The College plans to replace its current single wireless network with four separate networks, allowing Dartmouth to make its wireless access for students and staff secure, while still providing internet access to the local public. The changeover is ongoing and should be completed by late December.
The four new networks are called Dartmouth Secure, Dartmouth Wireless Portal, Dartmouth Public and Dartmouth Library Public. All are currently active and accessible, though all but Dartmouth Public require varying levels of security authentication.
Dartmouth privatized its network in response to both a student-conducted security assessment and recent legislation that required universities to classify their networks as either public or private for wiretapping law enforcement purposes.
As many local residents have come to rely on Dartmouth-provided internet access, the new Dartmouth Public and Dartmouth Public Library networks will still provide public wireless service for anyone present on campus. Dartmouth Public provides internet access only, while Dartmouth Public Library will allow library patrons access to Dartmouth's digital library resources.
Dartmouth Wireless Portal exists to allow students, faculty and staff to download the credentials to access Dartmouth Secure. Technical Services advises members of the Dartmouth community not to use this network for other uses, as it has limited security.
Access to Dartmouth Secure is restricted to students, faculty and staff of the College. This network provides internet access with a securely encrypted wireless signal. According to a Dartmouth press release, Ellen Waite-Franzen, vice president for information technology, recommends that faculty, staff and students use Dartmouth Secure, for it is the College's most secure network.
"Many users of the Dartmouth network are transmitting sensitive information," David Bucciero, director of Technical Services, said. "They're doing online banking, they're using credit cards or similar things."
He explained that without encryption, a passerby with the right scanning equipment can pick up any information being transmitted between a user's computer and a wireless access point. With secure encryption, the data is transmitted in a coded form and can only be decoded by a recipient who is identified by a digital certificate.
In order to identify themselves to the secure network, users will also need to provide a digital certificate. Users may either install a Public Key Infrastructure certificate directly on their computer or use an eToken. An eToken is a small device that connects to a computer's USB port. The eToken stores a PKI certificate and can be moved from computer to computer.
Members of the Class of 2011 who purchased their computers through Dartmouth received an eToken at computer distribution and their computers were pre-configured to connect to the Dartmouth Secure network. All freshmen were required to attend a computer information session during orientation during which the use of eTokens and the Dartmouth Secure network was explained.
"This was the first year that the eToken distribution was really well organized," Derek Hoffman, manager of the student computer help desk, said. He added that eTokens were also distributed to members of the Classes of 2009 and 2010, but attendence at the orientation computer information session was not mandatory. As using an eToken was not essential for wireless access, many students either chose not to use them or were unsure of their purpose.
Any student who did not buy a computer package through Dartmouth did not receive an eToken, but they can be purchased at Computer Sales and Services for $20 for members of the Class of 2011 and $40 for everyone else.
Although most members of the Class of 2011 were informed about the Dartmouth Secure network, many have had problems accessing it. Hoffman said that the staff of the help desk discovered that many new computers were improperly configured at the factory and that Dartmouth servers were occasionally issuing invalid PKI certificates.
"The line [for the help desk] was all the way down the [Baker-Berry library] stairs," Hoffman said.
Zachary Stolzenberg '11 was one of the many students waiting in line.
"[The help desk staff] finally helped me connect to Dartmouth Secure and my internet worked at Computing [services]."
When he returned to his dormitory in the McLaughlin cluster, however, Stolzenberg said that he and several other students in his building discovered that the wireless no longer worked.
"I now just keep my ethernet cable plugged in when I'm at my dorm," he said.
Though many students are still relying on Kiewit Wireless, that network will be shut down at the end of the changeover, estimated to be in late December or early January.
Technical Services encourages any students with questions about the changes to read the list of frequently asked questions and answers complied on the Computing Services website or to contact the student help desk.
