Reference at Newman Library

Tag: Remote Access

Remote Access Problem for Chronicle of Higher Ed and Chronicle of Philanthropy (Update: fixed)

Update (2 pm, Feb. 17, 2023): The problem detailed below has been resolved.

On the EZproxy mailing list today, I was alerted to a problem that everyone is having with remote access to the Chronicle of Philanthropy and the Chronicle of Higher Education on the publisher’s website. Off campus users, will be connected to those sites via a link going through our proxy server, will see an error message along the lines of “This web property is not accessible via this address.” The error seems to be connected to the Cloudflare service, something that has come up occasionally with databases we access that also use the Cloudflare service for content delivery.

On campus access is unaffected.

As a workaround for remote users, we do have access via other databases, but those tend to have embargoes on the last month’s content:

User Accounts That Say No Remote Access

If a student or faculty member sees this error message when trying to remotely connect to library resources, please always refer them directly to the BCTC Help Desk or SPS Help Desk:

Error page indicating that the user does not have remote access

This is the only remote access error page that has this yellow box on it and that has this unique message:

ERROR: This account doesn’t include remote access to library services from off-campus.

The user should be instructed to contact the BCTC Help Desk or SPS Help Desk and make sure that they clearly communicate that they are seeing this specific error message (this is essential to solving this problem). The user should be encouraged to share a screenshot of that error page or to copy the text of the unique message on it. The BCTC Help Desk or CUNY SPS Help Desk staff will then in turn reach out to the CUNY CIS help desk for help with this, as this is an issue that needs to be fixed in the CUNYfirst system.

In theory, this error message is one that is only supposed to appear when someone has a CUNY Login but no remote access to library databases (such as an alumni), but it seems that the systems that manage identities in the CUNYfirst system can get out of sync, and students who should have access will sometimes see this message.

If you’re not sure how to handle these situations, feel free to send an email to [email protected] (which Mike, Florencia, and I all monitor).

CUNY Login for O’Reilly Ebooks

As of today, the login scheme for O’Reilly will use the CUNY Login instead of the Baruch username and password. To make this happen, O’Reilly had to create a new URL for us. That URL has been updated in the following places:

  • records in OneSearch
  • the database link for O’Reilly on our databases pages

O’Reilly set up a redirect for the old URL so that if anyone happens to have a link to it (such as on Blackboard or an email message), they’ll get pointed to the new URL if they click on that old link. If you encounter any linking problems with O’Reilly, please email me or Mike Waldman.

Service and Policy Updates on the Library Website for Fall 2022

This fall, you’ll want to look on relevant library web pages for the latest policies regarding library services instead of going to a semester-specific post on the library news blog. I am working with lots of different folks to draft those page revisions and will be publishing the updates in the coming days.

One notable change that is already live on the site is that Baruch alumni can now come into our library again. Please note that proof of vaccination status will be required and the protocols of the CUNY visitor policy will apply. See the current Alumni page for details. [NOTE: This policy just changed again. Baruch alumni will not have access this fall.]

Another notable change is that the login page for remote access to databases and licensed content has changed so that all Baruch and CUNY SPS users will enter their CUNY Login. There is no longer an option for those users to enter a Baruch username and password or an SPS-issued username and password. I have updated the Logging in to Library Resources page to reflect this change.

We are nearly done testing the remote login for the O’Reilly database that will also begin using the CUNY Login (remote access has long been handled not through our proxy server but instead a SAML connection). As soon as we make the switch from Baruch username/password to CUNY Login, I’ll post that here on the blog.

If you see any website content that doesn’t accurately reflect how we are currently offering services and resources, please let me know. The next pages to see updates will be the Study Rooms and the Technology Loan Services ones.

CUNY Login Now Available for Off Campus Access to Library Resources

This week, we updated the EZproxy server used for authenticating off campus users before they are passed on to our licensed resources. For most of our resources, users will now see a new login page that gives them the preferred option of logging in with their CUNY Login (the same set of credentials used for Zoom, Blackboard, CUNYfirst, and library borrower accounts in OneSearch). The new login page also offers the option to log in with a Baruch username and password; this option will be removed at the end of the spring 2022 semester.

There are still a few resources that require a Baruch username and password: O’Reilly and FitchConnect. These, too, should be switched over very soon to use the CUNY Login system.

There are also a handful of other databases, mostly business ones, that have other login schemes (such as Calcbench, Comscore, FactSet, Refinitiv Eikon, etc.) I’m working on a spreadsheet that will go in the Library Services wiki that lists each database and what kind of login system it uses. Also worth noting here is that those databases that have a non-standard way of logging in should already have that noted in some way in the database description in our LibGuides system.

I’ve updated the page on our website, “Logging into Library Resources and Services,” to reflect these recent changes. If you run into any unexpected problems with remote access, please contact both Michael Waldman and me ASAP.

Wiley Remote Access Problems Fixed

The problem reported last week about our inability to get remote access to Wiley content has now been resolved. Wiley explained the problem this way:

Due to an abnormally high amount of web activity on Wiley Online Library, Cloudflare, our security solution, put extra checks in place to identify and prevent any potential for malicious activity. These checks flagged EZproxy traffic as a potential threat, blocking all access via EZproxy, as well as other third-party solutions, linking directly to the PDF. We are working on whitelisting these providers to restore access, and have already done so with OCLC-hosted EZproxy traffic.

Remote Access Down on Morning of June 15 (updated)

UPDATE (6/15/2021 8:56 AM) The EZproxy software upgrade was successful. Remote access is working as expected.

As part of a planned upgrade for our EZproxy server software, remote access will be down for all databases that use it on Tuesday, June 15, between 7 AM and 9 AM (it’s likely the actual downtime will only be 20-30 minutes). This work will only affect the databases that use EZproxy for remote access (if you see this specific login page after clicking a link, that resource is one using EZproxy):

Login page for EZproxy

Remote Access to Databases Down on January 12

From 6 am – 9 am on Tuesday, January 12, all the databases and resources that use EZproxy for authentication will be unavailable while we upgrade the EZproxy software. This affects any resource where the URL begins:

https://remote.baruch.cuny.edu

Searches may still be run in OneSearch as well as in other databases that don’t use EZproxy for authentication (e.g., O’Reilly, WRDS, etc.)

As soon as the work is complete (including testing), an updated blog post will be published here.