Minimum Configuration

Background

In order to provide a good user experience and maintain the integrity of the University's IT resources, the Office of Information Technology defines a minimum configuration for connecting to the campus network.

Configuration considerations fall within these categories:

Workstation configuration
Operating System
Patches, settings and utility software

This document supersedes all prior published minimum requirements for UW-Platteville and is updated whenever necessary.

*** Please click on the Level support links to see a detailed definition of the level of support offered.

Workstation configuration

Keep in mind that the workstation requirements will increase depending on the operating system, software and peripherals that you intend to use. Requirements will also increase depending on the performance level that you find acceptable.

MINIMUM hardware requirements

Processor: 200 Mhz processor
RAM: 128 MB memory
Hard drive: 1 GB hard drive

This represents the minimum workstation configuration allowed to connect to University services. Any workstation not meeting these minimum requirements will not be allowed on the campus network.

Operating System

Effective Date

Supported Operating Systems

Current

Level 1 - Best effort
Windows XP Professional, Mac OS X 10.4, Mac OS X 10.5

Level 2 - Limited support
Windows 2000, Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, Windows XP Home Edition (ResNet only), Windows Vista (Home Premium, Ultimate, Business (ResNet only))

Level 3 - Unsupported
Windows XP x64 Edition, Windows XP Media Center Edition, Windows Vista Home Basic (ResNet only), Mac OS 10.2-10.3, BSD, Linux, UNIX and anything not in Level 1, Level 2, or prohibited by Level 4

Level 4 - Not allowed
DOS, Windows 95/98/ME and older, Windows NT 4 and older, Windows Vista Starter, Mac OS 9.x and older, Mac OS X 10.0-10.1, any homegrown, beta or pre-release OS, any OS designed primarily to provide server services (ex. Windows 2003 Server, NetWare, Red Hat Advanced Server)

More information about operating system requirements can be found here.

Change log

8/1/2008 - Moved Mac OS X 10.3 to Level 3 - Unsupported.
3/1/2008 - Added Mac OS X 10.5 to Level 1 - Best effort.
8/1/2007 - Added Windows Vista (Home Premium, Ultimate, Business) to Level 2 - Limited Support.
8/1/2007 - Added Windows Vista Home Basic to Level 3 - Unsupported.
8/1/2006 - Moved Windows 98 and Windows ME to Level 4 - Not allowed.
8/1/2006 - Moved Mac OS X 10.3 to Level 2 - Limited Support.

Patches, settings and utility software

All computers connected to the campus network must have some basic software and settings.

All vendor-supplied operating system and security patches must be applied. For example, use Microsoft Update for Windows or Software Update for Mac OS to install updates.
Up-to-date anti-virus software and virus definitions must be installed if available. If you are running a Level I or Level II operating system on your computer, you can download current anti-virus software from the Software Download page http://www.uwplatt.edu/go/software.
Duplication of campus services (ex. DHCP, DNS, SMTP, etc.) is NOT allowed.
Operation of server services (ex. Telnet, FTP, Web, PTP) is prohibited.
All file sharing software must be disabled. For example, for Mac OS, turn off file sharing in the File Sharing control panel. For Windows remove the File and Printer sharing component from the Network control panel.
TCP/IP configuration must be retrieved using DHCP.
University-owned computers must also contain specific versions of network client software and Anti-Virus software.

Note: Systems that are creating network problems, infected with viruses or bots, or interrupting University services will be immediately removed from the campus network. The problem must be resolved before the system will be allowed back on the campus network.

If you have questions, please contact your Distributed IT Support Staff, the OIT Help Desk, or the ResNet Office.

A historical record of previous minimum configuration standards is available.