DRAFT
Software Installation Policy for North Iowa Area
Community College Computer Labs
Definitions and coverage:
This policy addresses installation of software on computer systems in all North Iowa
Area Community College (NIACC) computer labs and pertains to software that is not
part of the regularly available, licensed, software provided by the College and Technology
Services for credit (and non-credit) programs.
Important general considerations:
- Staff time devoted to installation and testing of "special use" software (as
defined by this policy) will depend on the time of the academic year and other ongoing or
special projects. An installation request that has an immediate, direct academic purpose
or that affects a large number of people may be given special consideration.
- We cannot guarantee that special use software will function in our lab environment,
regardless of whether such software works on an identical or similar office or home
computer. We will not compromise functionality or the security of our systems or laboratory
environment in any way to accommodate special use software.
- Other factors that may affect consideration for installing special use software include
cost; impact on local systems, servers, or network operations; advance notice given for
the request; and general availability of all required resources. Software will be
considered for installation only as resources permit.
- Login accounts are required to use all laboratory computers. All accounts, temporary or
permanent, must be established in advance.
Requirements:
- LICENSING—Technology Services staff will not install special use software
without conclusive proof that a valid license agreement exists for the requested number of
installations of a given software package. It is the responsibility of the person making
the installation request to provide proof of purchase for the appropriate
number of computers and be responsible for any legal issues that may
arise in connection with software installation or use.
- An appropriate member of the Technology Services staff must be contacted as far in
advance as possible. A minimum of ten working days will be required for
consideration. If the software meets the criteria outlined in this policy and is approved
for installation, a minimum of ten working days after the software is received
by NIACC Technology Services staff must be allowed for its
installation.
- The duration of the software installation must be agreed upon in advance by both
parties. Factors taken into consideration will include length of time the software will be
needed and demonstrated use. It should also be noted whether software use will be
continued in subsequent semesters. The requestor must negotiate an acceptable uninstall
date with Technology Services staff. Information on upgrade(s) that may be required should
also be submitted.
- An agreement to install special use software does NOT guarantee that it will be
reinstalled in the future. Unforeseen circumstances may cause us to uninstall or erase
software at any time (e.g., in the event of system failure which requires an immediate
rebuild to get the workstation up to a "minimum configuration level" on a par
with other workstations in other labs). The special use software may not be immediately
available again. Special use software must not interfere with the regular operation of
our lab systems or with existing permission or security requirements established for our
normal configuration.
- If, after installation, it is determined that the special use software interferes in any
way with normal operations (including the local PC, server, or network traffic loads), the
special use software may have to be modified or uninstalled at the discretion of
Technology Services staff.
- Technology Services staff cannot provide user support for the special use software nor
can we guarantee its interaction with any other software on our systems or any network
options that may be required. The requestor will be responsible for providing instruction
and support to users of the special use software. Technology Services strongly
encourages the contact person to thoroughly test the software once it is installed to
ensure it will function as required. Adequate lead-time will be required for Technology
Services staff to try to resolve any problems or conflicts that are found with the
software installation.
Responsibilities of the requestor:
- In order to have special use software installed, the requestor must demonstrate that the
software is directly related to an academic need. Software not meeting this requirement
and other criteria included in this policy will, at the discretion of Technology Services
staff, either not be installed or, if installed, done so on low priority and on a smaller
scale.
- The requestor must provide information on an available contact person who can be reached
in the event of problems or questions regarding the installation. Technology Services will
supply at least two names of support staff that can be contacted regarding the special
software installation.
- The requestor is responsible for providing documentation for the special use software.
Technology Services cannot be held responsible for damage or loss to any such materials
nor do we provide any permanent documentation areas.
- The requestor is responsible for payment of the $200 fee assessed for the
installation of up to two pieces of software for each distinct activity.
Responsibilities of NIACC Technology Services:
- Technology Services staff will provide notification of denial or approval of
installation for the special use software request within five working days of request
submission. An initial appointment with the requestor may be required to go over any
unique options or considerations for the special use software. If the special use software
is installed, we will provide information as to the systems on which it has been
installed, the requirements or restrictions (if any) placed on its use, and the duration
of the installation.
Other considerations:
- All PCs in Computing Center labs have sound cards installed; however,
Technology Services will
supply only one set of speakers (if requested with initial installation request) for the
instructor. We do NOT routinely supply or support microphones, headphones, joysticks, or
other multimedia hardware options. A limited number of headphones may be available for
checkout for occasional use by small classes.
- Will a particular type or version of an Internet browser be required? Will special
browser plug-ins be required? Make no assumptions about software installation or
performance—test your software requirements in advance!
- Can the software be run from a server or will it need to be installed on individual
systems?
- What printing options are required?
- Does the installation manual indicate that the software can run on the version of the
operating system of the systems requested, such as Microsoft Windows NT Workstation
version 4.0, Windows 2000, or Windows XP?
- Are comparable products already installed?
- Will the special use software need to be restricted to a limited set of users or can all
users run it?
- Will the special use software be installed on only selected "special use"
machines (e.g., scanner PCs, designated "special use software PCs") or on
regular lab systems? An entire lab? All systems? If there is a preferred system (or group
of systems) requested for this installation, the requestor must provide a satisfactory
explanation of why these machines are required or preferred.
- Will a CD-ROM be required to run the software? If so, how many copies of the CD-ROM will
be available? The requestor must provide all required copies. Technology Services is not
responsible for checkout of additional media nor can it be held responsible for damage or
loss.
- What media type needs to be used for installation? Technology Services cannot be held
responsible for damage or loss to any installation media given to us for the installation
of special use software.
Information to be provided: