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New OIT Desktop Support Assistant Manager

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Sarkis Daglian has joined Desktop Support as Assistant Manager, reporting to manager Jeremy Paje.  Sarkis supervises desktop support staff and manages operations, resource allocation and scheduling to ensure requests are promptly and consistently addressed.

Sarkis graduated from UCI in 2005 with a focus in neurobiology, and spent six years with the Help Desk most recently as a senior consultant.  He led several initiatives with the Help Desk including the establishment of campus Smart Phone support standards.

When not at work, Sarkis enjoys movies and a wide range of professional sports.

Sarkis’s immediate goals are to analyze staff responsibilities and workload, and to enhance communication and operational efficiency to improve the quality and effectiveness of the services provided to OIT clients.

The addition of Sarkis to the team will allow Jeremy Paje to increase his focus on planning and project management.  Current projects include the rollout of Windows 7, Office 2010, and Acrobat X.

 

Airwatch Improves Smart Phone Security

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As more UCI faculty and staff rely on mobile computing, the campus faces new risks.  Mobile devices (phones, tablets) are easier to lose and provide targets for theft.  The device then may grant unauthorized access to university systems and information.

Airwatch is a software package that allows centralized management of iPhone and iPad devices without the need to have physical access.  With Airwatch, OIT staff can set policies, configure devices (including email setup), enforce strong passwords, and in the event of theft, force the device to erase itself.

Airwatch is in pilot use by the department of Athletics, which is obliged by NCAA regulations to implement strong protections for their information on student athletes.  In the future, OIT plans to offer Airwatch protection to additional university owned iPhones and iPads, and is exploring options for similar protections for the Android and Blackberry platforms.

Jeff Martin, New Manager for OIT’s Windows Services Group

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Jeff Martin

Jeff Martin

Jeff Martin has recently joined OIT to lead its Windows Services Group (WSG).   His responsibilities include facilitating the consolidation and integration of campus Windows infrastructure, services, and Windows system administrators into the centralized campus Windows enterprise managed by OIT.

Jeff comes to UCI from UC Riverside, where he served for ten years, most recently as Operations Manager for Financial and Business Operations.  This was a unit formed in a consolidation process analogous to OIT’s current effort to provide the most efficient use of resources and more consistent IT support to faculty, staff, and students.

Jeff wasn’t actually looking to move to UCI, but was intrigued by the WSG manager job when he saw it posted on a UC mailing list.  He decided to come to UCI because he was inspired by the consolidation vision, and the opportunities that became apparent during the interview process.

When not planning Windows services improvements, Jeff enjoys cars and photography.  He said UCI provides a wonderful variety of architectural styles for his camera.

The Windows Services Group was created in 2009 to help bring consistency, security, and reliability to a diverse array of Windows installations around campus.  Jeff’s immediate responsibilities will be to continue to bring this vision into being, but he says he plans to be at UCI for a long time. He looks forward to helping OIT provide managed, integrated, effective information technology systems and services to faculty, staff, and students.  Jeff can be reached at 824-0977 or jeffrym@uci.edu .

In Brief December 2011

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latest news

  • During the campus holiday closure, December 23 – January 2, the OIT Help Desk (824-2222) will remain available for urgent support issues, but with limited staffing and potentially longer resolution times.
  • For those of you who may end up with new mobile devices (smart phones and tablets) following the holiday season, you may wish to coach gift-givers on the devices which will work well on campus, or review OIT’s mobile set-up documentation.
  • You can save money when buying software.  If there is an option to get the software by download (as opposed to buying physical media such as CDs), such purchases are not subject to sales tax.

In Brief September 2011

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latest news

  • As of Monday, August 29th, Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP) to Windows Computers, Port 3389, has been blocked from off campus. You may still use Remote Desktop to connect to a campus system by first connecting to the Virtual Private Network (VPN) service.
  • OIT has announced recommendations for smart phone users.  Phones based on the Android and iPhone platforms will work best with campus network services.
  • EEE publishes regular reports on campus use of their instructional technology tools.  The spring 2011 report can be found here.