IT Services over the Christmas vacation period
IT Support will be closed from Friday 22 December 4pm, we will reopen at 9am on Tuesday 2 January.
Our support services will be available as normal up until this date. Any changes to our opening hours will be posted on our IT Support page.
During our planned closure over Christmas, IT Services staff will continue to monitor services remotely and will respond to any IT emergencies.
Please check the IT status page for information on any University-wide issues.
If you think your university account or device has been compromised or other activity of security concern is taking place, email cert@york.ac.uk. Please note, this email address must only be used for cyber security emergencies.
Answers to any non urgent issues can be found on our support pages.
Two-factor authentication
If you change your mobile phone over the vacation period make sure to update your two-factor authentication.
Duo
- Guidance if you’ve changed your phone but kept your old phone number
- Guidance if you’ve changed your phone and got a new phone number
International students
If you are returning home will your mobile phone number change?
If yes, you can add more than one telephone or device number to make sure that your two factor authentication method still works whilst you’re at home.
Adding a new number
For Duo two-factor authentication:
For Google two-factor authentication:
Things to do before your vacation
There’s a few things we’d recommend you do before you start your break, in case you need to use your IT account for anything. We've made a list - check it twice!
Know your University password
If you’ve received an email telling you that your University password will expire over the Christmas break, we’d recommend that you change your password now so that you don’t get locked out of your account.
Don't follow links in unexpected emails that tell you to change your password, that your account needs reactivating or that your account is due to close.
To change your University password follow these instructions:
If your password has expired recently, then you can log in to the Identity Manager and you’ll be prompted to change it. Once you’ve changed it, you’ll be able to access the rest of your account again.
Check your two-factor authentication works
Make sure that your two-factor authentication (2FA) is working correctly.
Duo
Make sure your registered phone number is up-to-date by logging in to the Duo SelfService Console. This will allow you to receive passcodes by text message if you have issues using the Duo Mobile app.
If you get a new phone, you can use Duo Restore (or your phone number - if you still have the same number) to get it working on your new device:
Generate a set of backup codes from Google so that you can use these if you have problems logging in to your account with 2FA (also called 2-Step Verification by Google). Keep these backup codes in a safe place.
If you get a new phone, follow these steps to update your 2FA settings in your Google account:
Top tip! It's best to make sure that your two-factor authentication is working on your new phone before you reset/wipe your old phone.
Further information and troubleshooting guidance on 2FA can be found on our website:
Learn how to recogonise phishing emails
Phishing emails are fake email messages that claim to be from an organisation that you may trust (eg universities or banks). Often they ask you to provide your personal details by replying or clicking a link. They may suggest you'll lose your account if you don't do so.
Follow our guidance to stay safe:
If you receive a phishing email, report it! This will help Google to block similar scam emails in the future:
Update your security questions
Log in to the Identity Manager with your username and password to update your security questions.
You can use your security questions to reset your password if you forget it.
If you use a managed laptop
Make sure you can log in to your managed laptop successfully. And don’t forget your charger!
You can install lots of commonly-used software through Software Center:
If you find that you need to change your password follow the steps on this page:
If you're on campus over the break
Make sure the devices you use can connect successfully to the University network:
You can print directly to the PrintCloud from a computer, tablet or smartphone:
If you're working away from campus
You can still access many of our services, including email, filestores and software:
If you plan on using the University VPN or the Virtual Desktop Service, please set it up in advance so you can check it is working correctly.
For students and staff visiting China, our China Connect service can be used to access University services, Google and other websites needed for teaching, learning and research.
Help save energy
Please remember to switch off your computer, and other equipment like monitors and docking stations, if you know that you won't be using them (including accessing it via Remote Desktop)