Purdue University Northwest > Information Technology > FAQs

FAQs

Looking for guidance on changing your password or connecting to WiFi? Explore some of our most frequently asked questions!

Account Questions

If you are a new student to Purdue Northwest you will need to activate your account.

  1. You will need to go to https://password.pnw.edu.
  2. You will then click on “Activate Account (New Students Only)”
  3. You will put in your:
    • Career Account
    • Last Name
    • PUID# (Purdue ID Number)

Your Career account and PUID will be on your admission letter.
If you get an error that your account is not eligible for activation you will need to contact the Customer Service Center at 219-989-2888.

  1. All PNW passwords:
    1. Must be between 8 and 16 characters long.
    2. Must contain more than 4 unique characters.
    3. May not contain easily guessed words, e.g. purdue, itap, boiler.
    4. May not contain your name or parts of your name.
    5. Must be a different password than the previous password.
    6. Passwords may not be re-used for 1 year.
    7. Must NOT contain spaces.
    8. Must contain at least 1 letter.Must contain at least 1 number or punctuation mark.
  2. If your password is above 16 characters, you may not be able to get certain systems with your full password.
    1. You may only have to put in the first 16 characters of the password.
    2. You may need to type the first 15 characters of the password and then the last character of the password.
    3. It is strongly suggested that you keep your password shorter than 16 characters.
  1. Students and the majority of faculty and staff passwords expire every 180 days.
  2. Faculty and staff that have special privileges, passwords expire every 30 to 90 days.

If you have forgotten you password, you can create a new password online if you filled out your security questions. You will need your 10-digit PUID, username and date of birth.

Reset Password

Set Up Security Questions 

If you did not set up your Security Questions, and you are unable to use the option above, you will need to bring a photo ID to the CSC and they can reset your password for you. In certain cases, you can also reset your password over the phone by calling the CSC at 219-989-2888. The CSC will not give password through email.

If you call the Customer Service Center we will need the following information to reset your password.

  • PUID
  • Username
  • Name as it appears on File
  • Address on File

To set up or change your Security questions, you will need to go to the link below. You will log in with Purdue Login and answer 3 of the security questions.  You can then answer these questions to reset your password when needed.

Set Up Security Questions 

The Purdue Login is a form of two-factor authentication, a system that requires two forms of verification of identity before a person can access protected computer resources.

At Purdue, these two forms of verification are something you know (career account username and either a password or PIN) and something you have (a physical token or the Duo Mobile application on your smartphone). These two items are used in place of your password alone to gain access to computer applications and systems.

The Purdue Login comes in two forms. One is the Duo Mobile application for your smartphone that either displays a push notification used when you enter your PIN or a randomized six-digit code. The other is a small electronic device, known as a hard token, which displays a series of six digits when activated.

Learn More About Purdue Login

All Purdue affiliates need to have a password and Purdue Login.

  1. Career Account is used for:
    1. Campus Computers
    2. Eduroam
    3. Faculty/Staff Email (Outlook and outlook.office.com)
    4. Webfiles
    5. Office 365
  2. Purdue Login is used for:
    1. MyPNW/Brightspace
    2. SAP
    3. Student Email (Gmail)
    4. Success Factors
    5. others

Your PNW password expires every 180 days or sooner, depending on what your account access privileges. When you change your password, please remember to change it on all of the devices that your account is attached to or your account may lock.

You will need to change your password for:

  • Mobile email accounts
  • Eduroam
  • Any third party email application

You will also need to restart your machine for your password to update. Also if you have multiple computers on campus, you will have to make sure that your machine are not logged into your account when you change your password.

PNW follows Purdue’s policy when it comes to disabling/deleting accounts.

Students, staff and faculty at Purdue University Northwest may use their preferred names on campus regardless of whether it matches their legal name. We are committed to providing a process for those campus community members who use names other than their legal names to identify themselves in times and places where a legal name is not required.

See Our Guide to Preferred Names at PNW

Email

PNW uses Microsoft’s Exchange Online to provide e-mail to all faculty and staff.  Exchange Online is a cloud-based service that allows faculty and staff to access their email, calendar, and contacts on multiple devices via the web or e-mail clients such as Outlook.

Faculty/staff can access their e-mail from a web browser here.

See More Faculty/Staff Email Details

Every student is provided with a Gmail account. Gmail is Google’s web-based email program, which provides users over 6 gigabytes of storage, fast Google search and powerful spam protection.  As part of Google Apps for Education, e-mail addresses are set to your PNW account username@pnw.edu. All official University information will be sent to this account. Therefore, plan to check for messages frequently.

Students can access e-mail from the MyPNW portal.  See more student email details.

You can sync up your PNW email on your mobile devices.

For student:

For Faculty and Staff

  1. Open a new email message.

  2. On the Message menu, select Signature > Signatures.

    Depending on the size of your Outlook window and whether you’re composing a new email message or a reply or forward, the Message menu and the Signature button might be in two different locations.

  3. Under Select signature to edit, choose New, and in the New Signature dialog box, type a name for the signature.

  4. Under Edit signature, compose your signature. You can change fonts, font colors, and sizes, as well as text alignment. If you want to create a more robust signature with bullets, tables, or borders, use Word to format your text, then copy and paste the signature into the Edit signature box. You can also use one of our pre-designed templates for your signature. Download the templates in Word, customize them with your personal information, and then copy and paste them into the Edit signature box.
  5. Under Choose default signature, set the following options for your signature:In the E-mail account drop-down box, choose an email account to associate with the signature. You can have different signatures for each email account.If you want your signature added to all new messages by default, in the New messages drop-down box, select one of your signatures. If you don’t want to automatically add a signature to new messages, choose (none). This doesn’t add a signature to any messages you reply to or forward.If you want your signature to appear in the messages you reply to and forward, in the  Replies/forwards drop-down, select one of your signatures. Otherwise, accept the default option of (none).
  6. Choose OK to save your new signature and return to your message. Outlook doesn’t add your new signature to the message you opened in Step 1, even if you chose to apply the signature to all new messages. You’ll have to add the signature manually to this one message. All future messages will have the signature added automatically. To add the signature manually, select Signature from the Message menu and then pick the signature you just created.

Add a Logo to Your Signature

If you have a company logo or an image to add to your signature, use the following steps.

  1. Open a new message and then select Signature > Signatures.
  2. In the Select signature to edit box, choose the signature you want to add a logo or image to.
  3. Select the Image icon, locate your image file, and select Insert.
  4. To resize your image, right-click the image, then choose Picture. Select the Size tab and use the options to resize your image. To keep the image proportions, make sure to keep the Lock aspect ratio checkbox checked.
  5. When you’re done, select OK, then select OK again to save the changes to your signature.

Instructions can be found here.

Microsoft MFA is a two factor authentication, adding a second layer of security to access your Microsoft account. This is not the same as Purdue Login. For more information about setup of Microsoft MFA, please visit the Microsoft Multi-Factor Authentication page.

Connecting to the Network

Eduroam is the Wi-Fi used across both Purdue Northwest campuses.  Using SecureW2, you can automatically configure each device to connect to the network.

For each device you need to connect, go to this link. It will automatically detect the system you are trying to connect, and configure the settings for you.

Log in with your full @pnw.edu email address, and your current career account password.

If you are still unable to connect, reach out to csc@pnw.edu for further assistance.

Visitors can access wireless networking on both PNW campuses by connecting to the wireless network “attwifi”.  This network will allow access to the internet, but does not give the device access to PNW internal network services.

Click here for more information on connecting to the attwifi network.

Being unable to connect to the network is usually the time to update your connection credentials. A simple way to fix this is to ‘forget’ the network and then reconnect.

For Windows Computers:

  1. Go to Network and Internet Settings.
  2. Choose Wifi.
  3. Click Manage Known Networks.
  4. Choose Eduroam, and Forget the Network.
  5. Reconnect to Eduroam using your @pnw.edu email address and career account password.

For Mac Computers:

  1. Click the Wifi icon in the top menu bar.
  2. Open Network Preferences.
  3. Click Advanced.
  4. Click on Eduroam to highlight the network.
  5. Click the – (minus) button at the bottom of the window.
  6. Reconnect to Eduroam using your @pnw.edu email address and career account password.

For Chromebooks:

  1. Click the clock at the bottom right of the screen.
  2. Click the Settings gear.
  3. Select Wifi.
  4. Select Eduroam, then click Forget.
  5. Reconnect to Eduroam using your @pnw.edu email address and career account password.
  6. If necessary, update the following information as you connect.
    1. EAP Method: PEAP
    2. CA Certificate: Do not check/Do not validate
    3. Phase 2 Authentication (may be in Advanced): MSCHAPv2

 

  1. Connect your PC to an Ethernet jack.
  2. Open a browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge).
  3. If you are not automatically redirected, go to https://ace-dorm-01.pnw.edu, and click where it says “Please click here to connect to the network.”
  4. Complete the NAC assessment (as necessary).
  5. Log in using your career account credentials.
  6. Fill in the registration with your first name, last name and email address, then click “Complete Registration“.

 

Troubleshooting steps can be found in this document: Instructions for Dorm Wired Connections

If you are living in the dorm on the Hammond campus and would like to hook up your device to be able to access the Internet, you will need to contact the Customer Service Center with the following information.

  • Your Name
  • Your Username
  • What type of device you are going to connect (PlayStation, Xbox, etc.)
  • The MAC address for your device
  • What building you are in
  • What room you are in? Is this a wire or wireless connection

You can send this information to the CSC by phone (219) 989-2888 or by email csc@pnw.edu.

Click here for more information on connecting to the PNW VPN.

The Affordable Connectivity Program provides eligible households with up to a $30 discount off their monthly internet bill or a $75/month discount on Tribal lands. It also provides one-time discount of up to $100 for a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet purchased through a participating provider when the
eligible household contributes at least $10 but less than $50 toward the purchase.

If you’ve received a Federal Pell Grant during the current award year, participate in a number of assistance programs (such as SNAP, Veteran’s Pension, Free/Reduced-Price School Lunch, or SSI), participate in Tribal specific programs (such as Tribal TANF or Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance), or meet other eligibility criteria for existing low-income internet programs, you may be eligible for this program!

Enroll in 2 steps

  1. Go to affordableconnectivity.gov to submit an application or print a mail-in application.
  2. Contact your preferred participating provider to select an eligible plan and have the discount applied to your bill.

Note: Due to the large variety of  devices available and differences between versions and interfaces, there may be differences between these instructions and the procedure for your device. If these instructions do not work, consult your manufacturer documentation.

Android

  1. Press the Menu key and select Settings.
  2. Select Wireless & Networks or About Device.
  3. Select Wi-Fi Settings or Hardware Info.
  4. Press the Menu key again and choose Advanced. Your device’s wireless adapter’s MAC address should be visible here.

 

iPhone/iPad

  1. Go to Settings.
  2. Select General.
  3. Select About.  Your device’s MAC address will appear next to Wi-Fi Address

Windows

  1. Click on the Start menu in the bottom-left corner of your computer. Select Run or type cmd into the search bar at the bottom of the Start menu to bring up the command prompt.
  2. Type ipconfig /all (note the space between the g and /).
  3. The MAC address is listed as series of 12 digits, listed as the Physical Address (00:1A:C2:7B:00:47, for example).  Each network adapter (wireless, Ethernet, etc.) has a separate MAC address.

Apple

  1. Choose System Preferences from the Apple menu.
  2. Select Network.
  3. Choose Airport for the wireless adapter MAC and click Advanced (the MAC address is listed as Airport ID).
  4. Choose Built-in Ethernet and click Advanced and Ethernet (listed as Ethernet ID) for the network cable adapter MAC.

Xbox Series X

  1. Navigate to the Settings page.
  2. Select Network.
  3. Select Advanced Settings.
  4. Under IP settings, the MAC address will be listed next to Wired MAC and Wireless MAC on the right-hand side of the screen (this is also where the IP address and other information is located).

Xbox One

  1. Navigate to My Games and Apps.
  2. Select Settings.
  3. Select Network.
  4. Select Advanced Settings.
  5. The MAC Addresses for the wired and wireless adapters should be displayed.

Xbox 360

  1. At the Xbox dashboard, go to the Systems area.
  2. Under System Settings, select Network Settings → Configure Network.
  3. Make sure that under Basic Settings the IP address is set to automatic.
  4. Then select Additional Settings → Advanced Settings
  5. At the bottom of the screen, record the Wired MAC Address.

PlayStation 5

  1. Power on the PS5 without a disc in the system.
  2. In the PS5 menu, arrow up and select Settings.
  3. Scroll down to Network.
  4. Scroll down to View Connection Status.
  5. The MAC Address will be listed next to MAC Address (LAN) and MAC Address (Wi-Fi).

 

PlayStation 4

  1. Power on the PS4 without a disc in the system.
  2. In the PS4 menu, arrow up and select Settings.
  3. Scroll down to Network.
  4. Scroll down to View Connection Status.
  5. The MAC Address will be listed next to MAC Address (LAN) and MAC Address (Wi-Fi).

 

PlayStation 3

  1. Navigate to Settings.
  2. Select System Settings.
  3. Select System Information.
  4. View information on the PS3 system. The MAC address is shown there.
  1. Select System Settings from the HOME menu.
  2. Scroll down and select Internet.
  3. The Nintendo Switch console’s MAC address will be listed under System MAC Address.

The MAC address of your device can be located in the Settings > System > About menu. Some Roku models may also have the MAC address printed on the bottom of the device.

  1. From the main menu, choose Settings, and then click About or Network.
  2. Look for the MAC address next to “Wi-Fi address” for the wireless connection.
  3. Alternatively, you may find the MAC address printed on the barcode label on the Apple TV box.

Other

PNW Information Services (IS) has designated certain times and days as Maintenance Windows.  Work performed during maintenance windows may encounter interruptions or poor reliability if maintenance is being performed.  These windows are listed below.

Occasionally, IS may need to extend these maintenance windows due to an emergency change situation.  These emergency changes, as well as all Scheduled Maintenance notifications, will be communicated to the university community via e-mail and/or the IT Status page.

  • Standard Maintenance Windows:
    • Saturdays – 5 p.m. to midnight
    • Monday through Sunday – 9:30 p.m. to 5 a.m. (Faculty/Staff Workstations)
    • Monday through Sunday – 1:15 a.m. to 5 a.m. (Classroom/Lab Workstations)
  • Emergency Maintenance Windows:
    • Tuesday/Thursday – 4 a.m. to 6 a.m.

If users need to access their on-campus workstation remotely, they will need to contact the CSC at csc@pnw.edu or (219) 989-2888.  The CSC can enable that function.

Office 365 is available for download for Purdue students, faculty and staff on their personal computers. Click here and login with your @pnw.edu email address as your username, and your career account password. Please note that when you leave the university, you will lose access to Microsoft office.

Zoom is a video conference tool that is offered to all Purdue faculty and staff. Click here for information about how to create a Zoom meeting.

WebEx is a video conferencing system that is offered to all Purdue faculty and staff. Click here for information about how to create a WebEx meeting.

If you suspect that an e-mail you received may be spam or a phishing attempt, do not click on any links or open any attachments!  Forward the e-mail as an attachment to abuse@pnw.edu.  Information Services staff will then get back to you and let you know if the e-mail is truly a phishing attempt or spam and instruct you on the next steps.  Be sure to include in your e-mail if you have clicked on any links, opened any attachments, or provided your PNW credentials.

How to forward an e-mail as an attachment:

  1. Start a New Message.
  2. Select Attach Item from the toolbar.
  3. Select Outlook Item.
  4. Browse to the message you are inquiring about, and select it to attach it.