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Commodity Services
The University's Executive Compliance Committee (ECC) has made a policy change that requires all commodity servers to be physically or virtually located in the University Data Center. Such a change helps to address a number of risks that the committee has been monitoring over the years. Note: The policy change has been published and in effect September 01, 2014.
More details on the policy change can be found at: http://security.utexas.edu/policies/irusp.html#section_5_23_4
Commodity servers are defined as systems providing basic information technology services to university affiliates (e.g., web services, mail services, file services, database services, directory services, collaboration services).
There were roughly 600 commodity servers identified as having high-volume activity that were located outside of the University Data Center. The ECC has asked the Information Security Office to work with each affected unit on the final disposition of each server.
University Wiki Service
UTBox
MySQL is an open source relational database management system (RDBMS). It is commonly used for database services for other open source and web applications.
https://www.utexas.edu/its/mysql/
Features:
1 gigabyte of storage space on the central MySQL database servers.
Daily Backups with two week retention.
Ability to safely store Category-I data in databases.
Access to phpMyAdmin and the MySQL command line client for database management and administration.
Access to the ITS Systems MySQL team for advice and troubleshooting.
Access to commercial MySQL support via the ITS Systems MySQL team.
Cost:
The MySQL database service is available at no cost for departments for up to six named databases. Additional named databases can be purchased in quantities of six for an additional $150 per year. Additional storage space is $7 per gigabyte per year.
MySQL Order Form: https://www.utexas.edu/its/mysql/forms/
MySQL Help: https://www.utexas.edu/its/help/mysql
A directory service is a system system that stores, organizes and provides access to information in a directory. It allows the look-up of values given a name, similar to a dictionary. In a directory, a name may be associated with multiple, different pieces of information.
Examples:
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)
Network Information Services (NIS)
Domain Name Systems (DNS)
A mechanism in place for user account creation and management within an infrastructure and/or service (e.g. mail, web, computer access)
Austin Disk Services (https://www.utexas.edu/its/storage/)
Features:
Meets the minimum standards set by ISO for storing Category I Data using IPSec, secure WebDAV, or SFTP to connect. Please see the SLA before storing protected research data on Austin Disk
Automatically synchronize work you do offline with austin.utexas.edu any time you log on with the Offline Folders feature of Microsoft Windows
Automatically backs up your files three times per day to ensure your data is secure
Two week retention period
Supports end-user recovery of backups with compatible clients (machine must be on the Austin Domain)
Works best with Windows
Cost:
Effective September 1, 2013, the cost for individual Austin Disk shares will be $2.00 per GB per year, a drop from the previous $2.80 per GB per year. Individuals can purchase disk space online in 1 GB increments, up to 20 GB. Departments can also purchase disk space online, with a minimum allocation of 50 GB, at an annual rate of $140 per 50 GB allotment.
Austin Disk Support: https://www.utexas.edu/its/help/storage
Service description
UT Enterprise Bulk Storage is a cost-effective, reliable, self-managed, iSCSI-based, storage solution. The UT Enterprise Bulk Storage arrays are housed in the University Data Centers (UDC) and are accessible via 10Gb network interfaces within the University Data Centers. UT Enterprise Bulk Storage is provisioned in 512GB units, with a starting minimum of 1024GB (1TB).
Customers must manage access client protocols, such as CIFS, NFS, and AFP via a server front-end. It is required that customer servers are located within UDC-C to connect to UT Enterprise Bulk Storage.
Features:
High bandwidth connectivity within the University Data Centers
Compatible with other ITS services: UT Virtual (UT-V), CrashPlan server backup
Highly reliable due to a fault-tolerant hardware architecture
Scalable storage framework to meet storage growth on campus
Cost:
Each 1 GB costs $0.40 per year. Storage is available for purchase in 512 GB increments, with a starting minimum of 1024GB (1TB) and maximum of 10752GB (10.5TB).
Data Protection
UT Enterprise Bulk Storage provides the following options for Data Protection:
Single Copy Option:
No backup service/redundant copy is provided natively.
Customer is responsible for data backup and any costs associated with data backups.
Customer data will be unavailable during all published Full, Partial or Emergency maintenance events.
Note: A Mirrored Copy option is available, but doubles the cost per GB. It is preferred that servers mounting UT Enterprise Bulk Storage are located in the University Data Center.
Bulk Storage SLA: https://www.utexas.edu/its/sla/sla.php?id=1609
UTBackup provides an enterprise-level, centralized, and automated digital data backup solution for the UT Austin campus. For end users, UTBackup assures peace of mind that their data is being backed up safely and securely. UTBackup is available for current UT faculty and staff who have departmental technical support.
Features
Cross-platform: UTBackup supports Windows, Macintosh, and Linux platforms
Allows for data restoration from any computer with a network connection and internet browser
100GB (faculty) and 20GB (staff) of compressed, de-duplicated backup storage quota is provided per device per year.
Physical storage devices are housed in a secure location and monitored 24/7 (See Cost - Option 1 below)
University owned systems used by students under the advisement of faculty may qualify for the no-cost 100GB backup solution
UTmail provides UT Austin students and alumni with a university affiliated email address in the @utexas.edu domain. Those who opt-in to the service can choose their email address and have 25+ GB of email storage. In addition, UTmail provides email for life.
Features
email account on the @utexas.edu domain.
25+ GB storage.
Choose your own account name.
Keep your email address for life!
Information Security Office (ISO) approved Google Drive Integration with Canvas using your UTmail account.
Cost
UTmail is available at no cost to current UT Austin students, alumni, faculty, staff and retirees.
UTmail FAQs
Note: creating customized domains within UTmail is currently restricted by the UT Google site administrators
Features
50 GB mailboxes
Web access via Outlook Web App (OWA)
Mobile App access
Integrated address book and shared calendar through Outlook
Secure access, security audits, service continuity, intrusion monitoring and high availability.
Cost
Office 365 will be available at no cost to current University of Texas at Austin faculty and staff.
Note: Custom domains or alias are being investigated. Academic staff (TA, GRAs, etc) could potentially be included. This is not a "for life" email account. The email account will be processed for deletion when university affiliation no longer exists. Permanent forwarding of email is also being investigated.
The University Blog Service is available for use by faculty, staff, and students. The service uses the WordPress platform. Blogs can be created by, and are available for individuals, groups, projects, or departments.
This service does not meet the FERPA requirements for hosting Category I data and should not be used for course-related purposes.
Features
Log in with your UT EID login information
Control the visibility of your blog
Customize the look of your blog with one of over 50 available themes
Track statistics, including how many people have visited your blog
A Web address in the utexas.edu domain
Can keep existing @ ece.utexas.edu domain/URL
Note: WordPress creates the content for you through a GUI front-end. You can't use JavaScript or CSS, and you're limited in HTML
Cost
University Blog Service is available at no cost to faculty, staff, and students.