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September 2003 Update

Included on this page: Quick Takes (full details follow)

Technology Advisory Committees Formed

Three new technology advisory committees are being initiated to provide advice and guidance to the university on information technology planning, policies, and services. Two of the committees have already been appointed and the other will be appointed by early Autumn Quarter.

The committees are being established in response to discussions among the Board of Deans, university administrators, the Board of Regents, and others who endorsed an effort to achieve better cooperation, communication, and coordination on university-wide technology issues, strategies, and policies.

The three new committees are:

  • University Technology Advisory Committee (U-TAC)
    • Advises on: All technology issues, strategies, and priorities of importance to the UW
    • Advisory to: UW President, Provost, Executive Vice President, and Vice President for Computing and Communications
    • Appointed by: UW President
    • Chaired by: Acting Provost David Thorud; primarily composed of members of the Academic Technology Advisory Committee (A-TAC) and the Information Technology Advisory Committee (I-TAC) (see below)
    • Status: Members appointed; first meeting held in June


  • Academic Technology Advisory Committee (A-TAC)
    • Advises on: Academic technology issues, strategies, and priorities
    • Advisory to: Primarily U-TAC; also provides guidance to the Provost and Vice President for Computing and Communications
    • Appointed by: UW President
    • Chaired by: Michael Eisenberg, Dean of the Information School
    • Status: Appointment process underway


  • Information Technology Advisory Committee (I-TAC)
    • Advises on: Administrative, student services, and UW Medicine technology issues, strategies, and priorities
    • Advisory to: Primarily U-TAC; also provides guidance to the Executive Vice President and other appropriate vice presidents
    • Appointed by: UW President
    • Chaired by: Executive Vice President Weldon Ihrig
    • Status: Members have been appointed and the committee will hold its first meeting on September 29

Junk Email (Spam) Filtering Update

More than 7,000 people are now using the UW email spam filter, which helps people control the amount of junk email they receive. The filter is deleting a total of about 45,000 junk email messages a day. Most of the feedback C&C receives indicates that the spam filter is of significant help to those who try this service.

While no spam filtering tool is perfect, work continues on improvements. C&C is planning to provide a link to the junk email filter from MyUW to make it easier for people to find.

For more information: http://www.washington.edu/computing/email/spamfilter.html


Security Update

New Network Security Option (Project 172)

C&C has developed an additional networking option for devices that need to be connected to the network but do not need Internet access to sites outside the UW.

This option is aimed at providing an additional level of insulation from external Internet attacks for computers, printers, and other devices that are vulnerable to compromise by hackers. Such systems, once compromised, can be used to launch attacks on computer systems both within and outside the university.

Under the new option, devices are assigned private Internet addresses that allow them to communicate with all computers on the campus network, but not outside of it, except through a proxy or special translation service. The advantage is that computers or other devices with private addresses are not visible externally, and are thus less likely to be probed or attacked from external sources. This option is called project 172 because the private Internet addresses being used begin with that number.

After a successful internal testing this spring and many discussions with UW computing directors and computing support staff, C&C is now offering this private address option to interested departments. The option is available to UW Seattle and UW Tacoma. The option is not available to UW Bothell because UW Bothell connects to the Seattle campus network through the statewide K-20 network, and is thus part of a different "routing domain."

Several departments have expressed interest. C&C is currently deploying a "Web proxy server" so that workstations with these private addresses may access Internet Web sites and Web-based applications in addition to all UW resources. C&C is also exploring network address translation mechanisms to permit use of a larger set of applications including remote file sharing and Virtual Private Network services (VPNs), while still isolating these devices from attack.

The use of private addresses, however, does not provide protection against insider attacks. Therefore, efforts to make every device attached to the network "network safe" continue to be essential. We also strongly urge some form of desktop configuration management system.

For more information: http://www.washington.edu/networking/p172/

To use the 172 option, contact: ndc-noc@cac.washington.edu for 172 address assignments and DNS registration

Major Effort to Fight Windows Security Risk

C&C and departmental computing staff launched a major effort in late July and August to combat a vulnerability on Windows computers that left computers worldwide open to attack by the "Blaster" worm and other exploits.

Computers using Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, 2000, and XP operating systems and Windows Server 2003 are at risk until a Microsoft patch is applied. Computers with earlier versions of Windows or other operating systems are not vulnerable.

UW-wide efforts to tackle this problem have included:

  • Securing UW Central and Departmental Servers: Servers running Windows were immediately updated with the appropriate patch.
     
  • Sending Emails & Alerts: On July 31, email was sent to all faculty, staff, and students alerting them to the problem and the need to apply the patch. The first of several email messages was also sent to departmental computing staff to keep them informed of what C&C was doing. Support staff from around the campus participated in many informed and lively discussions to help us all understand the problems and come up with solutions.
     
  • Disconnecting Compromised Computers: Hundreds of compromised computers were disconnected from the network while departmental computing staff worked into the nights and weekends to get the machines fixed and reconnected.
     
  • Scanning & Patching: Initial scans showed that there were hundreds of computers online at the UW that were likely infected. Then the more aggressive scans of UW computers were launched, finding almost a thousand vulnerable systems that needed to be patched. More vulnerable systems were found each following day as people came back to work.
     
  • Blocking Ports: The most popular network ports for exploiting this vulnerability were blocked. This action has proven useful in reducing the exposure of vulnerable systems to compromise and of compromised systems to further exploit. However, it has also made several services, such as Windows file sharing and certain Microsoft Exchange services, inaccessible from off-campus. C&C has been in continuous communication with departmental computing staff to discuss the impacts of this action and other possible approaches.
     
  • Help for Returning Students: The problem continues and is expected to get worse as people return to campus this month. Steps are being taken to help returning students, including giving away free copies of the UW Internet Connectivity Kit (UWICK) CD with the appropriate security patches and setting up several stations around campus where students can have their computers tested and get help.

Other developments:

  • At Other Universities: Universities all over the country have been hit, including those with central firewalls blocking their borders. At Stanford about 10 percent of some 20,000 desktop computers running Windows were hacked, according to The Mercury News.
     
  • Managed Desktops Fare Better: Departments and units with well-managed desktops had far fewer vulnerable and compromised computers, underscoring the importance of having well-managed desktops with updated security patches.

Experience from this and previous attacks is being used in planning for future university-wide notification methods, including the need for advance review and consultation with departmental computing staff.

More information about the Windows vulnerability: http://www.washington.edu/computing/alerts/rpc_alert.html


Nebula Bronze: Lower-Cost Option for Managed Desktops

C&C is now offering a new, lower-cost, managed desktop option, Nebula Bronze, designed for departments that want some of the most critical desktop services, including security patches and backup, managed centrally.

The full-service managed desktop option, Nebula Gold, is also available. Nebula Gold provides a full spectrum of desktop support services. Currently more than 90 UW departments are taking advantage of Nebula Gold service for over 2000 computers.

We welcome the opportunity to work with units to tailor an approach that meets their individual needs.

For more information: http://www.washington.edu/nebula/description.html


Data Warehousing Program Underway

A new program is underway that is aimed at meeting the university's growing needs for accurate and timely information. Currently, much of the data needed to create that information is locked in central administrative systems where it is both difficult and expensive to retrieve.

The Data Warehousing Program (DWP) is a university-wide effort with a strategic focus on developing an efficient and sustainable technical, data, and support infrastructure that will:

  • Provide access to data, promoting user empowerment and responsibility and delivering business value in support of the university's academic, research, and service missions.
  • Provide an integrated, sustainable, and strategic central resource of data with standard data access and delivery approaches.

The DWP supports the concept that quality data and information are valuable university assets and should be managed accordingly. The DWP will be developed iteratively over time. Currently the DWP is focusing on technical and data infrastructure and building warehouses that provide access to human resources, student, and financial data. Human resources data is the most complete component within the DWP. Student data and financial data are in early stages of development.


DigitalWell Used by Units on Campus

Several units and departments are now testing a new Web-based tool called DigitalWell. Developed by C&C, DigitalWell provides a way for colleges, schools, and departments to store and deliver large collections of digital content--documents, photos, multimedia, and streaming audio and video (including high-definition).

The Department of Computer Science & Engineering is using the tool to store recorded lectures for on-demand use in its classes. Odegaard Undergraduate Library and Classroom Support Services plan to use the tool to store 1500 hours of video for use in classes. A health sciences research group is looking into using DigitalWell to store MRI, CAT scan, and tomography images.

DigitalWell is a collaborative effort between C&C, Educational Partnerships & Learning Technologies, KEXP, ResearchChannel, and UWTV.

Departments interested in exploring the possibility of a pilot should contact Tom Lewis, Director of the Ed-Tech Development Group, at tomlewis@u.washington.edu The tool is expected to be available for university-wide use sometime in 2004.

For more information: http://digitalwell.org/


Network Support Services for UW Medicine Unified

C&C and UW Medicine are expanding their partnership, with C&C assuming responsibility for all UW Medicine network support services. This change will unify network support for all UW Medicine entities, including the School of Medicine, UW and Harborview medical centers, and UW Physicians Neighborhood Clinics.

Up until now, C&C has provided only backbone network services and external Internet connectivity for the medical centers, but full network support for the School of Medicine and other health science facilities.

Anticipated benefits of this change include:

  • Improved competitiveness for advanced research and clinical initiatives
  • Improved real-time responsiveness for clinical operations
  • Better alignment of campus and UW Medicine tactical and strategic directions
  • Improved network performance

For more information: http://www.washington.edu/networking/medcenter.html


New Web Page of C&C Contacts

A new Web page has been developed that is aimed at making it easier to find contacts within C&C for specific services and figure out where to go for help. The Web page was developed in response to feedback from deans and others requesting an easier way to identify contacts within C&C.

The Web page can be viewed at http://www.washington.edu/computing/contacts.html We welcome comments and suggestions on how to improve the page and make it more useful.