UC Davis Gmail Pilot FAQ
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- UC Davis Gmail pilot participant?
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Support
- For help with your Gmail account:
- Contact IT Express Computing Help Desk
- Support Hours:
Phone:
530-754-HELP (4357)
Monday - Friday
7:00 AM - 9:00 PM
(except University holidays)
Closed Saturday & Sunday
In Person:
182 Shields Library
Monday - Friday
8:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday/Sunday
1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
(except University holidays)
For help with Google Apps:
Contact Google directly by clicking on the Help link at the top right hand corner of the Google Apps you are using.
Frequently Asked Questions
03 December 07
1. What is Gmail?
Gmail is Google's free Web-based email service. Gmail offers a fast, feature-rich, cost-effective, email option for students. To learn more about Gmail visit mail.google.com/mail/help/intl/en/about.html
2. How were students selected to join, and how many are participating in the pilot?
Students were randomly selected through the campus computing accounts database. Roughly 300 graduate and undergraduate students from a variety of class standings, colleges and majors participated.
3. Will I be able to keep my UC Davis Gmail account after the pilot is complete?
Yes. You will be able to continue using UC Davis Gmail until a decision has been made regarding campus email.
4. What will happen to my mail once the pilot is finished?
If the decision is made to provide Gmail for all UC Davis students you will continue to use the service. If the decision is made NOT to provide Gmail, your email will be migrated back to the current campus email system.
5. What will happen to my existing campus mail?
All your existing messages and folders will be copied over to the Gmail servers. While you will still have access to the original messages (through Geckomail, MyUCDavis, etc.) stored on the central campus servers, any new messages sent to your UC Davis email address will be delivered only to the UC Davis Gmail service. Please note: Your existing campus email will be migrated to your UC Davis Gmail account within 24 hours of when your account was created, or by the next business day.
For questions or concerns regarding the migration of your existing email to your UC Davis Gmail account, please contact IT Express at 530-754-HELP (4357).
For questions or concerns regarding the migration of your existing email to your UC Davis Gmail account, please contact IT Express at 530-754-HELP (4357).
6. Will my UC Davis email address change?
No. Your domain name will remain @ucdavis.edu.
7. Will my personal information be shared with anyone outside of UC Davis?
No. Your personal information will not be shared with anyone.
8. I have friends interested in the pilot project. Can they participate as well?
Unfortunately the pilot participants have already been chosen and we are not accepting extra students at this time.
9. How do I access my UC Davis Gmail account?
There are a few ways to access your UC Davis Gmail account. You can enter your account directly by clicking on the log-in button at gmail.ucdavis.edu. You can also go through the MyUCDavis portal. To access your UC Davis start page go to google.ucdavis.edu. From there you can enter Gmail by clicking on the Gmail button at the top of the page.
10. How do I access my UC Davis Gmail account using an email client (i.e., Outlook, Apple Mail, Thunderbird, POP, IMAP)?
If you wish to access your UCD Gmail account with an email client such as Outlook, Apple Mail or Thunderbird, follow the instructions found in Gmail under Settings > Forwarding and POP/IMAP > Configuration Instructions.
Follow the steps provided for your POP or IMAP client, with this important difference: For your username, use your entire e-mail address, e.g., "joeaggie@ucdavis.edu". For the password, use your normal UC Davis Kerberos password. All other instructions remain the same.
Follow the steps provided for your POP or IMAP client, with this important difference: For your username, use your entire e-mail address, e.g., "joeaggie@ucdavis.edu". For the password, use your normal UC Davis Kerberos password. All other instructions remain the same.
11. What is the storage capacity?
Storage capacity within Gmail is continually increasing. The current storage capacity level is at 5+GB (storage capacity is constantly being added). The current storage capacity for UC Davis email is only 40MB.
12. Will there be advertisements?
No. As long as you are a student, your email will be free of advertisements. Once you graduate, your email will be handled like a general Gmail account and will contain small text ads.
13. What are Google Apps?
Google Apps are communication and collaboration tools offered in conjunction with Gmail. For a list of Apps available for use, click on the Google Apps button at the top of your start page. For help with Google Apps, contact Google directly by clicking on the Help link at the top right hand corner of the Google Apps you are using.
14. Can I use Google Apps as well?
Yes. Google Apps will be available only as an option but not as a part of the pilot. If you decide to use any of the available apps, we do ask that you provide us with input on your experience. Any Google Apps support issues will be handled directly through Google. IT Express will not provide support for Google Apps other than Gmail.
15. What are the recommended Web browsers?
Google recommends using Firefox 2 or Internet Explorer 7 in order to take advantage of the newest Gmail features.
The campus supports the following Web browsers:
If you need to install one of the Web browsers listed on the Gmail Help Center page, contact IT Express (see question 23 for help information.)
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16. Who do I contact for help?
For help regarding your UC Davis Gmail account, contact IT Express at 530-754-HELP (4357) or visit them at 182 Shields Library.
For help with Google Apps, contact Google directly by clicking on the Help link at the top right hand corner of the Google Apps you are using.
For help with Google Apps, contact Google directly by clicking on the Help link at the top right hand corner of the Google Apps you are using.
17. What if I don't need support, but I would like to provide feedback?
If you would like to provide feedback, please send us an email to ucdgmail-pilot@ucdavis.edu.
Security and Privacy
18. How will you handle spam and viruses?
Google checks and filters emails for spam and viruses regularly. For more information, please visit www.google.com/mail/help/fightspam/spamexplained.html.
19. Some of my emails contain confidential material. How will you maintain email privacy?
Google maintains Privacy Policies for each of its applications. For a complete list and access to each of these policies, please visit google.com/a/help/intl/en/users/privacy.html.
20. Is email a secure form of communication?
Sensitive information should NEVER be sent through email. As recommended in our Email Best Practices page http://email.ucdavis.edu/email/Email_Best_Practices_04_16_08_v4.php, we advise against sending sensitive information via email. There are a number of reasons for this:
- Email could be intercepted and accessed by an unauthorized party
- Email could be shared inappropriately by the recipient
- Email could be compromised for as long as it is retained by you or the recipient
- There are no retention controls over the recipient's system
- Accessing your email over a insecure network (i.e., Internet Cafe or open wireless network) can expose your user account information
- Although encrypted connections can mitigate the risks of having ones' authentication credentials compromised, email itself is still plain text when traveling between the sender and the recipient and can be easily intercepted.
Regardless of the provider, email is not a secure method of communication. This applies to our current campus email systems as well as most third-party email providers.
21. What constitutes sensitive information in the context of electronic communications?
Sensitive information is information such as Social Security numbers, driver license numbers, credit card information, medical/health conditions, etc. None of this information should be sent via email, regardless of the email provider. As a general rule, privacy experts advise to consider whether it would be appropriate or desirable for the contents of the email to appear in a public forum (e.g., newspaper). Email operates as a postcard that can easily be read in transit and at the destination by unauthorized parties. It could be retained forever, or shared with unintended readers.
For more detail please see our Email Best Practices page http://email.ucdavis.edu/email/Email_Best_Practices_04_16_08_v4.php
22. What can be done to protect data stored on Google servers?
The UC Office of the President's Privacy and Data Security Counsel, in consultation with representatives from UC Davis and other UC campuses, has been engaged in contract negotiations with Google to discuss Google's privacy policies for storing data. At UC Davis, Information and Educational Technology is convening an ad-hoc privacy committee, consisting of representatives from Campus Counsel, Office of Research (IRB), UCDHS, Student Judicial Affairs and Office of the Chancellor and Provost, and the Campus IT Security Coordinator, to assess whether UC Davis plan for a Gmail service presents any major risks to the institution.
23. Are there specific risks related to the fact that some of Google's servers are hosted in other countries?
By law some intellectual property should not be stored outside of the U.S. Individuals handling sensitive material are reminded not to share this information via email regardless of the email provider. Ultimately, an email that is intended for a user within the U.S. can be easily forwarded.
24. What can be done to protect unauthorized access to data stored on Google servers?
The privacy and security provisions in the agreement with Google state that administration and management of Gmail accounts in the UC Davis domain are under the control of UC Davis email administrators. User authentication is provided by our campus Central Authentication Service (CAS). CAS provides an added level of security since no user information is sent to Google. Names and other such data will not be sent to Google when accounts are provisioned. Subsequently, UC Davis users do not send their user names and passwords when they authenticate to use secure campus services.
25. What alternatives are available in those situations when I will need to transmit confidential or sensitive information?
There are a number of alternatives for sharing sensitive information in a secure way. For more information, please visit http://security.ucdavis.edu/index.cfm and under the "How-to" section access the "Transfer Files Securely (SFTP)" page. Also consider that although information may be transferred in a secure manner, its storage may be subject to unauthorized access. In this case, data encryption may be appropriate.