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Proper Use of the CS Systems

The CS Systems are provided for use by faculty, staff and students in support of programs of the CS department. All faculty, staff and students (as well as guest users) are responsible for seeing that these computing facilities are used in an effective, efficient, ethical and lawful manner.

The following list is not exhaustive.

• Do not monopolize system resources.
  • Keep disk space usage to a minimum.
  • Do not render a system unusable by loading it up with jobs.
  • Long printer jobs should be saved for off-peak hours.
  • Long running jobs should also be saved for off-peak hours.
  • Relinquish licensed software when no longer using the license.
  • Do not lock workstations in terminal rooms for long periods of time. (10 minute maximum)
  • Limit the number of frivolous gadgets on workstation displays

• Users are expected to use the general use labs responsibly:
  • General use labs are to be kept clean. Users are expected to clean up their own messes.

  • The maintenance of all equipment in the terminals rooms is the responsibility of Sysgroup. Do not reboot or power cycle any equipment or tamper with them in any other way. Do not disconnect, open, or swap any components on the equipment in terminal rooms.

  • Food and drink are not allowed in terminal rooms or labs. If you need to have a snack, please go outside the lab, or to any other location where eating is allowed.

  • Speak quietly when conversing with others in the terminal rooms.

• Most printers in the CS Systems are self-serve. Clean up after yourself and take care to file unclaimed print jobs near the printer. Do not leave a mess for others to clean up.

• Users submitting large or complex print jobs need to make sure that their jobs complete properly and do not cause jams or hangups.

• Game playing, and the development of computer games, must be limited to off periods when the demand for system resources is low.

• Do not use the CS Systems for any commercial purposes without permission from Sysgroup.

• Users may not intentionally use programs that do the following:
  • Harass other users of the system
  • Bypass security mechanisms, steal or crack passwords
  • Consume all of an available resource
  • Worms, viruses or trojan horses (Worms and viruses are self-replicating programs. Trojan horses dupe the user into executing programs/commands that were not the user's intent.)
  • Evade software licensing or copying mechanisms

  Users who believe they have a legitimate reason to use or develop programs in the above categories for research purposes must consult with Sysgroup and gain permission before using these programs. Special environments may be set up to facilitate the above without causing disruptions to the system.

• Under no circumstances may a user alter a file or directory that does not belong to him or her without prior permission of the file's owner. The ability to alter a file or directory does not imply permission to alter that file or directory.

• Learn how to run remote programs properly so that the users on remote machines are not affected by misdirected output or graphics.

• Users are not to forge electronic mail or other such services.

• Deliberate alteration of system files by unauthorized individuals is considered vandalism or malicious destruction of University property and not allowed.

• CS Computing facilities and network connections may not be used for the purposes of making unauthorized connections to, breaking into, or adversely affecting the performance of other systems on the network, whether these systems are University-owned or not. The ability to connect to other systems via the network does not imply the right to make use of or even connect to these systems unless properly authorized by the owners of those systems.

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