Third-Party Departmental Lab Support Guidelines

Issue / Question
Information Technology Services provides ongoing departmental lab support for third-party labs. They assist in managing these sites to maximize the University's investment in computing resources and make computing tools widely available and accessible to our campus community.
 
Environment
  • Platform
    • Third-Party Departmental Managed Labs
  • Audience Affected
    • Faculty
    • Staff
    • Students
Resolution

The Managed Lab System is a software suite designed to simplify the installation, updating, and overall management of computer labs across campus. The system is also capable of monitoring the computers for faults and usage. Among its many features, the Managed Lab System includes print monitoring and metering via GoPrint, persistence via Deep Freeze, and single sign-on via Active Directory. The software automatically runs updates, software installations, and configuration changes on a weekly basis. ITS Enterprise Applications is responsible for supporting the software included in the Managed Lab System, while the IT Service Desk provides basic hardware support and troubleshooting. Having a minimum of four computers in a new lab environment is recommended.

A request for a new departmental computer lab will be approved only if it is deemed beneficial to the student experience and meets the minimum utilization thresholds. The usage of labs is monitored by the Managed Lab System and Labstats. If any lab has extended low utilization, ITS will recommend resizing or removing them. The goal is to provide a beneficial service to students without being outdated or unnecessary. Extended low utilization is defined as any lab with less than 50% concurrent logins for more than one year (subject to change as usage patterns are monitored). However, there may be exceptions to this rule based on specific needs such as accessibility.

Responsibilities

The Department
The department will be responsible for providing any necessary equipment, including enterprise-grade desktop PCs (such as Dell OptiPlex) and peripherals like keyboards, mice, cameras, microphones, and enterprise-grade printers (if required). However, in case of an excess of older equipment coming out of ITS labs, ITS may provide equipment. But this is not common, so departments should be prepared to provide their own equipment.

  • The Department Agrees To:
    • Ensure all computers are online and connected to the ISU network in order to receive regular updates and communicate with the Managed Lab System.
    •  Identify a point-of-contact that ITS can use to communicate issues/changes/etc. (Point-of-contact will be trained in maintaining the lab by one of our Lab Administrators)
    • Monitor their equipment (computers, peripherals, printers, etc.) for hardware and software issues and notify the appropriate party if any issues are found.
    • Monitor and replace any consumables such as printer paper and toner.
    • Purchase and maintain currency of licensing for any specialized non-standard lab software if applicable
    • Provide necessary license updates to Enterprise Applications, preferrably one to two weeks before the current license is set to expire if applicable
    • Provide cleaning and upkeep to the lab area.
Information Technology Services (ITS)
ITS primarily offers resources for installing basic hardware and software. This includes computers, monitors, keyboards, mice, printers for hardware, and common software available in the Managed Lab System, such as Google Chrome, Firefox, Adobe Reader, and Microsoft Office. For any other support apart from these, ITS will do their best to assist, but on a lower priority basis since they do not have experts in specialty hardware and software.
The IT Service Desk
  • Offers installation services for both hardware and software installation to set up new labs or modify existing labs.
  • Assists in the diagnostics and troubleshooting of base hardware and software, after basic troubleshooting steps have been attempted.
  • Works with the Enterprise Applications group to create and maintain Knowledge Base Articles in TigerTracks for basic troubleshooting and diagnostics.
Enterprise Applications
  • Provides the Windows installation media for all computers under the Managed Lab System.
  • Works with the IT Service Desk to create and maintain Knowledge Base Articles in TigerTracks for basic troubleshooting and diagnostics.
  • Provides training on the basic troubleshooting and upkeep of the Departmental Managed Lab System.
    • Note: These training tips should be attempted before contacting the IT Service Desk or Enterprise Applications
  • Makes changes to the lab configuration upon request (ideally with two weeks advance notice).
  • Assists in the diagnostics and troubleshooting of base software when escalated from the IT Service Desk.
  • Communicates any major changes to the Managed Lab System.
  • Provides recommendations on hardware (PCs and printers).
When-To-Contact
 
The following information is provided to assist you in determining the best way to contact us.
New Software or Changes to Existing Software
New Third-Party Lab Request
  • Submit a Software Request/Install Ticket
    • Note: Please include the following information in your request.
      1. The proposed lab location
      2. The proposed lab purpose
      3. The departmental lab owner
      4. How many computers would be in the lab
      5. Any special requirements or software needed on the computers
Other Issues(examples)
  • Contact the IT Service Desk
    • Computer won’t turn on
    • Computer is locked up and will not respond
    • Specialty software or hardware is not working as intended
    • Lab computers can’t print
    • Lab computer has a “maintenance” background
    • “Administrator has locked the keyboard and mouse” message
    • Issues not listed above (the IT Service Desk will direct the requester to the appropriate area for assistance)
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