News Archives

Skype for Business Decommissioning on May 31, 2021

April 8, 2021

UBC IT is decommissioning Skype for Business (UBC Collaboration Suite) on May 31, 2021. To continue to support your collaboration needs, your Skype for Business account will also be automatically switched to Microsoft (MS) Teams on that day. MS Teams enables persistent chat, video conferencing, and collaborating in real-time on documents.  To learn more about MS Teams, please visit the MS Teams service catalogue: https://www.it.ubc.ca/teams.

To help get you oriented with the platform, UBC IT is offering two MS Teams Overview sessions:

  • Thursday, April 29 | 2:00pm – 3:30pm
  • Tuesday, May 26 | 1:00pm – 2:30pm

To sign up for a session, please click here: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4NnQLz3Kxt6rvyC.  An Outlook invitation will be sent to end-users closer to their training date.

Switch to MS Teams before May 31

You can also switch to MS Teams if you prefer to be migrated before May 31. Please note that this option is not available to contractors.

If you have questions or concerns, please contact the IT Service Centre: https://www.it.ubc.ca/helpdesk

How to Get Started with MS Teams

Once migration is complete, review the “Get Started” Portal on MS Teams to familiarize yourself with the platform. The Portal includes quick start guides, tips, and additional resources:

Please note that any recurring meetings previously scheduled in Skype for Business will need to be rescheduled in Microsoft Teams.

To learn about the differences in features between Skype for Business vs. MS Teams (Teams Only Mode), click here: https://it.ubc.ca/services/email-voice-internet/microsoft-teams#further

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A Guide to Using MS Teams at UBC

April 8, 2021

UBC IT is decommissioning Skype for Business on May 31, 2021.  To continue to support your collaboration needs, everyone will be moved to Microsoft Teams. Microsoft Teams is a collaboration tool that was launched for UBC August 2020 to allow UBC groups to create content and share information that they need to work together. MS Teams is Microsoft’s replacement for Skype for Business which is at end-of-life. There is no vendor support for Skype for Business after July 31, 2021. To learn about the differences between Skype for Business and MS teams, refer to this chart.

How do I learn to use Microsoft Teams?

To learn more about MS Teams, please visit it.ubc.ca/teams Or check out our UBCO IT's Guide to Using Teams at UBC - which provides detailed instructions on Getting Started and using MS Teams at UBC, including:
  • Setting up a Team
  • Creating & Using Channels
  • Creating & Sharing & Collaborating on Files
  • Using Chat
  • Creating Meetings with Teams
  • Advanced Tips & More Help
MS Teams Training You can also attend one of UBC IT's upcoming MS Teams Overview Sessions:
  • Thursday, April 29 | 2:00pm – 3:30pm
  • Tuesday, May 26 | 1:00pm – 2:30pm
To sign up for a session, please click here. An Outlook invitation will be sent to end-users closer to their training date. Or check out the “Get Started Portal” on the Microsoft Teams dashboard once you have the application launched. To request an overview to getting started with Teams for your UBCO department, please contact UBCO IT's Engagement Services team.

What is Teams Only mode?

Teams Only mode is essentially using all the collaboration features within MS Teams. When Microsoft Teams was first launched, end users had the choice of staying with Skype for Business for the time-being, but still have access to some of the MS Teams features, such as attending online meetings. When you are switched over to Teams Only mode, you will no longer have any access to Skype for Business features. You will essentially only be using Microsoft Teams to collaborate with others moving forward.

Can I switch over to Microsoft Teams before May 31?

Yes, you* can switch to Microsoft Teams before May 31.  To do this, please complete this form (Campus-Wide Login - CWL - credentials are required to access the form). *Note: Contractors are not eligible to switch before May 31. Their accounts will be migrated on May 31. If you do not do anything, your account will automatically switch to Microsoft Teams on May 31, 2021.

What happens to my SFB scheduled meetings?

Unfortunately Skype for Business meetings will not automatically switch over to teams. You will need to re-schedule any previously booked Skype for Business meetings as Microsoft Teams meetings after May 31.  We suggest creating a reminder on Tuesday June 1 to switch and minimize the potential of disruptions to regular meetings.

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How to Defuse Zoom-bombs

March 12, 2021

To celebrate a year of working and teaching remotely, UBCO IT would like to share some reminders on what you can do to ensure your UBC Zoom events aren’t interrupted by uninvited guests.

Unfortunately, incidents of Zoom-bombing at UBC continue, but there are some quick and easy steps that hosts or co-hosts can take to stop or remove any unwanted quests.

As a reminder, it is up to the host of the meeting to ensure they understand the security level required for the event, have the appropriate Zoom security settings in place beforehand and are able to take actions during the meeting to manage any disruptions.

How to Disable Meeting Functions or Remove Intruders During A Meeting

If you have an unwanted guest trying to disrupt your Zoom meeting, the host or co-host can block them instantly using the Security icon (at the bottom of your Zoom screen):

This will open a pop-up window where you can then:

  • Stop ALL participants from being able to do any or all of the following:
    • Share their screen, use chat, rename themselves or  unmute –
    • Click on any of the options to toggle on or off as needed (√ indicates it is enabled, selecting it will remove the check and disable the feature)
  • Remove Participant(s)
    • This will open a list of participants with the option to remove individuals as needed.
    • Once someone is removed, they cannot rejoin the meeting.
      • If you removed the wrong person, and need to allow them to rejoin:
  • Re-enable functions for all participants as needed
    • Click on the Security icon again, and select the meeting functions not checked to re-enable them for ALL Participants as needed.

How to Manage Chat During a Meeting

You can also adjust who participants can chat with even after the meeting has started.

Select the chat icon at the bottom of your zoom window (if it is not there either re-size your window or click on “More” with the three dots on the far-right side).

This will open the Chat window.

Click on the three dots on the bottom right of this window to manage who participants can chat with.

More Quick Tips for Public or Large Events:

  • Assign a moderator to monitor the chat and remove any disruptive participants
  • Do not use your Personal Meeting ID (PMI) to host public events
    • Your PMI is a persistent meeting room and people can pop in and out all the time
  • Use the Waiting Room feature to screen participants before they join

More Great Zoom Resources

If you have any questions or concerns, please submit a ticket via the UBC Self-Service Portal (CWL login required; Request a Service -> Request Desktop or AV Support -> Support Type: AV), and our Audio Visual team will be happy to answer any questions you may have.

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UBC Okanagan CMS Maintenance

October 9, 2020

Please note the UBCO WordPress CMS is scheduled for maintenance on Tuesday October 13th between 6:00pm and 8:00pm.  Sites affected include any website on the Okanagan based WordPress CMS.

Your website may be unavailable during this maintenance period but will automatically come back online. Some periodical maintenance messages may appear during this maintenance window so please refrain from making website changes or adding content during this time.

If you have any questions or concerns please contact the Web and Applications team by entering a ticket in the helpdesk.

Thank you.

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Bulletins – IT, Media & Classroom Services News 2020-10-08 14:32:44

October 8, 2020

Interested in using public cloud services such as Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services (AWS)? Want to learn how they can support your research?

UBC Advanced Research Computing (ARC) is hosting the UBC ARC Cloud Computing Research Fall Training from October 19 – November 3, 2020. This year, the program will be offered virtually in the form of a series of webinars and hands-on online workshops. The Cloud Computing Fall Training sessions are free and open to faculty, staff, students, and interested members of the public.  Registration will be limited in courses where hands-on training is provided.

Courses will explore introductory and advanced topics in cloud computing on Microsoft Azure and AWS platforms. Sessions will introduce cloud concepts and services, including: creating, securing, and maintaining virtual machines, machine learning and high-performance computing, storage options, and cost-optimization best practices.

As part of the AWS sessions, you will be able to learn about RONIN, a user-friendly web and desktop application that allows researchers to navigate the AWS computing infrastructure with confidence and ease. UBC is the first university in North America to offer this platform, and ARC is thrilled to be able to incorporate this into the Fall training.

View the full schedule on the ARC website.

REGISTER ONLINE NOW

ARC is a dedicated service under the VPRI for researchers across all disciplines working on questions that have large data and computational needs.  ARC offers training to all faculties across the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses on high performance computing, research data management, and digital research.

For more information and questions regarding the 2020 UBC ARC Cloud Computing Fall Training sessions, please email arc.support@ubc.ca 

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UBC IT Okanagan Online Helpdesk is moving!

October 7, 2020

On November 2, 2020, UBC IT Okanagan will be moving to the UBC Self-Service Portal along with the Integrated Services Centre with the launch of Workday. This will make it easier for staff and faculty in the Okanagan, and across UBC, to access a variety of UBC support services from a single website: ubc.service-now.com (cwl login required). Users can get help with issues from getting started with Workday to getting a new UBCO employee set up with computer equipment to reporting an issue accessing UBC wireless. You will continue to be supported by local Okanagan IT staff, while having the option to be seamlessly connected with support teams in Vancouver or the ISC if needed. A new Campus drop-down menu has been added to request forms to help ensure you’re connected to the right team, on the right campus, to provide better support services for all users. After November 2, users from the Okanagan will be automatically redirected to the UBC Self-Service Portal to submit any new requests for IT support. The current IT Helpdesk website (helpdesk.ok.ubc.ca) will remain available to access historical information or complete any IT requests in progress. More details on this change including guides on how to use the self-service portal will be coming soon.

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Planned Telephone Service Maintenance -Okanagan Campus, September 26, 2020, 08:00-12:00 PT

September 25, 2020

Planned maintenance will be conducted on the Okanagan campus telephone system Saturday September 26, 2020, between the hours of 08:00 to 12:00 PT. Incoming calls to campus may experience intermittent service interruptions during this time. Local calls within campus, 5 digit dialing on campus and outgoing calls including to emergency services will NOT be affected.

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External emails to include a new security warning banner

September 22, 2020

UBC Cybersecurity and UBC IT Communication & Collaboration Services will be launching a new email security enhancement on September 28, 2020, targeting emails that originate from outside the university. This enhancement will add a warning tag to the top of emails that originate from outside the University.

The External Email Security Warning Tag serves as a reminder to users to verify the authenticity of the email before clicking on any hyperlinks, opening any attachments, forwarding or responding. The tag is not an indicator that an email is phishing, fraudulent or spam.

Please note, at this stage, the external email security warning tag will be applied to external emails sent to staff and faculty email accounts only.

With the imminent implementation of Workday, it is critical that employees are able to spot fraudulent notifications that claim to originate from Workday but are actually from criminals looking to take advantage of the high volume of communication associated with Workday implementation. Legitimate Workday emails do not have the yellow external email security warning tag typically associated with emails that originated from outside of UBC. If you receive a Workday email with a yellow external email security warning tag, forward it as an attachment to security@ubc.ca.

For more information on how to know the difference between legitimate and fraudulent Workday notifications please visit:

hxxps://privacymatters.ubc.ca/workday-notifications
(Copy and paste the URL into your browser and replace hxxps with https). 

For further technical information on the External Email Security Warning tag, including the exemption process, implementation phases and FAQs, please check out this article on the UBC Confidential Communications website:

hxxps://cc.cybersecurity.ubc.ca/external-email-warning-tag
(Copy and paste the URL into your browser and replace hxxps with https – CWL login and UBC VPN connection required).

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Telephone services maintenance – Okanagan Campus, September 19, 2020, 08:00-12:00 PT

September 17, 2020

Planned maintenance will be conducted on the Okanagan campus telephone system Saturday September 19, 2020, between the hours of 08:00 to 12:00 PT. Phone service to and from campus will be intermittent during this time, with no incoming calls from 10:00-12:00 PT.

This is the final outage required to complete our full upgrades to the campus telephone system to provide enhanced phone services to better support remote operations for UBC Okanagan. These upgrades will also substantially reduce future telephone service interruptions during routine maintenance in the future.

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Tuesday September 15 – 2100 to 2200 PT – Planned upgrades to campus phones, outage for incoming calls

September 15, 2020

UBC IT Okanagan will be conducting required maintenance and upgrades on the campus telephone system this week. There will be an outage for all incoming calls Tuesday September 15, 2020 from 2100 to 2200 PT. Local calls within campus, 5 digit dialing on campus and outgoing calls including to emergency services will NOT be affected. Maintenance will continue in the evenings all week however no further disruption to services is expected.

These upgrades will provide enhanced phone services to better support remote work including receiving UBC calls remotely, as well as improved functionality and easier access to voicemail. The new software will also minimize or eliminate telephone service interruptions during routine maintenance in the future.

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