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Issue date: 10/9/05 Section: Opinions

Symantec Anti-Virus Required in
Residence Halls

Lewis University recently made the
decision to require residential students
with MS Windows-based computers to use
university-supplied, anti-virus software,
made by Symantec. This action was deemed
necessary when the switch and the server
farm that serves the residential student
segment of the network was brought down
by very high levels of virus traffi c. This
anti-virus software has been offered at no
charge to students since last year, but its
use was not mandatory.

Although previously free to use antivirus
software of their choosing, students
have been required to keep anti-virus
software data defi nitions up to date since
the creation of the Acceptable Use Policy
years ago. Yet, the network has continued
to experience problems every semester
from computers that are not properly
cleaned or updated.

Instructional Technology Services
Organization (ITSO) has had a plan to
implement new software at the end of Fall
semester that would allow the network to
verify that student computers were both
up-to-date in terms of Microsoft Windows
Updates and anti-virus software data
defi nitions. At that time, students would
have been required to use the University's
anti-virus software. However the problems
that brought down the residence hall switch
necessitated taking more drastic measures
to clean up the network quickly to make it
available to the residence halls.

The residence hall network now uses
Clean Access Agent (Cisco's name for
the improved Smart Enforcer) to check
for the presence of a specifi c fi le. That is
the reason students are required to use the
University's version of anti-virus software.
Clean Access looks for a specifi c antivirus
data defi nition signature and denies
network access until they are current.

Computers using Windows 2000 or XP
operating systems are able to use Symantec

Continued...

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