EDS Acceptable Use Policy of Electronic Resources
Engineering Enterprise Desktop Support (EDS) maintains computing resources for the instructional, research, and support needs of the College of Engineering (CoE). Access to these resources is a privilege, not a right, and, as such, this privilege imposes certain responsibilities and obligations. The use of the computer systems and network in the College of Engineering is subject to both college and university policies, as well as local, state, and federal laws and regulations. The following policies outline the acceptable use of college computing resources, including computers, networks, software, and electronic data. These resources are provided to the faculty, staff, students, and guests of the college. Members of this community are expected to exercise responsible and ethical behavior when using both the college's computing resources, as well as those systems outside of the college that are accessible over the network.
EDS does not routinely search user files for suspicious activity. However, if, in the course of normal system maintenance, suspicious activity is found, the proper authorities will be notified.
EDS Policies
- You must only use those resources for which you have authority. Any attempt to guess passwords or probe for security weaknesses is considered a violation of university policy.
- The college computing resources are shared by the community. Refrain from using excessive network bandwidth or performing tasks that degrade the performance of the systems. While EDS will attempt to contact the individual involved to determine the situation, we will halt activity that restricts access for the community as a whole. In the case of excessive bandwidth use that doesn't pertain to research or instructional purposes, EDS will limit network access.
- EDS provides the network services for the College of Engineering. Since misconfigured equipment may disrupt the network, EDS reserves the right to remove unapproved network hardware (hubs, switches, routers) from the network that is not installed by EDS or with prior agreement with EDS.
- Refrain from running certain server applications on the college network. EDS is the only group authorized to run DNS and DHCP services on the CoE network. Duplicate instances of these services run by other individuals will interfere with the normal operation of the network environment.
- The use of network monitoring tools is prohibited, unless it is cleared with EDS for research and/or instructional purposes. Such tools are a potential infringement on the privacy of other users.
- You must only use the IP address assigned to you by EDS. Attempts to use an unauthorized IP address are disruptive to the network and will be disconnected when detected.
- The college is bound by copyright laws. Do not download or share copyrighted materials. When EDS receives notification of a copyright violation, we will terminate the offending network connection immediately.
- Do not use or share pirated software. You must be aware of software license restrictions and abide by those limitations.
- EDS computers and networks are property of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. They are not to be used for personal profit or commercial use.
- You are expected to respect the rights and privacy of others. Do not attempt to access another user's files, data, or email without permission.
- Individuals found in violation of these policies face either the possible suspension of their network connection, or the limitation of their network bandwidth, depending on the nature of the infraction. In some cases, violations of the acceptable use policy will be referred to the Dean for further action.