Accounts and Passwords
Your Personal UW NetID
Accounts at the UW are identified by a UW NetID. Your UW NetID (and its password) is how you access many UW online resources including MyUW and UW Email.
Everyone at the UW has a personal UW NetID that is intended for their individual use only. You were probably given a personal UW NetID when you first started working at or first registered to attend the UW.
Your UW NetID verifies who you are when you use the many UW network services. Such verification ensures the privacy of your personal information and restricts the use of resources to those for whom they are intended.
If do not have a UW NetID and you are a UW faculty, staff, or student, go to the Get a UW NetID page and request one.
- Available services
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You can see the UW NetID services available to you by going to the Manage UW NetID Resources page and selecting the Turn services on or off item in the left column. Among the services available are UW Email, Web Publishing, and Streaming Media. The services listed will depend upon the nature of your affiliation with the UW (faculty, staff, student, clinician, alumnus, visitor). Select the services you want to use.
- What can I do with it?
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With your UW NetID, you are eligible for various computing services depending on your association with the UW (i.e, student, faculty, staff, alumnus/a, retiree, or other affiliate). Your computing services may include the following:
- Access to your MyUW page from which you can check your personal UW information (student grades and schedules, employee payroll records and benefits files)
- Use of UW email and access to email management tools including spam filtering and message forwarding
- Access to other computing services including Web publishing, dial-in modems, computing labs, and Catalyst Web Tools
- Access to secure applications required for University administrative work (financial, payroll, and student databases)
Your personal UW NetID remains the same throughout your life, even as your association with the University of Washington may change.
- Can I have more than one?
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You have just one personal UW NetID, no matter how many different associations you have with the UW (e.g., student plus staff plus alumnus/a).
You may also have the use of one or more shared accounts such as for courses or departments. Such shared UW NetIDs should not be confused with your personal UW NetID.
- Can I change it?
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A personal UW NetID usually may not be changed. If you feel there are special circumstances, contact the UW Technology Service Center to see what can be done.
Shared account UW NetIDs can usually be changed if needed. Just call the UW Technology Service Center.
Your Password
Choosing a Good Password
Choosing a good password helps to prevent someone else from using UW services as if they were you.
- Use passwords that are difficult to guess.
- Change your password regularly.
- Only use UW NetIDs and passwords that belong to you.
- Never tell anyone your password. UW staff, including UW Technology consultants, will NEVER ask for your password. Email messages that ask you to send your UW NetID and password (such as to "verify your account") are fakes and should not be responded to.
Resetting Your Password
If you forget your password, you can reset it online.
- Online
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To reset a forgotten password online go to the Reset Your Password page. You will be asked for information that will help verify your identity. If you do not have the information requested, contact the UW Technology Service Center.
- Over the telephone
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Current UW faculty, staff, and clinicians who are unable to reset their password online can call the UW Technology Service Center at (Voice) 206-221-5000, (TTY) 206-685-5352. You will be asked a series of questions to establish your identity.
For other groups including students, student applicants, and alumni, it is more difficult for the Service Center to verify your identity over the phone and is therefore preferred that you either use the online system or come in to the Service Center in person. If this policy is a hardship for you, please call the Service Center to work something out.
- In person
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Anyone with a UW NetID can come to the UW Technology Service Center to have their UW NetID password reset. You will be required to show photo identification. Once your identity has been verified, the Service Center staff will give you a temporary UW NetID password that you can then change to something known only to you.
Shared UW NetIDs
Shared UW NetIDs are offered for a variety of uses where a number of people want to share the same UW NetID services.
- Departmental accounts are offered for departmental uses such as public Web sites and role-based email accounts.
- Course accounts are offered for course-related use such as course Web sites and shared management of Catalyst Web Tools.
- Forwarding accounts are offered to provide email forwarding.
Shared UW NetIDs can be requested by going to the Manage UW NetID Resources and selecting the Request other services item in the left column.
Passwords on shared UW NetIDs can be changed by going to the Reset Your Password page.
UW NetIDs for Visitors
If you are UW faculty or staff and you have a visitor who needs access to UW networks, such as for wireless (Wi-Fi), you can assign a temporary UW NetID to the visitor by going to the Wireless Access for Visitors page. Such temporary accounts are for people who need access for a limited period of time.
When a visitor needs longer-term access, any UW faculty or staff member can sponsor a UW NetID for them by using the Sponsored UW NetID Request Form.
Other Types of UW NetIDs
Additional types of UW NetIDs are available for applications (programs) and system administrators:
- Administrative: Available for Windows administrators and server administrators
- Reserved: Available where a specific UW NetID needs to be reserved for a specific UW related use.
- Application: For use by a program or application. Not currently available.
Contact the UW Technology Service Center for more information.
Additional Security on Some Services
Some UW services (such as the UW administrative systems) have additional requirements for access.
Most such services use a "two-factor" authentication system using both "something you know" (a password or PIN) and "something you have" (a secure device that continuously generates new secret values). A two-factor system provides better security than a single-factor system (such as regular UW NetID + password authentication) because the attacker must obtain both the user's password and their device to impersonate them.
If you will be using such a service, your employer will make arrangements for you and give you the equipment and instructions you need.
Policies You Should Know About
- Proper use
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Use of UW NetIDs is subject to federal, state, and UW laws and policy on proper use of these resources.
- Residence hall policies
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UW residence halls have additional Rules for Computing and Networking you should know if you are a student living in one of the halls.
