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UW Windows Live

IT Connect > Teamwork and Collaboration Tools > Cloud-Based Services > UW Windows Live

Ready to sign up?

Students can sign up now on the Manage UW Windows Live page!

UW Windows Live Services

The University of Washington is partnering with Microsoft to provide a new suite of services to UW students. This new service suite provides:

Outlook Live

Email and Calendaring

UW Outlook Live provides ad-free email and calendaring with 10 GB of storage and continued use of your @u.washington.edu or @uw.edu email address

Messenger

Messenger

Live chat, voice, and video communication on your computer and mobile device

SkyDrive

SkyDrive

Store, access, and share your files anywhere online with 25 GB of storage

Spaces

Spaces

Online workspace for collaboration

Photos

Photos

Tag and share photos and make slideshows

Eligibility and Activation of UW Windows Live

Eligibility

UW students, alumni, and former students are currently eligible to sign up for UW Windows Live services. Services will be made generally available to faculty and staff in early to mid-2010; early service is available upon request to help@uw.edu. UW Medicine clinical faculty and staff are prohibited from forwarding email to cloud services, including this Windows Live service.

Activate

If you are eligible for UW Windows Live services, you can activate your UW Windows Live ID by going to your Manage UW NetID page and clicking on the UW Windows Live link on the left. (The link will only appear for you if you are eligible for the service.)

The activation process is a three-step process:

  1. StepsActions
  2. Read and agree to the Appropriate Use Guidelines.
  3. Create a password for your UW Windows Live ID.
  4. Choose where you would like your email delivered.
Verify

The first time you log in to the UW Windows Live services, you will be required by Microsoft to verify your account and agree to their Terms of Use.

Using UW Windows Live

Access

To access your UW Windows Live services after they have been activated, go to http://home.live.com/ and log in with your UW Windows Live ID. Your UW Windows Live ID is <your UW NetID>@uw.edu. There are links on the UW Windows Live page to access all of the Windows Live services such as SkyDrive, Spaces, and Photos.

UW Outlook Live Email

Access Options

If you want to access your UW Outlook Live Inbox directly, you can connect to https://www.outlook.com/ and log in with your UW Windows Live ID. If you prefer to use a desktop email program or mobile device to access your email, Microsoft has published a list of supported email programs with links to configuration instructions.

Change forwarding

In order to receive incoming email in your UW Outlook Live inbox, you must have your email forwarding set to your UW Outlook Live account. If you chose not to change your email forwarding when you first activated your UW Windows Live account, you can update your email forwarding settings on the Email Forwarding page. To have incoming messages delivered to your UW Outlook Live account, choose the option to deliver incoming UW Email to the UW Outlook Live Inbox for your UW NetID.

Transferring messages

Do not forward or bounce messages from your existing UW Email account to your UW Outlook Live email account in order to transfer them as this could result in email from the UW being blocked by Microsoft.

If you need to transfer existing email messages from your UW Email account to a UW Outlook Live account, here are instructions. (Note: MyUW.net users should use these instructions.) The instructions are intended to be used as a self-service tool and UW Technology will not provide assistance with transferring email.

Changing your UW Windows Live Password

Your UW Windows Live password is separate from your UW NetID password. If you have forgotten your UW Windows Live password or would like to change it, you can do so by logging in to the Manage UW Windows Live page. There is an option at the bottom of that page to Change UW Windows Live Password.

Getting Help

Ending Your UW Windows Live Service

Your UW Windows Live ID cannot be deactivated. You can update your email forwarding so messages are no longer delivered to your UW Outlook Live account by going to the Change UW Email Forwarding page. If you have a need to disable your UW Outlook Live account, please contact UW Technology at help@u.washington.edu or 206-221-5000.

Usage Policies and Guidelines

Regarding the UW's involvement with cloud computing, you should know that:

Privacy and appropriate use

All UW "records" -- which includes all electronic data -- are covered by many federal and state laws and regulations, and by state and UW policies. No matter whether your email or other records are hosted within the UW or externally (in the cloud), you are responsible for complying with official UW policies, standards, and guidelines regarding electronic records.

  • Please refer to the University's Data Security Standards for a deeper description of relevant data security standards (including the three categories of "confidential," "restricted," and "public").
  • See the Know the Rules section of the Safe and Secure Web page for the relevant laws.

Please refer to our Policy page for detailed information and links to specific UW policy and relevant laws.

Forbidden uses

There are two types of data for which cloud-based services cannot be used: health-care (HIPAA-protected) and Export-Controlled. Be sure to read the Appropriate Use page for more details.