With the advent of Box and G Suite, and our focus on a mobile-first, cloud-first future enabling remote work, this service is being retired and is not open to new customers. Please contact Chris Sneathen (sneathen@ucsb.edu) about our current service offerings.  

Existing Customers please contact your service representative or the IT Services Catalog at ucsb.service-now.edu/it or call x5000. 

ETS Thin Client Support

Thin Client computing separates the user interface from the equipment on which the operating system and applications execute.  The bulk of the processing occurs on a server system executing Microsoft’s Terminal Server software, while thin-client devices (or “Windows terminals”) display the graphical results and send the keyboard and mouse input from the end-user.  The end-user experiences the environment, interface and applications of a Windows environment without actually having a complete workstation installed at their desktop.

A Terminal Server system is shared by all thin client customers in a department thus optimizing equipment (memory, processors and disk capacity) and consolidating the software required.  Software installation and upgrades occur at the server system and do not require that time be spent at each thin client location.  Similarly, file protection from viruses and disk file backups are handled at the Terminal Server, thus freeing the end-user from these chores. Following a research study and pilot project conducted August 1999 through June 2000, IS&C’s Unix and Office Systems Group is offering thin client services to its customers.  The description of this service follows.

Department Contacts

Each department will identify a Primary Contact.  This individual will represent the department in all Thin Client computing service discussions and decisions.  They will identify the applications and specific thin client services to be used by each member of the department and will coordinate communication regarding this service within their department. The Secondary Contact will serve as the alternate for the Primary Contact and can act on their behalf. All requests for service should be sent from the Primary or Secondary Contact to the Thin Client Support Group (TCSG) staff.

Requests for Service:

Maintenance: Work needing to be done on existing equipment or software. We'd appreciate the department's contact spending a couple of minutes verifying the problem before contacting us.

Research: Investigations into new equipment or software.

Customer Support At Customer Site

The TCS staff will assemble, fully configure and deliver a thin client device to the end-user desktop and will also train the end-user on their use of the thin client device and environment. When this task is completed, the customer should be able to begin working as they intended.

Equipment

The TCSG staff will purchase, install, configure and upgrade the following equipment at each end-user location:

  • Thin Client Device (including network adapter)

  • Desktop Monitor

  • Keyboard and Mouse

The department will provide:

  • Electricity up to the location of this equipment

  • A network connection up to the location of this equipment and the jumper cable from the thin client device to the wall plate.

  • A valid IP address (which should be registered with the Office of Information Technology

  • The information necessary to access the Internet from that department location. (IP Gateway and Submask information)

Customer Support - At Server

Terminal Server System Support

Information describing the Terminal Server system support is appended to this document.

Disk Space

The TCSG staff may provide each Thin Client end-user with a sufficient quantity of disk capacity as directed by the department's Primary Contact.

Base Set Workstation Software

The TCGSG staff will acquire, install, configure and upgrade, when necessary, the appropriately licensed software packages on workstations. Permission to use these software packages will be assigned by the department’s Primary or Secondary Contact.  The latest software packages installed are:

  • Email and Calendaring clients
  • Microsoft Office Professional
  • Internet Browsers
  • Adobe Acrobat Products

Permission to use this software will be assigned by the department's Primary or Secondary Contact. Please contact your Workstation Support staff for information regarding these products.

Departmental Software

After discussion and by mutual agreement, the TCSG will install, configure and upgrade (as directed by the department) on the department’s Terminal Server system “additional” workstation software whose license was acquired and maintained by the department. Initial training and basic knowledge of these programs is the responsibility of the individual customer. The TCSG will investigate and resolve, when possible, any problems or conflicts that involve the thin client devices connecting to the department’s network or connecting to our Terminal Server system.  This will not include problems related to connectivity to other services external to the department.

Coordination with Thin Client Support Staff

If a problem needs immediate attention, please contact the Enterprise Technology Service Center at ucsb.service-now.edu/it or call x5000.

Terminal Server System

Terminal Server System Procedures

Hours of Operation

Prime Time - 8:00 AM- 5:00 PM, Monday - Friday excluding UCSB Administrative holidays.
Non-Prime Time - 5:00 PM - 8:00 AM, Monday - Friday, all day Saturday, Sunday and all UCSB Administrative holidays.

Restoration of Service

If a disruption of service occurs during PRIME time a maximum effort will be made to restore service.

If a disruption of service occurs during NON-PRIME time contact will be made with the UOSG and a reasonable effort will be made to restore service.

Announcements to server system (Thin Client) customers

Shall be accomplished using electronic mail published to a ListServer list. All server system users will automatically be subscribed to this list. In the case of a complete system outage, telephone contact will be made with the Primary Contacts.

Corrective Maintenance and System Development

Each Sunday evening at 8 PM the TSCG reserves the opportunity to perform regular system maintenance which may disrupt service.

Corrective procedures necessary for proper system performance and function will be coordinated and scheduled with the department Primary Contacts. Once coordination is complete and a plan has been made, this plan will be announced to system users. An estimate of system downtime will be given to the department Primary Contacts.

The server may, rarely, need to be unavailable to customers and immediate corrective maintenance applied. In these, unusual, cases the department Primary Contacts will be notified immediately. The TSCG will attempt to notify all customers using the ListServer list associated with this service. When it is possible to do so, at least a one-hour warning will be given.

New software or equipment changes, which add new or enhanced functions or features, will be coordinated and scheduled with the department Primary Contacts. Once coordination is complete and a plan is made, all users of the system will be notified of any planned outage.

Data Management

Backups

The TSCG is responsible for coordinating system backups conducted daily and weekly. The current backup schedule is as follows:

System backups are conducted Monday through Friday.  The backups Monday through Thursday are “differential” (files which changed since the last full backup).  The backup each Friday is a full (complete) system backup.

Following each system backup the system manager will review the system logs constructed during the backups for assurance that the backups worked as planned and can be used for system recovery.  Periodically, files will be restored from the backup tapes as a test of these procedures.

Definition

All closed files residing on the file server at the time of a system backup and appropriate for that backup will be copied to the backup tape (or set of tapes). A differential backup will backup all files created since the last full backup. A full backup will backup all files.

Backup Storage

Daily backups will be saved for 1 week, weekly backups for 8 weeks.
System backup tapes, to be used for disaster recovery, will be kept in a location different from the server system.

Data Recovery and File restorations

In the event of a disk failure the TSCG will be responsible for restoration of files to the last backup level. Restoration should occur no later than 1 working day after obtaining the necessary replacement disk.

In the event of a loss of an individual's files (one or more), a request from the department Primary Contact or their designee can be made to the TCSG for the restoration of these files. Restoration should occur no later than 2 working days from the time the request is made.

Other Terminal Server Services

Specific Programs Executing on the Server System

The TCSG will create or acquire programs necessary to support computing needs of system users or TCSG to include anti-virus software and system backup client software.

File sharing

The Terminal Server system will NOT provide a repository for sharing files owned by individuals in the department. It is to be used for storing files accessed only by the owner of those files.

User support

Trouble reporting

Customers experiencing a loss of service should report this to the Department's Primary Contact or designee. If the Primary Contact believes the problem resides in the server service they should contact the TCSG. The TCSG will ask the Primary Contact to provide as much documentation of the problem as possible so that the TCSG can attempt to replicate the reported incident.

Terminal Server Accounts

Individual accounts will be provided and administered by the TCSG. The department Primary Contact should send requests for new accounts, for closing old accounts or for changing accounts to the TCSG.