Computer Accounts & Passwords

To ensure security, everyone using computers at St. Norbert College must have one or more computer accounts. These accounts allow the IT department to provide individuals with access to resources such as software and disk storage. All accounts on the campus network are administered by the IT department and are free to all College employees and students. Your accounts will be created before you attend orientation (students), or after your information is put into the College administrative system (employees). Before you use your accounts for the first time, you will need to activate your account (instructions below). The computer accounts you have may include:

Campus network | Zimbra/E-mail | KnightLine | Banner | Activating a new network/e-mail account | Passwords

Caution: Do not fall for e-mail scams asking for your information! No one who works at St. Norbert College will ever ask for your password, and we never send e-mail asking for personal information. Please see our phishing page for more information.

Campus network (all users)

This account permits you to access the College computer network, shared network storage, and SNC-only web pages.

Login ID: Your login ID for the campus network is exactly 6 characters long, and is usually the first 4 letters of your last name followed by your first and middle initials (e.g., Donald F. Duck’s login ID would be duckdf). You will receive your login ID when you activate your account (below).

Password: You use the same password for logging in to the network and for your e-mail account (next). You will set your initial password when you activate your account. This password expires every 6 months. You will be notified via e-mail when it’s time to change it. You may change your password at any time from the Computer Account Management page, http://www.snc.edu/pw.

Trouble logging in to your network account?

• First, make sure you're using the correct login/password combination, as described above. If you're not sure about your password, or you think it might be expired, reset it by going to the Computer Account Management page.
• If you're on campus and can't log in to a computer on the network, first check the computer's network cable to make sure it is plugged in securely to both the computer and the wall jack, or that you have a sufficient wireless connection. On the login screen, make sure that the box below the password box is set to "SNC." If you still can't log in, contact the Help Desk.
• If you're having trouble logging in to an SNC-only web page like mySNC, this may be due to your web browser's behavior. Unfortunately, if you type your login or password wrong the first time, that incorrect information may be stored in your web browsers' cache (temporary memory), so it may not give you another chance to try to log in. Sometimes closing the browser and reopening it will clear this. If not, you may need to clear the cache. In Firefox, it's under Firefox - History - Clear Recent History, Tools - Clear Recent History, or Tools - Clear Private Data (varies by version). In Internet Explorer, it's under Tools - Internet Options - General tab - Temporary Internet files or Browsing history. In Chrome, it's under the "Customize and control Google Chrome" (wrench) icon - Options - Under the Hood - Clear browsing data. In Safari, it's under the Safari menu - Preferences - Security - Show Cookies - Remove all. Another possibility is that you may have told your browser to save the password (we recommend never doing this), in which case it would have saved the wrong password, so you need to find the saved password and delete it. In Firefox, that's under Tools - Options - Security - Saved Passwords or Show Passwords. In Internet Explorer, it's under Tools - Internet Options - Content - Personal Information - AutoComplete - Clear Passwords. In Chrome, it's under the "Customize and control Google Chrome" (wrench) icon - Options - Under the Hood - Clear browsing data.

Zimbra/E-mail (all users)

The Zimbra Collaboration Suite combines e-mail, calendars, address books, and other tools in an integrated system. All College computer users have this account. To log in to Zimbra, go to http://www.snc.edu/zimbra.

Username: Your username for the Zimbra e-mail/calendar system is your firstname.lastname from the beginning of your e-mail address (e.g., donald.duck). You will receive your username when you activate your account (below). The only other time you use this username is when logging in to the anti-spam server.

Password: Your Zimbra/e-mail password is the same as your network password (described above).

E-mail address: Your e-mail address is firstname.lastname@snc.edu or, if you have a nickname in your College records, nickname.lastname@snc.edu (e.g., Donald Duck’s e-mail address would be donald.duck@snc.edu or don.duck@snc.edu). You will receive your e-mail address when you activate your account.

Trouble logging in to Zimbra?

Make sure you're using the correct login/password combination, as described above. If you're not sure about your password, or you think it might be expired, reset it by going to the Computer Account Management page page. If you still cannot log in, contact the Help Desk.

KnightLine (all users)

KnightLine is used for course registration, student/personnel information, and more. You log in to KnightLine with your 9-digit SNC ID number. To log in to KnightLine, go to http://www.snc.edu/knightline.

Login: You log in to KnightLine using your St. Norbert College ID number from your ID card (put zeros before the numbers on your ID card to make it 9 digits long).

Password: Your KnightLine password is independent of all other systems. You should receive your initial KnightLine password via e-mail; if you do not, contact the Help Desk.

Trouble logging in to KnightLine?

If KnightLine says that your account is disabled, it will automatically reset your password and e-mail you a new temporary password. If your password has not yet been reset and you would like it to be, contact the Help Desk.

Banner administrative system (some employees)

Banner is the College’s administrative information system. If you need Banner access, your supervisor must contact the IT department and indicate which specific items you need access to. To log in to Banner, go to http://www.snc.edu/cwis.

Login ID: Your login ID for Banner is the same as for the campus network (above).

Password: Your Banner password is independent of all other systems. You will be given your Banner password when your account is established. For instructions on changing your Banner password, see the CWIS web site, http://www.snc.edu/cwis.

Trouble logging in to Banner?

See the Banner documentation on the CWIS web site, http://www.snc.edu/cwis, or use the Service Request Form to request assistance from the Banner team.

Activating a new network/e-mail account

1. Go to the Computer Account Management page.
2. Click the “Activate your account” link.
3. Enter the requested information where indicated and click the Submit button.
4. You will be given your network login ID and e-mail address. Make note of these.
   *If the system says that it can’t find your information, contact the Help Desk.
5. In each of the “New password” boxes, enter a password of your choosing. Passwords should be 8-12 characters and must contain at least one letter and one number. See below for choosing a secure password and following good password security practices.
6. Click the Change Password button.

Passwords

Why passwords matter

You may not care if someone gets into your account, but we do, because a breach of any account on our network can threaten the entire network. Network security is a serious issue because of the large amount of personal data stored on our systems. Not only could a person who gets into your account harm you, they could also harm our systems and other SNC users. Don’t let your account be the one that jeopardizes the security of the entire network! If your account is used to commit a security breach, you will be held responsible. It is essential that every user assist us in protecting the College’s computing resources by choosing secure passwords and following good password security practices.

Choosing a password

Remember, if you don’t use good passwords, someone could use your account and breach our system, putting you, our systems, and other SNC users at risk. Computer hackers use very sophisticated techniques and automated tools to crack passwords; the easier a password is to guess, the faster a hacker can break in.

• Don’t use any word that can be found in any dictionary, in any language.
• Never use your name or your login ID/username, even if you add additional characters to it.
• Don’t use personal information such as your phone number, birthday, or family member’s/pet’s name.
• Don’t use consecutive letters or numbers (123456), a series of adjacent keyboard keys (asdfgh), or the same repeated character (555555, hhhggg).
• Use at least 3 of the 4 different character types: upper case letters, lower case letters, numbers, and special characters (*, $, &). Put the numbers in the middle, not just at the beginning or end.
• Passwords should be at least 6 characters long, preferably 8 or more (different systems may have different length requirements). The longer they are, the more secure they are.
• Choose a password that’s easy for you to remember but difficult for anyone else to guess. Get creative! Try combining words together and mix it up with numbers & symbols, or take a phrase or song lyric and use the first letter of each word. Don’t just substitute numbers in place of similar-looking letters to form a regular word like “sch001” – that’s too easy to guess.
• Password security practices
• Never share your password with anyone else. Permitting another person to use your SNC computer account/password or using another person’s account/password are strictly prohibited (in violation of the Appropriate Use Policy) and can result in losing your account or other disciplinary action.
• Remember that no one who works at St. Norbert College will ever ask for your password, and we never send e-mail asking for personal information. See our phishing page for more information.
• Don’t use the same password for multiple computer accounts. Use a different password for each one.
• Don’t reuse old passwords or make only slight variations (like just adding a different number to it).
• Never write down your passwords or use the “Remember password” feature of your web/e-mail program. There are programs that can keep track of them for you; ask the Help Desk for suggestions.