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~help  /  News Archive  /  2020 Archive  /  Learning and Working Remotely

Learning and Working Remotely

We're here to help you succeed.

Throughout CMU, leadership, administrative and computing groups are working hard to provide students, faculty and staff with the support and resources to ensure a succesful semester ahead. We've compiled some of the support, software, computing and reference resources available to you, the SCS community. 

SCS Help Desk

Our Help Desk team is available remotely, Monday through Friday, 9am-5pm. We will be providing fully remote support services as in-person Help Desk support will be unavailable until further notice. Our escalation teams employ an "on-call" system to ensure full support is available to our community.

You can submit requests for support via our website, via email at help@cs.cmu.edu, or give us a call at 412-268-4231

Remote support and your privacy

When our technical support staff uses a remote support tool called Bomgar/BeyondTrust to remotely connect to your computer, there are important security safeguards in place to protect you and your privacy.

Tech Quick Start Guides

Computing Services has put together a series of Tech Quick Start guides to help with tech readiness for the upcoming semester. These are tailored to the needs of students, faculty, staff and even visitors. Some of the critical readiness aspects covered include:

SCS Computing Landing Pages

Our website includes landing pages made specifically for students, faculty and staff. These pages collect helpful links to important resources such as the downloadable "Introduction to Computing" guide, service and support request forms, SCS building information, SCS directory, links to event information, and much more.

Recommended Hardware

We have developed specific hardware recommendations to meet the needs of the SCS community. This includes configurations for general desktop application use, lightweight mobility and more robust and upgradable desktop computing options. Visit our supported hardware page for more information. 

SCS Computing Introduction Videos

We have developed a series of introductory videos that not only provide a general overview of our services, but also delve deeper into topics like AFS (Andrew File System), technical support, logging in, and much more.

Technology Enhancements

Computing Services has made technology enhancements designed to support both students and faculty for a semester of remote and hybrid learning. These include:

  • Classroom Success: CMU’s new hybrid learning spaces and technology are designed to allow both in-person and remote students to collaborate and participate in a classroom environment while adhering to social distancing guidelines.
  • Software Anywhere: Physical computer labs might be closed, but we've extended the Virtual Andrew service to ensure students have access to the software they need for their academic success.
  • New Campus Printing (non-SCS): Printing is now mobile! Print from your phone or computer to any public campus printer. Download and install the printer, then, tap your ID card at the printer to pick up your work.
  • Virtual Faxing Solution: Available to faculty and staff, cloud faxing gives you the functionality of a fax machine using only email. Send and receive faxes in PDF or TIFF format using your email with this HIPAA- and FERPA-compliant tool. 
  • New VPN Connection Options: When you connect your computer or mobile device to a CMU Virtual Private Network (VPN), your device will act as if it's on campus. This means you'll be able to securely access CMU resources even when you’re out of the country. Check out our updated VPN options to prepare to connect remotely.
  • Additional Wireless Security: The CMU-SECURE wireless network now has an extra layer of security with private IP addresses. When you're connected to CMU-SECURE, your device is visible outside our network, but cannot be scanned from the internet.
  • Classic Google Hangouts Moves to Chat and Meet: CMU recently transitioned Classic Google Hangouts customers to the feature-rich Google Chat and Google Meet applications. Find out how this impacts you.