Computing Services deactivated the Kiewit Wireless network Tuesday morning in the final step of a campus-wide switch to the encrypted wireless network, Dartmouth Secure. Computing Services said that no unexpected technical issues arose during the transition, although many users required assistance from the student help desk to configure their laptops for the new network,
The College launched Dartmouth Secure in fall 2007 to address security issues with Kiewit Wireless. Dartmouth Secure encodes all information sent over the network and requires users to download a digital certificate in order to connect, in contrast to Kiewit Wireless, which transmitted unencrypted data open to interception from passers-by with appropriate scanning equipment.
Approximately 1,300 users recently switched to Dartmouth Secure, based on the number of digital certificates downloaded in the past few days, according to Frank Archambeault, director of Network Services.
"There was a surge late last week," he said, adding that most students probably waited until just before the shutdown of Kiewit Wireless to change networks.
Many students began seeking technical assistance after Computing Services notified students of the change in an email last Friday, according to Jeffery Hawkins, manager of Academic Consulting Services.
"Within seconds, literally seconds, we had people show up [at the student help desk] asking for help in setting up their computer," he said.
The help desk remained consistently busy since Friday, Hawkins said, but the staff was able to configure most students' computers for the new network relatively quickly and without incident.
"I went today around [11 a.m.] when there was no line," Adam Halpern-Leistner '10 said in an e-mail. "It took 10 minutes."
Hawkins said a few students required more extensive support due to problems with their computers, generally unrelated to the Dartmouth Secure network.
Most students resolved their problems with one visit to the help desk, but a few had to return for additional support.
"They said I was all fixed, but this morning my computer just kept trying to connect and never actually connected to Secure," Amanda Winther-Schorsch '09 said.
Several students waiting in line for the help desk said they had tried to follow the directions for connecting to the Dartmouth Secure network posted on the Computing Services website, but found the document hard to follow.
The directions require a user to visit multiple webpages to access all of the necessary instructions.
"It seemed like a few steps just weren't there," Amanda Bourque '11 said.
Many students who were unable to connect to Dartmouth Secure said they accessed the internet through the Dartmouth Public wireless network instead.
"I couldn't get Dartmouth Secure to work this morning," Heather Kluk '11 said. "I switched to Dartmouth Public, but GreenPrint doesn't work on it."
The College created Dartmouth Public, which is unencrypted and can be accessed by anyone, because nearby Hanover residents had previously relied on Kiewit Wireless for broadband internet access.
Computers connected to Dartmouth Public are not assigned a Dartmouth IP address, denying users access to GreenPrint, the library databases and other services restricted to people affiliated with the College.
Users on Dartmouth Public experience a slower internet connection than users on Dartmouth Secure, as Dartmouth Public is not the primary network.
Computing Services does not advise Dartmouth-affiliated users to regularly connect to Dartmouth Public because of security risks.
The Dartmouth Wireless Portal network was also shut down on Tuesday. When the new wireless networks were launched, users could only download certificates by logging onto to Dartmouth Wireless Portal with their BlitzMail passwords. Students are now able to download certificates while connected via Dartmouth Public.
