Internet and Connection Questions and Concerns

In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, OHIO is moving to an entirely online instruction model and has shifted most staff work to remote. This sudden shift has raised many questions about internet connection needs and the ability for our providers to handle an expected surge in traffic and usage. Please find answers to the most common questions below. If you need additional assistance, please contact the IT Service Desk.

My home internet connection seems slow. What can I do?

First, check the OHIO Status Page to determine if an issue has been identified with the service you are using. Second, check other internet sites from your computer to determine if they are slow as well. If so, the issue likely lies with your internet service provider, your home network consumption, or your computer. Recommended steps to help resolve the issue:

Reboot your computer
Reboot your home internet router and modem
Contact your ISP to see if they are experiencing an issue
Run a home internet speed test.
Try to limit other high-bandwidth consuming users and devices where possible (streaming services, multiple household members video chatting simultaneously, etc.)
Pause or reschedule system and software updates until after work hours for things including OS updates, cloud storage file synchronization (OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox), major game system updates, etc.
Turn off the video camera within Teams or Zoom conference calls if not needed
Use the call-in number for Teams or Zoom conference calls to limit internet usage
Reschedule meetings or revert to a chat when a stable internet connection isn’t available

If only OHIO resources are slow and no status update has been posted, please contact the IT Service Desk for help.

How fast does my home internet connection need to be?

Using email and browsing the internet does not require high-speed internet, but using several of our key online learning and collaboration tools does. You can check your speed settings using the speed test on this website.

Blackboard:
To function properly, Blackboard requires a high-speed Internet connection (cable modem, DSL, satellite broadband, T1, etc.). The minimum Internet connection speed to access Blackboard is a consistent 1.5 Mbps (megabits per second) or higher.
Teams:
Teams is designed to give the best audio, video, and content sharing experience regardless of your network conditions. That said, when bandwidth is insufficient, Teams prioritizes audio quality over video quality. Teams requires different amounts of bandwidth depending on the type of call. You can view a table of bandwidth requirements on this website.

How can I contact my internet service provider (ISP)?

Contact information for major local and regional ISPs is listed below:

Frontier: https://go.frontier.com/lp/customer-support
Spectrum: https://www.spectrum.net/support/category/internet/
Viasat / Exede: https://www.exede.com/contact-us/
HughesNet: https://www.hughesnet.com/support
New Era Broadband Services: https://www.newerabroadband.com/#contact
Intelliwave Broadband: http://www.intelliwave.com/technical-support-contact.html
LocalNet: https://www.localnet.com/contact.php
Earthlink: https://support.earthlink.net/
Nelsonville TV: http://nelsonvilletv.com/support.html
Comcast / Xfinity: https://www.xfinity.com/support/

I don't have high-speed internet access. How can I access the internet?

Please see the list below of home and mobile internet providers and their assistance during the COVID-19 outbreak:

FCC agreement stating that providers will waive late fees, not cutoff service for lack of payment, and open hot-spots.
Altice USA  is offering Altice Advantage 30 Mbps broadband solution for free for 60 days to any new customer household within their footprint.
AT&T COVID-19 response: offers open hot-spots, unlimited data to existing customers, and $10/month plans to low income families.
Charter / Spectrum COVID-19 response: Free Charter/Spectrum broadband and WiFi for K-12 and college student households for 60 days, open WiFi hot-spots.
Comcast COVID-19 response: offers free WiFi for 2 months to low income families plus all Xfinity hot-spots are free to the public during this time.
Sprint COVID-19 response: follows FCC agreement, provides unlimited data to existing customers, and, starting Tuesday, 3/17/2020, will allow all handsets to enable hot-spots for 60 days at no extra charge (I expect others will follow).
T-Mobile COVID-19 response: follows FCC agreement, plus unlimited data to existing customers, and, coming soon, will allow all handsets to enable hot-spots for 60 days at no extra charge (I expect others will follow).
Verizon COVID-19 response: no special offers but following the FCC agreement.

Alternatively, you can access OHIO WiFi from many of the parking lots and outdoor spaces on OHIO's campus. Please note this is an option to help you find internet access, but all other current guidance from the University, the State of Ohio, and the CDC regarding social distancing should still be followed.

How many users can be on the VPN at the same time?

Campus VPN creates a secure 'tunnel' to provide off-campus access to online resources such as remote desktop, remote printing, or shared network storage that normally would require you to be connected to the on-campus network. With many employees now working from home, OIT has enabled additional VPN resources to support a higher volume of concurrent users. Each planning unit has been assigned to one of four VPN groups which will help spread the load. Each VPN group can support up to 800 concurrent users. If you are having trouble connecting, please ensure you are using the most current VPN settings. You should disconnect from the VPN when you are not using applications which require it. The speed and responsiveness you experience while connected to the VPN may vary depending on your home internet connection and the volume of other users concurrently using our VPN.

Does OIT have enough internet bandwidth to support online learning and remote work?

As most of our online teaching and collaboration applications are hosted in the cloud, the University's internet bandwidth is not used for these tools. For example, Blackboard uses Amazon AWS and Microsoft Office 365 (including Teams and Catmail) uses Microsoft Azure. When you use an OHIO cloud service, the data passes from your internet provider directly to that service.

Can OHIO's key online learning and collaboration software providers support the surge in demand?

We have partnerships with industry leading software providers to deliver many of our critical online learning and collaboration tools as cloud services. The cloud service delivery model should provide our software vendors the flexibility necessary to meet the unprecedented increase in demand for their respective services all over the world. However, just like all of us, it's safe to predict that they may experience some challenges as they ramp up. Here are the public statements addressing this topic from a few of our key cloud software providers:

Ohio University

Office of Information Technology

Internet and Connection Questions and Concerns