Network Overview

In this lesson, we will learn where to use your University username and password, and where to use your Law School username and password.

Network Overview

This diagram represents the computer network you will be using throughout Law School. The Law School network and University network are two distinct, but interconnected networks.

This is the University network, also known as CUNIX, which stands for Columbia UNIX.

CUNIX is managed by the Columbia University Information Technology department or sometimes called CUIT for short. All Columbia University students, including Law School students, receive accounts on the University's network. University accounts are called UNIs and is usually a combination of your initials and some numbers directly after your initials. For example, University President Lee C. Bollinger's UNI is "lcb50."

This is the Law School network. Every Law School student receives an account on the Law School network. Law School accounts are usually the first initial of your first name, followed by the first five characters of your last name. For example, University President Lee Bollinger is also a member of the Law School faculty. President Bollinger's Law School username is "lbolli." Your Law School account is used to access the Law School file and print servers, LawNet (an important website that will be explained in the next module), computer labs, email kiosks, and other Law School services.

Having two separate accounts means you will have two usernames and passwords:

  • A UNI account and password for University systems
  • A Law School account and password for Law School systems

You will use both accounts regularly.

Use your UNI account to sign into University systems. Use your Law School username and password to sign into the Law School network. Both sign-in pages indicate which account to use.

The Law School IT department provides full technical support on the Law School network account, and partial support for the CUNIX account.

If you have trouble with your UNI account you should contact the Law School IT Helpdesk at [email protected] for technical support. We can often quickly solve the problem ourselves.

The Law School IT department performs system maintenance from 6:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. on the second Friday of every month. Network services such as file and print servers, internet connectivity from within the Law School, computer labs, and a few other services are not available during this timeframe. A complete listing of the network downtimes can be found on the IT website at law.columbia.edu/it.

Lesson summary

  • You will be using two distinct but interconnected networks—the Columbia Law School network and CUNIX, hence you will have two usernames and passwords
  • The Columbia Law School network is managed by the Law School Information Technology department
  • CUNIX is administered by the Columbia University Information Technology department
  • Use your Law School username and password to access the Law School computer network, including the file and print servers, LawNet, lab computers, and email kiosks
  • Use your UNI and password to access CUNIX and other University resources

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