ITNSHELP

Information Technology Network Support (ITNS)
Virginia Institute of Marine Science

Desktop Support Service Level Agreement
May 9, 2002

Desktop Systems Support

A Desktop System will be defined as a desktop or laptop PC or Macintosh computer and associated peripheral devices.

ITNS endorses the purchase of business-class systems rather than home-class systems. A business-class system is designed to be connected to a heavily networked environment. A business-class system is built with proven technology and the components do not change over the lifecycle of the system model. A business-class system is designed to be a stable system with a long lifecycle, while at the same time providing maximum serviceability and manageability. All of these issues help to lower the Total Cost of Ownership (TCO).

The Secretary of Technology of the Commonwealth of Virginia is mandating that State agencies be able to justify that purchased or leased computer systems provide the lowest TCO available. One of the proven ways to reduce TCO is to choose only business-class systems and limit the number of system and configuration choices. This greatly simplifies the support of computer systems.

New Systems

ITNS limits its priority support to the following hardware systems:

• Dell Optiplex desktop, Precision workstation, and Latitude laptop systems
• Gateway E-series desktop systems and Solo laptop systems
• Apple iMac, iBook, G4 and PowerBook systems

These choices have been selected based on the manufacturer definition of business-class systems. All three choices are based on existing VASCUPP contracts. The Dell and Gateway systems come with three-year on-site hardware warranties.

ITNS limits priority support to the following operating systems:

• Windows 2000 Service Pack 2 on all PC systems
• At of June 2002, ITNS has not completed the testing and evaluation of Windows XP Pro. It is anticipated that Windows XP Pro will become the recommended operating system in the future.
• Windows XP Home does not support Domain Authentication and therefore will not be supported on the VIMS network
• Mac OS 9.x and Mac OS 10.1.x both ship on all Apple systems
• At this time ITNS has very limited knowledge and experience with the Mac OS 10 Operating System environment

The additional requirement for priority support is that the systems must be set-up by ITNS before they are connected to the network. The setup will include:

• Ensure that the Operating System is properly installed and configured
• Giving the user account of the owner administrative rights to install software, printer drivers, software updates, etc without the required involvement of ITNS.
  Note: The person who is installing the software, printer drivers, or software updates will be responsible for ensuring that they follow the proper guidelines for the installation based on compatibility issues and software installation procedures.
• Assigning a unique IP address for the system and properly configuring all network settings
• Installation of the College of William & Mary site licensed version of Norton Anti-Virus software
• Installation of Netscape 6.x. Users of the computer may then select whether they wish to use Microsoft Internet Explorer (which preinstalled with the Windows or Mac OS) or Netscape as their Internet browser.
• Ensure that the College of William & Mary site licensed version of Eudora is properly installed. Users of the computer may then select whether they wish to use Microsoft's Outlook or Eudora as their POP mail client.
• Ensure that WS_FTP (on the PC) or Fetch (on the Mac) is properly installed for file transfer
• The owner of the system may also wish to ask ITNS to assist with the installation of other software products. These might be products that are available via site license (such as ESRI, SAS, SPSS, Matlab) or for which the owner has purchased a license such as Microsoft Office.
  Note: Each department is responsible for ensuring that their systems have the proper licensing for each software package installed.
• ITNS will assist in the migration of all data from an old system to a new system.

ITNS must approve all computer system purchase requests. Choosing the right system is more than a technology decision - budget, lifecycle, stability and overall TCO are key elements of any choice. If your computing requirements cannot be met with one of the endorsed systems, then special justification is required.

If justified, unendorsed systems still need to be set up by ITNS before they are connected to the network. ITNS will:

• Provide two hours of support time to ensure that the system can connect to the VIMS network.
• If problems arise, the owner will be asked to resolve those problems with the vendor supplying the computer system.
• ITNS can then be informed that the problems have been resolved. ITNS will then provide an additional two hours to the setup and network connection of the system.
• If at that point the system will not properly connect to the network it will be banned from VIMS network.

ITNS reserves the right to disconnect any system from the VIMS network if it is disruptive to the network or other devices on the network. Systems with priority support will receive immediate attention to resolve the problem. Other systems will be placed in the help request queue and remain disconnected from the network until the problem is resolved.

Existing Systems

An existing system is defined as a system that was purchased by VIMS and installed prior to May 2002 or systems that are brought to VIMS to be connected to the VIMS network.

Any systems purchased by VIMS in the 4 years prior to May 2002, that meet the minimum system requirements, will be designated priority support systems.

The minimum PC based system that ITNS will work on is a Pentium 150 (or equivalent) with 64 MB of RAM, 2 GB hard disk and an Ethernet interface if it is to be network connected. The system must be running the Windows 98SE operating system or newer. DOS, Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows ME and Windows XP Home Edition are not supported.

The minimum Macintosh system must be a PowerPC based system with 32 MB of memory, 1 GB hard disk and a built-in Ethernet interface. The operating system must be Mac OS 8.x or newer.

These minimum requirements will be increased on an annual basis as per the Replacement Schedule table.

If ITNS is requested to resolve a problem with these systems, ITNS would apply appropriate operating system upgrades. For instance, Windows 98 would be upgraded to Windows 98SE. Windows NT would be upgraded to Service Pack 6a. Windows 2000 would be upgraded to Service Pack 2. ITNS would advise that any system capable of running Windows 2000 be upgraded to Windows 2000 with appropriate licensing. Since standards have changed over time, ITNS may chose to alter the existing setup of these systems to adhere to current setup standards prior to investigating and resolving any reported problem.

If ITNS is called upon to fix a problem or connect a system that does not meet these standards, ITNS will advise the owner on the upgrade and/or replacement options, including costs. For Institute-owned machines, the owner/department would be responsible for the cost of ITNS recommended hardware and software upgrades. ITNS would install recommended upgrades without charge.

For individually owned machines used at VIMS, the owner would be responsible for the cost of the upgrades and getting the upgrades installed.

Support of Peripheral Devices

The most common peripheral device that is hitched to desktop systems or network connected is a printer. ITNS is primarily familiar with HP printers. ITNS requires that network connected printers be compatible with the HP Jet Admin configuration and management system.

Devices that connect via the USB port on PC and Mac systems and the Firewire port on Mac systems are generally easily supported. This requires Windows 98SE or Windows 2000 to be running on PC systems and a device driver for the operating system. It is the responsibility of the individual purchasing a peripheral device other than from Dell, Gateway or Apple to make sure that the peripheral is compatible with your system.

Users should request assistance via the VIMS web page by filling out an ITNS help request form, found as a "Quick Link" on the VIMS web page.

Please provide all the requested information to assure that ITNS is best able to understand the problem and respond appropriately.

In addition to doing desktop system support, the Desktop Support staff is also called upon to move, add and change telephone equipment, network wiring and equipment installations, and Vend-a-Card maintenance. If there is a major network failure, Desktop Support staff is called upon to assist the restoration of network services as a first priority, because such a problem affects many people, not a single customer.

Customers will be best served by working in conjunction with ITNS Support Services. Some customer responsibilities are:

• Maintain up to date virus protection. Your virus protection software is scheduled should be scheduled to update every day. If there is a known new virus attack, one should do a manual virus update prior to reading their mail. Do not disable the virus protection software or remove it from your system.
• Backup critical data on your local system
• Keep your logon password secret and secure.
• Report problems and request help promptly. Don't wait until a problem becomes a crisis. Often computers give warning signs that there is a problem. Fixing a problem in the early stages may avoid a disaster later, such as a disk failure with data loss.
• If you have ordered a new system, let ITNS know a few days in advance, so that ITNS can respond to your system set-up request in a timely manner when the system arrives.
• Do not allow dial-in access to your computer. Dial-in access allows hackers access to your system and possibly to the rest of the systems on the VIMS network once they break into your system.
• If you do not feel comfortable installing software on your system, contact ITNS to assist you with the installation or have ITNS perform the installation for you.

ITNS is called upon to provide a wide range of services in addition to the installation and support of desktop systems. Customers may require:

• Better network access for a building location
• Implementation of a server system
• Placement and/or backup of a large critical data resource
• Implementation, maintenance and upgrade of a major application system, such as the Library's BRS search engine
• Implementation of a large specialized information technology resource, such as the Publication's department high volume printer system
• Design and implementation of a web based application

Such services typically fall outside the purview of the desktop support systems group other than enabling desktop system to access specialized systems. Services of this type typically require research, consultation, planning and implementation assistance. These service requests will be treated as individual projects and will involve appropriate programmer/analyst and systems engineers from the ITNS staff. Timelines will be determined as part of individual project plans. ITNS will work with individuals and groups to make sure that the equipment selected is compatible with the VIMS network environment. ITNS will work with VIMS customers or with a selected implementation vendor to make sure that the system is implemented so that:

• The equipment and software does not negatively impact the VIMS network environment
• The equipment and software will interface properly with other intended devices in the VIMS network environment
• The equipment and software is implemented such that does not present a security threat to the VIMS network environment

Minimum requirements for computer systems at VIMS.Systems with processor speeds listed in the 'replace' column will no longer be supported by ITNS at the end of that fiscal year.