The University provides access to information technology resources such as email accounts, databases, servers, and the network, as well as to individual use employee workstations, peripherals, and software. The University maintains ownership of these resources, determines who may use them, and provides guidance regarding their intended use. In return, the University expects faculty and staff to utilize these resources responsibly, in accordance with University policy and with local, state, and federal laws. The University reserves the right to terminate access to the UVA IT resources whenever such action is deemed appropriate, such as for policy violations or malicious use.
Note: In order to connect your electronic device to the University of Virginia's network, you will have to register it. This registration associates your Computing ID with your device and its network activity.
Who Owns What?
We often use the possessive word “your” when referring to equipment such as a laptop or workstation, but this is not meant to imply that you, the user, own the device. More often, you have exclusive use of the equipment without ownership. We also assign ownership of equipment and data to the University when in reality some of these items may officially belong to the Commonwealth of Virginia, a research sponsor, or some other entity. When in doubt regarding the ownership of a particular item, ask your manager or department head, or contact the UVA Help Desk.
The department or unit may also own software licenses — for example, word processing or spreadsheet software — purchased from a software vendor. The licenses usually allow you to possess ONE copy of this software per workstation. It is a violation of your software license agreement to make copies of the software without permission. You should read and abide by the software license agreement. You also may NOT make a copy of software someone else has purchased. The general rule is ONE purchase, ONE copy, ONE USE.