Academic Computing Lab Support

Overview

This is a Service Level Agreement ("SLA") between the campus community and ITS to document (approved 8/2010):

• Responsibilities in supporting and managing technology in academic computing labs
• Procedures for planning, service requests and incident reporting

Service Description

A computing lab is a facility where computer workstations are provided for use by students for classroom or individual work. UW-Whitewater has more than 70 academic computing labs that are used by students and faculty for scheduled courses, project work, and open access. ITS is responsible for managing lab workstations in a way to provide student access to academic resources, while at the same time protecting workstation integrity for all users sharing the lab facility. Lab services (software access, printing, storage) are available to students and faculty through a Net-ID login.

ITS provides support services to departments in the planning, implementation and maintenance of computers and peripherals in computing labs. ITS services include planning and consultation, hardware installation, software installation and updates, asset tracking, network printing services, workstation security, usage statistics, and problem diagnosis and resolution. Currently supported platforms: Windows and Macintosh OS.

Roles & Responsibilities

Each computing lab should have a designated lab owner or contact, identified by the academic department. In some cases, the college's technical liaison will serve this role. ITS will work directly with lab owners to plan, purchase, deploy and manage lab technology and software.

Planning and Consultation

Lab Owner Responsibilities:

• Contact ITS in the initial stages of planning for new or remodeled labs, before specific products or technology solutions have been considered.
• Begin the planning process at least four to five months before the new lab is to be used.
• Identify instructional requirements for the lab
• Provide funding for equipment, software, and connectivity requirements
• Identify strategy and provide funding for securing lab equipment.
• Provide a rationale for software needs that duplicate the functionality of software already licensed for departmental or general access labs.

ITS Responsibilities:

• Provide checklist to assist in gathering customer requirements
• Determine network connectivity options and costs, with recommendation
• Identify options (single use vs. concurrent use)and costs for software licensing, with recommendations
• Identify options and costs for lab printing, with recommendation
• Provide options and cost for other lab requirements, such as media and presentation systems, computer equipment, print release monitoring and workstation security.
• Process the equipment and software purchases
• Coordinate work with FP&M, if required

Software Funding

The campus provides funding for enterprise software for departmental labs, while the remainder of the software is the responsibility of the academic department.

Campus provides the following software for academic labs:

• Operating system upgrade licenses
• Microsoft Office suite of applications
• SPSS statistical analysis software for Windows
• Anti-virus and workstation security software
• Standard set of tools such as device drivers, media players, application readers and codecs
• Software to monitor concurrent license usage
• Workstation management and lab usage software
• Adobe Creative Cloud Suite of applications

Department responsibilities for software funding:

• Operating system license, as part of the workstation purchase
• Discipline-specific software
• Print management software licenses (Pharos)

Hardware and Software Installation

ITS delivers and installs lab computer equipment and software. ITS is also responsible for the removal and disposal of old computer equipment, through the campus equipment surplus process.

Lab software is deployed through a standard campus image and packaged application installers. Installers for discipline-specific or individually licensed software will be provided on a per-lab basis. ITS will require verification of licensing in order to install software. Custom lab configurations for desktop wallpaper, menus and start menu shortcuts can be developed for Windows; custom configurations for the Macintosh Dock icons can be provided.

In order to best prepare labs for the start of each semester, ITS asks lab owners to make requests for software installation prior to the end of the previous semester. While ITS will install software during the semester for needs that cannot wait for the next semester, we anticipate these situations to be the exception.

For lab printing, ITS supports two solutions: Windows or MacOS network printing with server-based queue management, or the Pharos Uniprint system, which provides functionality for print release and usage reporting.

Lab Owner Responsibilities:

• Coordinate with ITS for the delivery of new computer equipment
• Identify software requirements for the lab, along with custom configurations
• Submit requests in advance for software changes or updates, in order to guarantee availability for the start of the semester:
• For fall semester, submit requests by end of April
• For spring semester and Winterim, submit requests by end of November
• During the semester, allow a minimum of three weeks to add or upgrade software. If the software is new to the campus environment or has specialized functionality, allow an additional two weeks for the lab owner to test and verify the installation.
• Consult with ITS in spring semester to determine an appropriate summer update schedule for the lab.
• Provide verification of software licensing, including proof of purchase and license code, type of license (single use, concurrent use, departmental or site license), quantity of licenses, and perpetual vs. annual renewal
• Test installation of special-purpose or discipline-specific software for full functionality and report problems promptly to ITS at least two weeks prior to when the software is scheduled to be used to allow sufficient time for resolution.

ITS Responsibilities:

• Deliver and install computers, printers and other peripherals, including security cables.
• Ensure network connectivity to lab workstations
• Deploy software using the campus image and packaged application installers.
• Set up and deploy workstation policies
• Set up network printers and the workstation print solution
• Establish default workstation permissions at the user level, along with workstation security tools, to maintain the integrity of the software environment for shared workstations
• Document software licensing information
• Setup concurrent use management tools for software license monitoring, as appropriate

Maintenance and Support

ITS provides on-going maintenance and support for lab equipment and software. In addition to problem troubleshooting and diagnosis, ITS distributes OS and application updates on a regular basis.

Lab Owner Responsibilities:

• Open and close the lab, and monitor daily operation of lab and lab equipment.
• Provide for physical access to the room, and room security.
• Powering equipment on and off.
• Consult with ITS prior to equipment relocation or redeployment.
• Report issues with the standard operation of lab hardware or software to the Techology Service Center (TSC - 4357).
• Some lab owners may opt to have an opportunity to perform initial troubleshooting prior to reporting incidents to the TSC. In this case, a separate addendum to this agreement will be signed, and the lab owners will be provided with a special lab Net-ID with administrative privileges.
• Provide orientation and training to faculty on the use of the lab technology and software.

ITS Responsibilities:

• Distribute OS and software application updates
• Diagnose and resolve lab incidents as reported to the TSC.
• Provide loaner equipment for immediate or short-term (less than one semester) solutions to equipment problems.
• Monitor tools used for workstation management services, such as OS and software deployment, software license management, anti-virus and security, and print management.
• Provide inventory reports, usage statistics and print statistics to lab owners annually.
• Develop plans for summer work, such as new equipment setup, software cleanup, re-imaging and installation of new software versions, and removal of old equipment to surplus.
• Provide orientation and documentation for lab owners regarding the workstation management process.

Requesting ITS Services

In Scope Services

• Planning and consultation
• Purchasing equipment and software
• Setup of computer equipment and security devices
• Installation and maintenance of software
• Workstation Management
• Asset tracking and software license management
• Incident diagnosis and resolution

Out of Scope Services

• Opening and closing of the lab, and daily lab operation
• Providing physical access to the lab facility
• Scheduling the lab
• Training students in lab use
• Scheduling and managing student lab employees

Service requests for academic computing labs should be made by the lab owner or department administrator to the ITS TSC. Examples of service requests are:

• Planning for changes in lab functionalit
• Software installation or upgrade
• Adding, removing, or relocating equipment
• Information about software licensing and availability Information about lab functionality
• Information about pricing and purchasing of equipment and software
• Special event planning

Equipment or software malfunctions in the computing labs should be reported to the Technology Service Center (472-4357). Response will be prioritized on a three level scale.

Hours of Coverage and Escalation Procedures

Service Requests

The Helpdesk is the first point of contact for requests and problems.

Phone Number: 472-HELP (472-4357) or helpdesk@uww.edu

The hours during academic sessions are

Monday-Thursday: 7:30 AM - 9 PM

Fridays: 7:30 AM - 5:00 PM

Check Get Help for summer and extended hours.

Requests for new service will be handled during normal business hours.

If a department/division does not receive a contact within the specified time for their Impact Level, an email should be sent to sla-ICIT@uww.edu.

Fees and Expenses

ITS services for the support of academic department labs, as described in this document, do not have associated fees.

Related Documents

• General Access Computing Lab Support SLA
• Surplus Equipment Processing SLA
• Software Acquisition and Installation SLA