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Math Department Computing Policies and Procedures

We are happy to provide support for those needs that meet the qualifications of supported items on this page. If you require support, please contact . Requests will be filled based on importance and order received.

Supported Operating Systems

Fedora is presently the only supported operating system on the Math Department network for general use. All workstations in use by faculty on our network must run Fedora with root access restricted to and managed by the System Administrators.

Laptops

For wireless connectivity, please use MIT Secure, MIT, or MIT Guest (the latter does not require Athena authentication but does block several common ports for security reasons). For wired connectivity, you can use any available ethernet jack in your office. Once you've initially connected with either method, start up a web browser so you can register for continued use. More details can be found on MIT's DHCP Service Page (You'll want to register using Option A - without an IP address).

Linux

If you wish to purchase a Linux workstation please consult with us for more information on the procedure.

Software

Software support is provided for software packages preinstalled by the administrators. We cannot provide support for software packages installed by the user. If you have a work related need for additional software packages or updates, send a request to help@math.mit.edu. For a list of Math Department supported software please visit our Workstations page.

MP3s and Digital Media

Please be conservative in your use of audio and video files on the department network.

Here are three reasons why:

  • Disk space is expensive. Digital media files are much larger in comparison to documents. As a result, more money is spent for additional disk space.
  • Moving files of this type uses a large fraction of the limited bandwidth that we have.
  • Changed files are backed up every day and all files every two weeks. Large files slow this process down.

Departures

For security reasons, upon departing MIT your account will remain active for 30 days. During this time you will be responsible for backing up the data you wish to take with you to a separate medium. If you are using a legacy '@math.mit.edu' email address you should inform network staff of an email address to which your mail can be forwarded. Legacy email accounts will remain active for the purpose of forwarding mail for a period of one year.