Changes to Remote Desktop Access for Faculty and Staff
From time to time, the University evaluates its cyber security landscape and adjusts security practices accordingly. Recently, ITS was made aware of a need to tighten up access to University resources from off campus. To meet that end we will be implementing Virtual Private Network (VPN) as a new layer of protection before an off campus user can use Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to their office computer. A VPN is a technology that creates a private, encrypted tunnel for your online activity making it much more difficult for anyone to watch or monitor what you are doing online.
To install VPN on the remote, or off campus computer, please go to https://vpn.hartford.edu and download the appropriate client for your PC or Macintosh. You will use your regular email username and password for this download. When accessing campus, run the VPN software first, which will put your computer virtually on campus, then initiate your remote desktop session as you normally would.
We will be changing the firewall rules to implement this new security procedure at noon, 2 p.m., on Monday November 18th. Please contact the help desk at 860-768-4357 or helpdesk@hartford.edu if you have any concerns or questions regarding this security change or need assistance with installation.