IT Support

Automatic e-mail forwarding for all users at UIS will be disabled.

This change will apply to both employees and students at UiS.

Why are we making this change?

Automatic forwarding of emails to external addresses carries significant security risks, including:

1. Phishing and Malware Spread: Auto-forwarding can make it easier for malicious actors to spread phishing emails or malware. If a compromised account has auto-forwarding enabled, this can be used to spread malicious content further.
2. Data loss: Email forwarding can result in sensitive or confidential information being sent outside of the organization, which can result in privacy and data security breaches.
3. Information security: When email is relayed outside your organization's domain, you lose control over how your information is handled. This can be particularly problematic in relation to regulations such as GDPR.

The change will take effect on Monday 23 September and then all e-mail will remain within UiS's e-mail system, ensuring that sensitive information does not go astray.  The change will help protect your personal data and UiS confidential information from being compromised.

Disabling automatic forwarding is a security measure that has already been introduced at several comparable institutions.

What do you need to do in this regard?

To ensure that you always stay updated on information sent to your UiS email, we recommend that you make sure to set up access through an email program on your mobile and/or PC to avoid missing important messages. This also includes setting up two-factor authentication (MFA).

The email system at UiS is based on Microsoft 365, and we recommend Outlook as the default email program. Outlook can be run both in a web browser (webmail) and as locally installed software on PC or mobile devices (IOS/Android).

Employees who have received ICT equipment from UiS automatically have Outlook installed and ready for use on their computer. Students automatically get a Microsoft 365 account as a student at UiS and thus have a license to install Outlook on their own PC/Mac and log in with their UiS IT-user.

Complementary how-to articles for setting up Outlook and two-factor authentication (MFA):

For employees: The Service Portal

For studenter: https://www.uis.no/nb/studentsider/it-hjelp

We understand that this may cause some inconvenience and changes in work methodology for both employees and students, but with today's digital threat landscape, security and consideration for privacy is something that is a high priority at UiS.

If you have any questions or need help, please contact the IT Service Desk on tel. 51 83 30 00 or send an e-mail to it-hjelp@uis.no

Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation to maintain a high degree of data security at UiS.

Survey Xact will be terminated at UiS

UiS currently has two primary tools for surveys, Nettskjema and Survey Xact. In order to avoid costs for several tools of the same type, it has been decided to terminate our campus license for Survey Xact at the end of 2024. We retain our campus license for Nettskjema so that this continues to be available to all students and staff.

What does this mean for the surveys I have in Survey Xact?

Current surveys in Survey Xact that are to be continued in 2025 must be transferred to Nettskjema. This requires that you build up the survey again in Nettskjema. 

The online form has been developed by UiO and has much of the same functionality as Survey Xact. In addition, it also contains support for a voice recorder (own app) and transcription, typically used in interviews.

If you have questions, these can be directed to  it-hjelp@uis.no

Desktop computers in lecture rooms and Zoom will be phased out and deactivated from the start of the semester in autumn 2024.

Both changes are based on the ongoing restructuring process as cost-saving measures for UiS. This have been worked on thoroughly by the IT department for some time to ensure a most seamless transition and feedback from the organization that have been reported to us have been taken into consideration to the best of our ability in facilitation of these changes.

Stationary computers in lecture rooms and auditoriums are deactivated.

Stationary machines in our lecture rooms and auditoriums will be phased out and machines in the rooms will be deactivated for use at the start of the semester in the autumn of 2024. This is due to the ongoing transition to Windows 11 on all UiS's ICT equipment and today's machines installed in the rooms on campus are outdated and do not support upgrading to a newer version of Windows. It is also the trend in the sector and the market in general that desktop computers for joint login are being phased out in favor of using one's own personal laptop.

In this regard, the joint user "FORELESER" will also be deactivated as previously announced.

For presentations and digital content in lectures, you must bring your own laptop and connect to the AV system in our lecture rooms. All rooms will be reviewed by the IT department this summer for testing of connections for laptops, necessary adaptations will be made and further information about this change will be made available physically on the desks in all rooms.

All computers will not be physically removed by the start of the semester but will be deactivated for use.

The PC as a display source option will not be available on the control systems in the rooms when the computers have been deactivated.

For larger auditoriums with 2 viewing surfaces, a technical solution is arranged that enables the connection of 2 laptops or 1 laptop to both viewing surfaces (screen) to be able to use a two-screen solution in cases where this will be needed in lectures. This solution has been tested and works great with all Windows computers delivered through IT but can cause some issues with screen setup on some models from Apple, especially when using Keynote for presentations.

Please note that this change applies to open lecture rooms and auditoriums at UiS, for meeting rooms, IT will contact the departments at UiS throughout the autumn to facilitate corresponding changes in the various meeting rooms on campus.

UiS's subscription to Zoom will be terminated.

As previously announced, we have had a temporary subscription to Zoom at UiS as there were some important aspects missing to be able to phase out Zoom at the transition 2023/2024, more about this can be read here:

Discontinuation of Zoom is postponed until summer 2024 (sharepoint.com)

At the start of the semester this autumn, Zoom will be discontinued as a service at UiS and Microsoft Teams will be our platform for video meetings and digital/hybrid teaching.

All lecture rooms on campus with a solution for digital teaching via Zoom will be reconfigured to "Teams rooms" during the summer.

The functionality in the rooms will be the same as today, but the platform for digital teaching will be Teams and not Zoom. New user manuals for setting up and carrying out digital teaching via Teams are in production and will be ready before the start of the semester through IT's Service Portal.

Teams will also be integrated with Canvas for easy facilitation of digital teaching directly through Canvas, there will also be updated user manuals on how to use Teams in Canvas available in IT's service portal.

For questions or other inquiries about these changes, contact the IT department at it-hjelp@uis.no.

The Microsoft authentication service is to be changed.

The login page where you select Universitetet i Stavanger or Feide, will be replaced with the default Microsoft login page. Username and password is as before. Feide services are not affected.

More information about the default Microsoft login page,