You can play games online, but you cannot run a game server. Network games slow down the system. Any activity that has an adverse effect on the system is prohibited by the computer usage policy However, most gaming systems (Xbox, Playstation, etc.) are allowed, once they are registered.

No. You will have to use your local printer.

No. The system is for on-campus students only.

Yes. ResNet is not required. You just won't have access to the network, but you can still run any programs.

Wireless routers are not allowed on the system, and will not work if connected.

No. Hubs are prohibited in all circumstances and will not work if connected.

Some suites and rooms may have more students than planned when ResNet was installed. If you need an extra jack, contact the ResNet staff at x8707.

The campus policy is to provide one network jack per student in the residential areas. If the network jack is not working you can contact ResNet.

We do require that you have up-to-date antivirus software on your computer. It's also a good idea to have some antispyware and a firewall. For College provided anti virus please use http://www.union.edu/Resources/Technology/ITS/software.

ITS does not supply cables to students. They are available at the campus bookstore, or at any computer dealer.

The cable that came with my new computer doesn't work - That's a phone/modem cable. It is not a network cable, which are hardly ever sold with the computer. You'll need to get the network cable.

In addition to a computer, you'll need a Network Interface Card (Ethernet Card). Most new computers come with these installed; otherwise you can purchase them at any computer dealer. You will also need to have a network cable.

You make the connection by plugging you network cable into the jack. When you open your web browser, you should be automatically brought to the ResNet sign-in page if the page does not come up automatically, please notify ResNet staff at 388-8707

ResNet is Union's residential computer network. Students use it to connect their computer directly to the Internet using a high-speed connection. It also allows access to Union's internal network features, such as storage space on the network drives so you can save your files and work on them from any computer on campus. Please remember that ResNet is to be used for academics, research, and official college business.

On the lower right hand corner of https://webadvising.union.edu/, there is an option called "What's My Password?" You should be able to select "Reset my Password" and enter the required information. After you click on Submit, you will receive an email message with your new password.

Your account should be set up automatically. Your username is the same username that you use for accessing your Union College email. To get your initial password, go to https://webadvising.union.edu/. In the lower right corner, you will see an option called "What's My Password?" You should be able to select "Reset my Password" and enter the required information. After you click on Submit, you will receive an email message with your new password.

WebAdvisor is the online advising system used by both students and faculty. Grades and schedules are available to students. More in-depth information is available to faculty. If you have any problems accessing your account, please call ITS at 388-6293 or send an email to webadvising@union.edu