Web Server Move Q & A

If I don't answer your "Q," or if you'd like me to clarify something, please post a comment. (Just click on "0 comments" at the end of the post.) Remember, you do NOT need an account to post a comment! Just follow the directions over the comments box. :)

Also, as with any complex project, this information is subject to change. Please stay tuned--I will email everyone if there are major updates to this post--and thanks for your patience!

Q: Why are we doing this?

A: A web server is just a big ol' computer, and like our desktop PCs, servers age and need to be replaced. Our new environment will be more secure and more reliable, both in terms of hardware and software, resulting is less down time and better web site performance. It will also be our very own virtual home; before, we shared server space on Carbon with many other departments and UCD groups. We will be free to try out new software and assign permissions and passwords internally, making us less dependent on ITS to do what we need to do. ITS will still support us, however.

Q: Why are we doing this NOW?

A: Because it may disrupt access to our web site. This disruption will hopefully be minimal, but it is far better to do the work during intersession than when we are in full semester swing. I apologize to all of those who use this downtime to polish up their web pages; I know that the timing is inconvenient to say the least, but everything will run more smoothly once we've made the change.

Q: What will we not have access to from the 11th-18th?

A: Library staff will not have access to their web pages from the 11th-18th. No one will be able to create or edit existing pages. Access to the online linking form and the ADI will be intermittent, so I ask that no one enter data in them during this time.

Q: What will our patrons not have access to from the 11th-18th?

A: Outages that affect patrons will be posted prominently in the Library FYI and elsewhere in the web pages that are affected (i.e., the ADI, the LEAP tutorial, class scheduling calendar). Faculty will not be able to schedule classes during this time--and I apologize again for the timing on that--and anyone taking the LEAP tutorial will not be able to save their results. These two applications will be disabled so that patrons cannot try to register for an IL class or take the tutorial. Even though the back end of the ADI will be shut down, the ADI web pages should function normally.

Q: What will our URL be after the move?

A: Still http://library.auraria.edu. Currently, two other URLs also work; they are http://library.cudenver.edu and http://carbon.cudenver.edu/public/library. These URLs will be redirected to http://library.auraria.edu through Spring Semester 2008, but beginning in June, they will no longer work. I will notify the campus community of these changes in February.

Q. I work on library web pages. What about my permissions?

A. Unfortunately, permissions will need to be restored from scratch. Fortunately, from now on Nina will be able to assign permissions and help change passwords from now--no more calls to the Help Desk (unless you need permissions to your personal web space, which will still be on Carbon). With the current project plan, permissions will be restored on the 17th and/or 18th.

Q: What else do I need to know?

A: The New Books List for January will not be available until late in February. (We are contracting with Quipu Group to have them update the PHP/MySQL programming that produces the lists. I anticipate that the previous months' lists will work just fine, but I will double check.)