IT Information for New Users

IT Induction

The IT Induction document (PDF) includes some initial/background info for new users, e.g. account closure, privacy info, systems and storage available, green IT, personal machines, getting IT help and basic safety.

IT Notices and Policies

IT notices, including various policies and rules can be found in IT Notices & Policies. In particular, see:

• Departmental IT policy
• Information security policy
• University guidance on the use of generative AI systems such as ChatGPT
• IT support service policy

Which Account To Use

Your Maths IT account (normally your surname or a variant of it – bloggs, bloggsj, bloggsj1, etc.) is used to log into:

• Managed departmental desktop computers (including Windows, Linux and macOS)
• Remote Access Portal, X2Go, SSH
• Nextcloud
• The Mathematical Institute website
• Some other departmental websites/applications

Your university SSO account (usually in the format abcd1234@OX.AC.UK) is used to log into:

• Nexus365 email (Outlook)
• The Maths Course Materials Hub (Moodle)
• Various other websites/applications across the university

Your university Remote Access account (in the format @email, but with a separate password) is used to log into eduroam Wi-Fi.

If you have a department-provided laptop, you will be provided the initial login details when you receive it and asked to set your own password, which is independent of your other accounts.

Separate accounts may be required for services provided by other departments/colleges.

IT Help and Guides

Further information about the Maths IT systems and obtaining support for them can be found in the IT section of the website - in particular, in the FAQs / Guides subsection.

Items of particular interest to a new user might be:

• Contacting Maths IT Support
• Connecting to the Wi-Fi network
• Change your Maths IT account password
• Change your out of hours access PIN
• Communication and email
• University Nexus365 (Microsoft) email system
• Legacy Zimbra email system (closing October 2025)
• Set an alternative/emergency external email address
• Email security and phishing advice
• Email and Teams safety tips
• Sharing & transmitting information securely
• Website profile and personal pages
• Desktop green IT power management system
• Machines available
• Printers available
• Scanners available
• Compute facilities
• Remote access to IT services
• Broadband connection speed tester (external)
• Basic UNIX guide
• Disk quotas and scratch disks
• LaTeX
• Software for personal machines
• Departmental electronic mailing lists
• IT purchasing guidance

Account Expiry and Extension

When your account is created an expiry date is set. At 28, 7 and 1 days prior to this expiry date an email is sent to the account to remind you it is expiring and to provide info on how to ask for an extension if required.