CougarWaveOpen:  UITS introduces easier-to-use wireless network

On 04/12/2007, UITS will implement an unencrypted, easier-to-use wireless network named CougarWaveOpen.  Here are a few points of interest about CougarWaveOpen:

Ease of Use:

Many of our customers have requested an easier, more convenient way to connect wirelessly to the CSU network.  CougarWaveOpen addresses this by removing the need for customers to bring their laptops to UITS for wireless software installation, while still providing security via web based login.  It also allows our customers to connect to the network using wireless-enabled handheld devices such as PDAs.

Windows Vista Support:

Many new laptops come pre-installed with the new Microsoft operating system, Windows Vista.  The wireless software that is required to connect to the encrypted wireless network, CougarWave, does not support Windows Vista at this time.  Therefore, we are providing CougarWaveOpen which does not require additional wireless software.

How to Connect:

To connect to CougarWaveOpen, simply choose it from your list of visible wireless networks (in most cases, this happens automatically).  The first time you attempt to surf the web after connecting, you will be redirected to a login page.  At this login page, enter your Novell username and password (username in the form of "lastname_firstname").  If you have forgotten your Novell password, or have trouble logging in, please visit the UITS Helpdesk on the first floor of Center for Commerce and Technology, room 125.

Security:

While the new CougarWaveOpen wireless network is less secure than CougarWave, it does provide some level of security in that it requires a valid username and password before access is granted.  In addition, the lack of encryption in CougarWaveOpen means that you should ensure that web sites containing personal and/or sensitive information have encryption enabled.  You can verify that a web site has encryption enabled by looking for the "padlock" symbol in the lower right corner of your browser window.

Procedure Modification

UITS reserves the right to modify this document at any time as needed. The current version of this document is available on the UITS Web site.

CSU Wireless Network Policy