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Our professional and student staff members are ready, willing, and able to assist you with any and all technology-related questions that you may have. The starting point for all needs, concerns, challenges, ideas, etc. is the SUNY Canton Help Desk.
Hours of operation can be found on the website linked below. All interactions with our Help Desk and Ticketing System are linked to your NetID.
Updates and additional communications are visible to & managed through your SUNY Canton email account.
Your ticket will be assigned to the team or individual that can best serve you.
NetID formalizes what has been known generically as an individual’s “computer username” or “network account.” It is the username/password credentials used to login to a growing list of services:
- Campus computers [faculty, staff and students]
- Banner Admin
- Barracuda spam quarantine
- Brightspace
- Library resources from off-campus
- Microsoft Office 365 [faculty, staff and student email]
- SUNY web-based services [employee portal, DegreeWorks, etc.]
- SUNY Canton secured wireless network
- UCanWeb
SUNY Canton's email and calendar are provided within a Microsoft-based environment that is user friendly across all major operating systems and devices.
All SUNY Canton email addresses are created in the form of NetID@canton.edu. (See 'NetID' section above)
All official administrative and course-related communications are sent to your SUNY Canton email address. As such, you are expected to check your account regularly. We discourage the practice of auto-forwarding SUNY Canton email to 'personal' email providers (gmail, yahoo, created domains, etc.). Our support staff are unable to troubleshoot non-SUNY Canton email systems. We can only help with our own.
You can access your email and calendar in a variety of ways, including:
Visit the Self Service Password Reset to change your password, set or change your security questions.
Scammers and spammers don’t take days off, so neither can you. SUNY Canton's Information Technology team encourages all campus members to be vigilant when reading and responding to email. Requests for personal information, promises of jobs or easy money, and prompts for immediate password or account related activities are tell-tale signs of phishing. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Attention to detail, skeptical hovers, and grammar checks are but a few ways to identify and thwart phishing attempts. Check out our Phishing Awareness page for additional information, tips, tricks, as well as this article that explains your way to report SPAM to our admin team.
SUNY Canton utilizes Microsoft Office 365 for email and collaboration as well as their built-in spam/phishing filters. We also subscribe to Microsoft’s Advanced Threat Protection tools which help to filter out additional malicious messages. Unfortunately, it is nearly impossible catch them all. Across the world, new threats are launched on an almost moment my moment basis. Our SUNY Canton Information Services Security Team continues to evaluate and implement additional controls to further reduce the amount of potentially malicious & unwanted messages.
Upon connecting to the network, your device is linked to your NetID. Please remember that network activity is monitored, meaning that peer to peer sharing, hacking, or any other type of illegal activity will be dealt with accordingly.
- To connect your smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop with wireless capability, select the SUNYCanton-Private wireless network and follow the prompts to sign on using your NetID and password (On campus/In Academic Buildings)
- To connect your smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop with wireless capability, select the MyResNet-5G Network and follow the prompts to sign on using your NetID and password (On campus/In Dorm Rooms)
SUNY Canton uses a physical Central ID card that students use to swipe to gain access to secured spaces, pay for meals, use Flex dollars, check out library materials, attend events, and more.
One of the most commonly asked questions that we receive is, "What kind of computer do I need?". Unfortunately, there is no singular answer that, as an Information Technology organization, we can offer. Our best recommendation is for you to connect with an Advisor, Deans Office, or Faculty Member within the curriculum that you plan to study and ask them for advice or suggestions. Some areas of study have very strict requirements related to operating systems, video card specifications, RAM, processors, hard drive size, etc., and others not so much.
From an Information Technology perspective, we offer support to the very best of our ability regardless of hardware type or operating system. Windows and Macintosh operating systems are the most commonly used and supported devices across the SUNY Canton community. As such, the vast majority of our enterprise level software and systems are chosen and designed to run these same major operating systems.
NOTE: While decent machines for very basic computing needs (typing, web surfing, etc.), we discourage the use of Chromebooks. Students using these devices are unable to take advantage of the numerous free software available to them as a member of the SUNY Canton community. Additionally, many students have experienced challenges when taking tests or completing course work through online learning systems.
Oftentimes, when you purchase a new computer or mobile device, you are offered special bundle or package pricing if you also include select software. As an enrolled student, you are provided with a LOT of software at no cost. Don't spend money on things that you can get for free!
The list below includes some of the most popular software and systems utilized by students for academic, research, and personal use. Each is available for Windows and Mac operating systems, and many have mobile apps and/or web interfaces.
BrightSpace Learning Management System
For every course that is offered at SUNY Canton, a Brightspace course shell is created. Think of it as a course-related website on steroids. Faculty use Brightspace in many different ways. They will post their syllabus, announcements, assignment information, and they'll have you submit assignments and documents inside of Brightspace. You can take exams, look at your grades, and of course, get feedback and comments on your work. Course shells are opened right around a week before the class officially begins at the start of each semester and are available to students and faculty members for the duration of the course (and potentially beyond, at the discretion of the instructor)
Microsoft Office 365
When most people think of Microsoft Office, they think of Word, PowerPoint, and Excel, and they also think of these software being installed onto a computer. While this is all accurate, Office 365 offers so much more. Office 365 is a collection of more than 25 different applications that you can use for all of your academic, research, and personal needs.
Examples include Outlook, OneDrive, OneNote, Teams, Sway, Lists, Planner, Forms, Bookings, and more. Desktop and mobile applications are available to install on up to five of your personal desktop and laptop computers, smartphones, and tablets. You can also access many of the tools via a web interface.
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Office 365: Download & Install on your personal computer.
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To access the web interface, visit outlook.office.com/mail/ in a web browser and sign in with your FULL SUNY Canton Email Address (NetID + @canton.edu) and password. Click on the 9 square grid in the top-left corner of the interface (the waffle) and select from the drop down list of Apps. If you don't see what you are looking for, click All apps -->. Shortcuts are available to some of the most commonly used apps. Keep an eye out for the the waffle whenever you are logged into SUNY Canton O365 websites. You can click it from a lot of places and access this same web interface.
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Use your SUNY Canton email address and password to log into mobile apps. Search your respective app store for individual apps.
OneDrive
Think of this as your hard drive in the sky that you can access from anywhere that you have an Internet connection. All students are provided with 1TB of cloud storage space where you can store whatever you wish, regardless of file type. This amount is, on average, four times larger than the built-in hard drive size of a standard user computer. Whatever you upload or save to OneDrive is secured behind your NetID and password. Additionally, you can use all of the applications available within Office 365 web interface and save your work directly into your OneDrive.
If you so desire, you can share individual files or folders with collaborators within and outside of SUNY Canton. You have full control over who sees what, for how long, and what they can do to the files. If your personal device needs to go in for repair, gets lost, or is stolen, you can still access your files and complete your work on a public or lab computer.
Panopto Video Recorder
Panopto is used by faculty and students to record, edit, and deliver course content within a secure environment. Software is available via a local installation, web interface, and mobile application (more information can be found HERE) The system offers screen recording, voice over, and video functionality. Whomever owns the content decides who can see it, for how long, if they can edit it, and more. It is not uncommon for faculty to record and provide links to content for students to review before or after class.
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is our staple communication and collaboration tool. Teams allows users to create a virtual space where they can come together, interact via audio and video, screen sharing, chat, whiteboards, file creation, cloud storage, and much more. Students are able to use Microsoft Teams within their own respective personal and secure virtual environments. Faculty may choose to live stream and/or record classes using Teams.
Guacamole Remote Lab
Some disciplines require the use of specialized and/or very expensive software. Not wanting to impose greater costs upon our students, we license that software and make it available to you via Virtual Lab machines. In short, you connect your computer to a cloud-based system, run the software, use the software, save your work, disconnect, and walk away. Your professors will let you know if you need or have access to use the Guacamole Remote Lab
Students are highly encouraged to use the Pharos system. Our goal with Pharos is to promote thoughtful, responsible printing in order to reduce paper waste, so we encourage students and faculty to use digital options wherever possible.
Students can print from public or lab computers or upload documents via a web interface from their own computers.
Pharos Printers (MFU's) are available in each of the academic buildings and residence halls. Most commonly, they are located in the atrium or lobby areas.
- Southworth Library has iPad Loaners. (Can be taken home)
- Southworth Library has Laptop Loaners. (Must stay in building)
In an effort to keep the SUNY Canton community informed, the College has implemented a campus notification system to permit the distribution of time-sensitive information to students and staff during unforeseen events or emergencies using voice, email, and text messaging.
All community members are automatically enrolled in the Canton Rave Alert notification system, however you may opt out at any time if you no longer wish to receive emergency alerts. Please provide your most current contact information by logging into SUNY Canton's Canton Rave Alert update center.
Your personal contact information will not be shared with other entities, and it will be kept private and confidential. This information is used only for SUNY Canton communication purposes and only in the event of an emergency.
The Canton Rave Alert system will be used for safety situations, emergencies, or concerns such as:
- fire, bomb threats, or dangerous situations
- missing persons or persons at large
- medical emergencies, including pandemic or mass casualties
- utility failures or unexpected facility closure
- suspicious packages
- severe weather warnings
Interested in becoming a student employee at the SUNY Canton Help Desk? We have Work-Study and General Student Assistance positions available at the start of each semester! Please email a copy of your resume to helpdesk@canton.edu to get started (we do require 1-2 faculty member recommendations) We would love to have you join our team!