Our institutional goal of providing a quality
education to our students is enhanced through the involvement of
University Faculty & Staff in the support of and management of server
environment. Managers of these
servers should recognize that these systems are not improved versions of a
desktop machine. Creating and
maintaining a web server carries the responsibility of protecting the data
on it while assuring that the server does not compromise the overall
network’s efficiency and effectiveness.
For example, virus infections or worms can instantly spread through
the web service to clients browsing the pages and may have a detrimental
effect on computing resources across campus.
For the purposes of this policy, servers are defined as 1) full
fledged server hardware; 2) microcomputers running a server operating
system (Windows NT Server, Windows 2000 Server, etc.), 3) PC’s with a
desktop operating system (Windows 2000, Windows NT, Linux, etc.) with an
active WEB or FTP service enabled.
The University of Scranton’s Policy on Server-Based Systems
follows. Ultimately it is the
responsibility of the server manager to maintain the proper server
environment.
Information Resources (IR) staff will work with any server manager
to ensure compliance with the policy.
To assist the server managers, IR will create and maintain an
up-to-date web page listing current and recommended software releases,
levels, and patches. IR will
also establish and maintain a listserv by which server managers can
participate for information development and sharing.
IR Staff will provide instruction to local administrators on how to
keep systems up-to-date and comply with the policy.
A separate email list will be created and maintained by the IR Help
Desk staff to permit easy emergency communication to the appropriate
managers. This list will be
used to notify server managers of urgent information concerning the
overall performance and security of the entire network.
Server Based Systems Policy
- New
Servers may only connect to the campus network after they are
configured to the University of Scranton’s specifications.
Shortly, you will be asked to register your server via a web
form, which must be completed prior to connecting the system to the
University of Scranton Network.
A full list of standards and specifications will also be
available on the web shortly. Announcements
will be forthcoming.
- Servers
not complying with the posted standards or this policy will be
disconnected from the network until they comply with the standards.
- All
Information Resources (IR) recommended operating systems updates and
patches must be made on a timely basis.
IR will provide timeframes for applying these updates as
appropriate.
- Server
based anti-virus software must be installed on each server. Regular
updates and scans must be done of the system on a daily basis.
- Information
Resources may declare an emergency without prior notice, dictated by
severe conditions, and may disconnect any device to restore overall
network services.
- To
protect the network from unregistered servers and services, Campus
Firewall rules will be enabled to allow access to only registered
servers and their related services (FTP, IIS-web, etc).
- To
protect network bandwidth and performance, services provided by the
registered servers need to be identified in the event that these
services may require prioritization or dedicated bandwidth.
- It
is strongly recommended that a server not be used as a personal
workstation. Mail,
Calendar, and messaging applications should be run from local
workstations. No e-mail
should be accessed nor should e-mail clients be installed on the
server.
- All
important web or ftp files should be backed up regularly.
Backup is the sole responsibility of the local server manager.
- An
emergency repair disk must be made and kept current.
- Desktop
& Instructional Resources (DIR) must have at least one
administrative account on each server for emergency purposes.
- All
FTP and IIS services must be secured with the appropriate permissions
before the systems are connected to the network.
- No
DNS, DHCP, WINS, DOMAIN, Active Directory, or other services should be
loaded at anytime without IR consultation and approval of these
services.
Scranton