cambridge remote access

What is the Cambridge College remote access policy?

The policy's guiding philosophy is to keep Cambridge College information within the Cambridge College internal network. As such, this policy is designed to enable users' full remote access to authorized resources that are necessary to perform their jobs while minimizing the exposure of College IT resources to external threats.

What types of remote access are available in the Department?

There are two main types of remote access available in the Department: access to your own office desktop computer located in the Department and access to the Department teaching system. Instructions on how to set these up from a variety of operating systems can be found on the following pages:

What email system do I use for MY @Cam address?

If you use an @Cam address then you probably use the University central ‘Hermes’ system which just provides email. Whichever you use, there are multiple ways of accessing these accounts, and which is best for you depends on your working habits:

What devices can I use to access CCC systems?

A Windows 10 PC or later. Mac and Chromebooks may be used with an RDP client installed - see guidance for details. All mainstream browsers can be used. However, Internet Explorer and Google Chrome are recommended. The CCC Gateway3 User Guide provides guidance on how to access CCC systems via an NHS laptop/device.

What is Logmein for college?

LogMeIn is an authenticated “Cloud” based remote access service. The service is maintained and administered by the IT department and is available in two versions. One version provides full access to a user’s desktop and allows the user the same control over services that they would have while seated at their work desk. There is no cost to the College for this version and therefore we will encourage users who need to use a remote access solution to adopt this version. The second version is similar to the free version with the additional capability of transferring files bi-directionally between the remote computer and the user’s work desktop. This expanded version is only available on an as needed basis. Both versions require supervisor approval.

Does Cambridge College have a VPN?

In the past, the College relied on a Virtual Private Network (VPN) to connect remote users directly to the College network. With overhead and support for this type of technology solution running in the multiple thousands per year the College has sought out alternative solutions for this basic service.

Chemistry Department web proxy service

The Department runs a proxy server which can be used for off-site access to webpages that are otherwise only accessible from computers that are either within the University or within the Department.

Remote journal access

The University Library advertises a browser extension (Lean Library) that can be used to access online journals when you are not connected to the University network. There is much more information about remote journal access at https://www-library.ch.cam.ac.uk/how-access-online-resources-remotely

VPNs

Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) enable IP traffic to travel securely over a public TCP/IP network (e.g. the Internet) by encrypting all traffic from one network to another. Effectively you get an IP address on the private network. This is the simplest way to connect.

ssh access via a Bastion host

Our department firewall blocks most incoming traffic, but ssh is allowed to the Bastion Host. This avoids the overhead of VPN but is more difficult to use.

Remote Access to Windows Desktop

The most straightforward way to do this is to use the VPN and you normal Remote Desktop software, but it's also possible to set up a tunnel through the bastion host. See SSH Tunnel Windows Terminal Services/Remote Desktop for more details

CCC Gateway3 - access for users on an NHS device

The CCC Gateway3 User Guide provides guidance on how to access CCC systems via an NHS laptop/device.

Warning

You are about to access a system operated by Cambridgeshire County Council. You must be an authorised user and act within CCC guidelines to use this system. Use of this computer may be monitored and/or recorded for lawful purposes.

Configuring your Engineering machine to allow Remote Desktop access

Note: These instructions should be carried out on your Engineering machine.

Setting up a Secure Shell connection

Note: These instructions should be carried out on the machine you will be using to connect to your Engineering machine.

Accessing your Network Files

Every CSCS customer has a 50GB network “home” drive for secure storage of their files (also called the U: drive). On a Windows PC, your ‘Documents’ and ‘Desktop’ are automatically saved here. On a Mac or Linux PC it is available as a separate drive . You might also have a group drive.

Accessing the Internal Network or Systems

If you work off-site regularly and wish to access multiple on-site resources, you can use one of the following solutions: