The entire Nyack College network, including the wireless network is monitored by a unit, referred to as a reverse firewall, which will scan the network for computers generating troublesome network traffic. Systems creating  traffic that interferes with the natural flow of communications will be denied access to the network.  This behavior can result from viruses, worms and other malicious code infecting unpatched operating systems.

The reverse firewall can make it appear the wireless network is down to an infected user.  Students are advised to check there systems for infections before assuming the entire network is down.   The wireless system monitors itself and reports all failures to our console. We will be instantly aware of any wireless infrastructure failures and address them as time permits.

To ensure you receive uninterrupted access, you must apply operating system and anti-virus updates applied.  A personal firewall is also highly recommended.   Patches can be downloaded from Microsoft's update site:

(http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com).

Ignoring these precautions is likely to interrupt your internet connectivity. In plain terms, students (and support parents) will be required to take an active role in keeping their personal systems patched and virus free. Unfortunately, these responsibilities can no longer be borne by professional computer people alone,  it has to be everyone's responsibility.

Due to the number and complexity of configurations of personally owned computer systems, the Nyack College Information Technologies Department is not staffed to deal with personally owned computers. There is however a tremendous amount of help available online dealing with common computer problems, accessable throught the computer labs systems as well as library stations.  Students can also purchase third party online help utilizing Geek Squad (http://www.geeksquad.com).  Locally there is a Geeksquad counter in Best Buy at the Palisades Shopping center, minutes from the college.