This document describes the current computer policies of the Engineering Computing Center. These policies apply to all users of the ECC facilities and resources, and includes Windows (CougarNet) and ECC UNIX systems. It is each user's responsibility to periodically check this document for any new or updated policies. In addition, all users of the ECC are expected to comply with the College of Engineering Policies and Procedures for Departmental Computing.
Notice
Use of University of Houston computer and network facilities requires prior authorization. Unauthorized access is prohibited. Usage will be subject to security testing and monitoring. Abuse is subject to criminal prosecution.
Policy on IRC and ‘Bots’
No network server processes of any kind are allowed to run after you log out (this means, no IRC servers or bots, no network game servers, no mud/moo servers, no daemon/server processes of any kind!). Violation of this policy is grounds for permanent suspension of your account(s) from the ECC systems.
Screenlockers and logging out
Users are reminded that if you leave the ECC for more than 15 minutes, you are required to log out of the workstation you are using. This is for your own protection (if your do not log out, someone might delete or alter your files) and it makes the workstation available for other users.
Even though the operating system might provide the ability to lock the screen on a workstation, Screenlockers are prohibited on ECC computers. This policy is to allow access to all operational computers by all users during the hours that the ECC is open. When a user locks a workstation and leaves, other users are unable to use that workstation, unless it is unlocked by the System Administrator or it is rebooted by the ECC staff. If the System Administrator has to unlock a workstation, that user's account will immediately be disabled by the administrator.
If you need to run a job that takes an excessive period of time, you need to learn how to run the job in the background. This is particularly true on the UNIX/Linux workstations. Users who continuely lock their accounts will find that their accounts are permanently removed from the system. If you have any questions or need to discuss this policy, please send e-mail to admin [at] egr.uh.edu.