• McMaster
  • McMaster A-Z Index
• Academics
  • Undergraduate Studies/Programs
  • Graduate Studies/Programs
  • Part-Time Studies & Continuing Education
  • Departments & Faculties
• Alumni
  • About the Alumni Association
  • Alumni Events
  • Services & Benefits
  • Programs for Alumni
  • Alumni Networking
  • Keep in Touch
  • Homecoming
  • Alumni Weekend
  • Students & Young Alumni
  • Giving to McMaster
• Discover McMaster
  • About the Campus
  • Fast Facts
  • Governance
  • History of McMaster
  • How to Get to McMaster
  • Policies, Procedures & Guidelines
  • President's Message
  • Provost & Vice-President (Academic)
  • Strategic Plan
  • Teaching and Learning at McMaster
• Future Students
  • Undergraduate
  • Graduate Studies
  • MBA Program
  • Continuing Education
  • Parents
  • Student Services
  • Virtual Tour
• Library
  • About the Libraries
  • Contact Us
  • Course Reserves
  • Library Catalogue
  • Library Services
  • My Account / Book Renewal
• Research
  • Canada Research Chairs
  • Endowed & Industrial Chairs
  • Ethics in Human Research
  • McMaster Innovation Park
  • Office of International Affairs
  • Partnership Opportunities
  • Research Centres & Institutes
  • Research Policies & Procedures
  • Science in the City
• Current Students
  • Student Affairs
  • Student Resources
    • Chaplaincy
    • Human Rights & Equity
    • Information Technology
    • Office of Academic Integrity
    • Ombuds
    • Parking & Transit
    • Registrar
    • Safety & Security
    • Student Financial Aid & Scholarships
    • Student Accounts
  • Student Government
    • Graduate Students
    • Part-time Students
    • McMaster Students Union
  • Campus Life
    • Clubs
    • Events

University Technology Services

• On Campus Access
• Extended Campus Access
• Access To McMaster from Off Campus
• Accounts for Network Access
• Access to Network Enabled Applications
• UTS Home

On Campus Access
Private office machine - IP registration: The computer in your office must have an IP number assigned to work on the McMaster network. This is a permanently assigned IP number within McMaster’s mcmaster.ca domain name space. If you have a new computer, administrative departments contact their LAN support person; Faculty departments contact their designate.

Private portable machine – roaming access: A notebook computer can be registered to use Dynamic Host Control Protocol (DHCP) instead of a fixed IP number, to be used both in the office and in specific classrooms (cf. Learning Technologies Resource Centre for classroom assistance) or other locations with semi-public data jacks. (This differs from wired MacConnect Network Access, described below, which will become more prevalent in time.) Send email to c-tecnet@mcmaster.ca with name, department, building, room, phone number and e-mail address.

Private office machine off-campus access: Any computer in your office is permitted to access off-campus Internet sites, unless there has been an explicit request to deny access. If the requirement is only occasional, off-campus access can be provided using the web proxy server (cf. next item)

Shared machine off-campus access: The owner can choose to configure the machine for permanent off-campus access as for a private machine, taking responsibility for all who use it, or can choose to leave it as is, and have individuals use the web proxy server. A web proxy account allows the individual using a shared workstation to identify him/herself as a McMaster person enabling off-campus access. The web proxy server then acts as an intermediary, transferring all web traffic between the Internet and the workstation for the duration of the session.

Server accessible to traffic initiated from off-campus: If the workstation provides services for off-campus users, it must be registered in the server exception list, or would otherwise be hidden by the campus firewall (server request).

Server administered from off-campus: If the only reason the server needs to be visible from off-campus is for a few employees to administer the system remotely, do not register it in the server exception list described above, but instead use the VPN Service so that the server remains protected by the firewall from common types of external attack, but is accessible to sysadmin staff, as if they were located on-campus.

Wired MacConnect Network Access: Public area network access ports are available at various locations.These are data jacks where a user can connect to the campus network, and are generally located in common areas such as the University Centre, the Library, or common rooms within the residences. The MacConnect service uses a VPN to authenticate users, and encrypt traffic for security.

Wireless MacConnect Network Access: Wireless network access also uses the MacConnect mechanism and hence the VPN Service to authenticate users and encrypt traffic for security.

Student Computing: The Student Computing Centres are available to all members of the McMaster community, but require an account in order to access. Undergraduate and graduate students can register on MUGSI for lab access; faculty and staff should visit the UTS main office (BSB-245) to obtain an account if they do not already have one, and subsequently contact lab staff to add lab access to the account.

Residence access: Each resident is provided with a data jack to access the network from her/his room (Maconline). Also, a number of public data jacks are attached to the MacConnect service in common rooms.

Campus firewall protection: Unless on the server exception list, workstations on campus are not accessible to traffic initiated from off-campus, but are able to initiate requests & gain responses from off-campus servers, provided they are configured for off-campus access or use the web proxy server, as described above. This default protection from off-campus intrusion is provided by rules on the campus firewall device.

Extended Campus Access
In addition to general Internet and research networks, there is a need to connect regional sites at greater bandwidth than would otherwise be affordable using the Internet, often accomplished using Transparent LAN Services (TLS). Organisations with multiple campuses typically require Municipal Area Network (MAN) connectivity to link satellite locations to a central networking site, which is in turn connected to external networks (through a firewall to enforce traffic control rules). Some Hamilton organisations which use FibreWired Hamilton TLS include: Hamilton Health Sciences and St. Joseph's Health Care to interconnect all hospital sites; the school boards, linking each of school to its respective board office; the City of Hamilton, Hamilton Public Library, and McMaster University.

For McMaster, the University Downtown Centre is linked to central campus using a FibreWired TLS (layer 2 switched vlan), as are CE&B staff located at 105 Main E. and at Henderson Hospital, MMRI staff located on Sandhill Drive in Ancaster, and McMaster staff at 51 Frid Street, logically extending the campus network to these sites as if they were campus buildings. There is also a direct peer connection between Hamilton Health Sciences MUMC network and the McMaster network through their respective firewalls, allowing specified traffic to flow between us without traveling via the Internet or the TLS connection.

Access to McMaster from Off Campus

High speed alternatives: Some options for higher-speed access to the University via the Internet include: Cogeco for cable modem service or Bell for Sympatico High Speed Edition service. (McMaster staff may find that one or other of these companies can provide service to their residence, but service areas are limited.) Again the VPN Service is useful to ensure security, particularly with shared local cable modem traffic.

Accounts for Network Access
UTS Accounts for Access to Network Services answers a set of Frequently Asked Questions.

Access to Network-Enabled Applications
Services most employees require, such as email, web servers, Calendar service, departmental server access, etc. are described in the Services for New Employees page.