The majority of users will see minimal impact. This change will primarily affect those accessing iUTMB from outside our network, typically working from home or some other remote, non-UTMB site. In these instances, these users will see the new portal page rather than iUTMB. The portal page will contain commonly used links and information about connecting via UTMB’s VPN.

The change to iUTMB is limited to the single iUTMB web page; all the sites and resources behind it will remain unchanged. Resources we link to that are public today will remain so; the ones that require authentication or VPN will still be the same way. Search will still be enabled. To access the directory you’ll need to be on network or VPNed in, as you do today. Many remote access-enabled business activities (including clinical work) are already done through secure and encrypted channels requiring VPN.

However, we also recognize that change is always difficult. And, in spite of communication, planning and testing, there is always the chance for unintended consequences. We’ll stay vigilant and flexible, and thank you in advance for your patience.

UTMB is an outlier with the way we manage iUTMB (our staff page today); most organizations do not maintain open access to their internal portal the way we’ve done for the past two decades. To enable this access, UTMB has maintained a complex and technically inefficient system that includes automatically copying files across our firewall and onto multiple web servers and databases. The process slows our web performance, delays publishing of content by up to several minutes, and creates potential points of failure (including potential security vulnerabilities) that we need to eliminate. The benefit to users will ultimately be a web site that is faster and more secure, that loads more quickly and is even more stable than it is today.

A VPN is a “virtual private network.” It’s often described as a secure and encrypted “pipeline” from your remote device to your digital destination (the UTMB network, in our case). The remote device is usually a home desktop or laptop, but it can also be a phone, tablet or other device. Once a VPN connection is established, you gain access to resources as if you were on site/on the network. Since 2015, UTMB has also required two-factor authentication, which is a secondary way to validate that a user is who they say they are.

There are multiple ways to establish a VPN connection at UTMB. Getting set up the first time, especially with a non-UTMB device like a home computer, can be tricky. Directions are online and the IS Service Desk can assist.

Citrix has a VPN client built in to it, so those who use Citrix now will continue to be able to use iUTMB as they have in the past, from on or off the UTMB network. Because of the number of Citrix-related questions that were raised, we added a link to MyCitrix to the prominent buttons under “Faculty, Staff and Student Tools” on the new portal page to make it easy to find and access.  

The university’s institutional communication channels will largely remain unchanged. Resources such as Impact, the UTMB Newsroom, the President’s Office website, Daily Announcements and the Event Calendar are still going to be publically available. You can access these tools via search, or from our top-level navigation menu under “Communications,” or bookmark them. 

Remember, if you are on our network, you will see no change. For those off network, the main navigation at the top of the new portal will also still be available to you; it has links to many commonly referenced academic, clinical, research and business areas.

Search will still be enabled (and is being enhanced with a new search solution in FY 2019). You can also always VPN in for full access to iUTMB and other UTMB resources.

You’ll only be able to access the directory if you are on the UTMB network or VPNed in. However, this does not reflect a change from current conditions. Access to the UTMB staff and student directory was restricted to the internal network more than a year ago, in keeping with best practices and security standards.

Yes, any UTMB alert messages posted to the iUTMB intranet page will be duplicated in the same place/position on the new public iUTMB portal.