EASI

Enterprise Applications and Solutions Integration

News

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Updates to the SIS Website: Enhancements for Improved User Experience

Date: June 13, 2024
To:  SIS Users
From: Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration
Re: Updates to the SIS Website: Enhancements for Improved User Experience

 

Dear SIS Users,

We are delighted to share some exciting news regarding recent enhancements to the Student Information Systems (SIS) website. These changes were implemented to improve usability, enhance information search capabilities, and ensure the confidentiality of sensitive data.

1. Policies Menu: We’ve added two new pages under the “Policies” drop-down menu:
  • Managing Confidential Information: This page has been updated to provide clear guidelines on handling sensitive data.
  • Sharing Data Safely: A new page dedicated to ensuring the safety of student, staff, and faculty data when submitting ESC tickets or delivering presentations.
2. Help & Support: The Help & Support page has been redesigned for better navigation. Key improvements include:
  • Clear sections and categories to quickly find relevant information.
  • Expanded system documentation.
  • Introduction to the new ESC Service Commitment, i.e., our operational standards.
  • Direct access to submit tickets via the Enterprise Service Centre Support Links page.
3. SIS Learning Centre: We’ve introduced a new drop-down menu called “SIS Learning Centre” in the top menu bar. Here’s what it includes:
  • Onboarding: A dedicated page for new SIS users.
  • SIS eLearning: Redesigned for easier access to essential information.
  • ROSI Guides and Manuals: All the guides have been recently updated, and they are now conveniently relocated to a distinct standalone section.
  • Perform Downloads in ROSI: A quick guide for performing downloads in ROSI.
  • Customize ROSI Appearance: Instructions on how to personalize your ROSI on-screen experience.
Lastly, to align with other University of Toronto websites, we’ve added a direct link to the “U of T Home” website in our menu.

Please explore these updates and feel free to provide feedback. We’re committed to continuously improving the SIS website to better serve our community.

Thank you for your attention, and if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Sincerely,
Student Information Systems

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eMarks – Streamlined Authentication & Temporary Outage July 4

Date: June 10, 2024  
To:  ROSI Users; Registrar’s Offices
From: Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration
Re:  eMarks – Streamlined Authentication & Temporary Outage July 4

 

Dear Registrar’s Offices and ROSI Users,

We are pleased to announce an upcoming enhancement to the eMarks login process, effective July 4. This change will enhance security and improve user experience.

Authentication Process Simplification: After conducting a thorough technical and security analysis, we have determined that the secondary authentication requiring employee numbers will no longer be necessary. Instead, users will log in using their UTORid and password, followed by UTORMFA authentication.

Temporary Outage:
On July 4, from 10 to 11 a.m., eMarks will be temporarily unavailable as we implement these changes.

Action Required: Please update your materials that reference eMarks, including memos, local websites, and your eMarks manuals. Also, pass this information along to faculty members as needed.

 

Current eMark Login Process
Current login process showing U of T's Weblogin, then UTORMFA authentication and then a third authentication through eMarks

 

New eMark Login Process as of July 4
Simplified authentication through U of T's weblogin and then UTORMFA

 

If you have any questions, please contact Andre Kalamandeen andre.kalamandeen@utoronto.ca

Sincerely,
Student Information Systems

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Monthly SIS Training Resources & Support Session

Join us on the first Thursday of each month for an informative Connect+Learn session on SIS Training Resources & Support, tailored primarily for new ROSI users. The Student Information Systems (SIS) group manages enterprise student and curriculum applications, and processes for the University.

SIS provides reporting tools, enhancement and production request forms, and support for the SIS applications. In the session, we will discuss:

  • Student Information Systems – What we do and how to get help
  • ROSI and OASIS Training Materials & Resources
  •  What we support and what we do not (and where to go for those)
  •  When to use ESC and how to write a ticket and use ESC appropriately.

Resources

Recording [Stream]
Slides [SharePoint]

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New L4 SharePoint site template launching soon

Date: June 5, 2024
To: InfoTech listserv
From: Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration
Re:  New L4 SharePoint site template launching soon

Dear colleagues, 

On Friday, June 7, 2024, the L4 SharePoint site template will be available for use across the university. This will enable users to upload L3 and L4 content on SharePoint, with some exceptions. To accommodate sensitive data, this template will have restrictions to ensure data is secured. Please consult this FAQ for full details. 

 A Connect + Learn session will be held in August to introduce the new template and address any questions. We will be posting the session details on our Connect+Learn web page.  

Read the full announcement here. 

If you have any questions, please contact:  

Lisa Chen (lisac.chen@utoronto.ca) and Imthiyaz Hameed (imthiyaz.hameed@utoronto.ca) 

 

Kind Regards,  

Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration (EASI)
Information Technology Services, University of Toronto
215 Huron Street, Toronto
Ontario M5S 1A2
easi.its.utoronto.ca 

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Navigating Student Invoices & Financial Arrangements

Please join us for an exclusive Connect+Learn session featuring insights from Student Accounts within the University Registrar’s Office, and Student Receivables & Accounting Office within Financial Services. The session will delve into essential topics such as guidance on interpreting official U of T Student Financial Invoices and explore the diverse options for establishing and maintaining Financial Arrangements (e.g., fee deferrals).

Topics will include:

  • Exploring invoice views in ROSI; highlighting key features and crucial line items.
  • Guidance on where and how students can access instructions for making payments or self-initiating a fee deferral.
  • How staff can effectively maintain Financial Arrangements in ROSI (e.g., major award).

 

Resources

Recording [Stream]
Slides [SharePoint]

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EASI Go Prod AMS & Enterprise Shared Services Updates – Feb. 1 to May 31, 2024

Date: May 31, 2024
To:  AMS and Enterprise Shared Services Users
From:  Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration
Re:  EASI Go Prod AMS & Enterprise Shared Services Updates – Feb. 1 to May 31, 2024

 

Hi everyone,

Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration (EASI) would like to update you on the latest major production releases and updates for U of T’s Administrative Management Systems and Enterprise Shared Services.

The following are major changes from February 1 to May 31, 2024:

Administrative Management Systems

SAP GUI Upgrade (May/June)
U of T will be transitioning to the new version of SAP GUI as the current version is no longer supported. Digital Workplace clients have received the upgrade from SAP GUI 7.6 (Patch 6) to version 8.00 (Patch 4, and IT administrators will facilitate the upgrade for divisions. The new version includes performance improvements, and enhanced stability and security, and represents minimal change to business processes.

AMS Disaster Recovery Solution
Since June 2023, the SAP teams have dedicated their efforts to crafting a robust Disaster Recovery solution tailored for the Administrative Management Systems environment. In the latest phase of this initiative, the SAP teams, in collaboration with other ITS partners, have diligently integrated all remaining infrastructure components necessary to enable SAP web applications such as Employee Self-Service and MyResearch to operate seamlessly from disaster-affected regions. Presently, the team is fully engaged in conducting mock tests to thoroughly evaluate and fortify the resilience of this environment.

Financial Information System

AMS Fiscal Year-End Closure 2024 (May 1)
Multiple teams from EASI and Financial Services worked together to ensure the 2024 FI Fiscal Year End event was successful. The benefits of the SAP S/4HANA environment continue to reduce overall processing time. Fiori Launchpad Reporting continues to allow users to carry on with their business operations during the fiscal year-end closure period. Throughout the year, the teams worked to optimize system efficiencies and continued to reengineer programs to decrease processing times.

Enterprise Shared Services

Accruent EMS – Space Management Solution (February 1 to May 31)
EASI has been implementing Accruent EMS, which is a comprehensive cloud-based space management solution. The scheduling software facilitates the efficient booking and management of meeting rooms, hoteling workstations, training rooms and event spaces. The EMS platform integrates with both hardware and software infrastructures to enhance efficiency, optimize space utilization, and streamline the process of scheduling and managing spaces, especially in a hybrid work environment. For the first phase of the project, the solution is being implemented in select buildings on the St. George Campus, including 215 Huron Street, Simcoe Hall, Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus, Experiential Learning Commons and the Fitzgerald Building.

UTMail+ M365 Reconciliation Project (May 8)
On May 8, U of T’s M365 team began issuing deactivation notices to inactive or ineligible email accounts as part of an organizational effort to safeguard online data and manage U of T’s resources more effectively. Learn more about the project and understand its role in safeguarding online data.

Human Resources Information System

Employees@UofT (April 2)
On April 2, the Division of People Strategy, Equity & Culture, with EASI’s assistance, migrated Employees@UofT to Tableau. The new Employees @ U of T site features improvements to navigation and an increased range of filters on the data available for generating reports. For more information, visit the new PSEC Reporting & Insights SharePoint. The Employees@UofT application webpage on the EASI website will be retired once users have made the transition to the new platform.

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AMS System Outage – June 15

Date: May 30, 2024
To:  AMS Users
From: Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration
Re: AMS System Outage – June 15

 

Dear AMS Users,

Please note that the systems below will be unavailable on Saturday, June 15 from 6:00 am to 12:00 pm due to system maintenance:

  • Academic Administrative Appointments (AAA)
  • AMS SAP GUI
  • Capital Project Portal
  • Employee Self-Service (ESS)/Manager Self-Service (MSS)
  • EvoSuite Applications (EvoOrder, EvoPlan, EvoNotify)
  • Expense Reimbursement Direct Deposit (ERDD)
  • Fiori Launchpad Reporting
  • Invoice Workflow
  • My Customer Account
  • My Research (MR/Portal)
  • SAP Asset Manager Mobile (sync will not work)
  • uSOURCE

See our System Availability page for a list of ongoing information on system status.

Sincerely,
Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration (EASI)

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U of T 30-day Microsoft Teams Chat Retention Policy coming September 16

Date: May 29, 2024
To: ACE-IT, EITU, MTRC, InfoTech, Broader Channels
From: Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration
Re:  Reminder: U of T 30-day Microsoft Teams Chat Retention Policy coming September 30 

 

Dear colleagues,

As an important element in records management and data security, the University of Toronto will be implementing a 30-day retention policy for all individual Teams chat messages that occur outside of a designated Microsoft Teams Channel. This policy will take effect September 16, 2024. The policy is designed to enhance data security and promote efficient communication practices within the university.

What messages are impacted? 
Individual Teams chat messages are ephemeral, one-on-one communications, similar to a phone call or in-person conversation with a colleague, that are intended to disappear after the communication. Messages within group chats (including meetings) are also considered one-on-one communications and will follow the 30-day retention policy.

What messages are not impacted? 
Chat messages within a designated Teams channel that are directly related to a project, group or committee are intended to serve as a record for the entire team and will not be impacted by this policy.

Next steps 
We are giving all faculty, staff, librarians and students advance notice along with the opportunity to review their chat history in case they have any important links or files that need to be retrieved and kept. Moving forward, if users feel there are chats that are pertinent to projects or other teams, it is recommended to initiate these conversations and share these links within a specific Microsoft Teams channel. Staff, faculty and librarians may also want to consider reverting to email for pertinent conversations and information rather than Microsoft Teams chat.

Support

  • To learn more about this university-wide effort to enhance data security and data management, please visit our Teams chat retention web page.
  • Please refer to the knowledge base article to learn more about the Teams Chat Retention Policy implementation.
  • Information sessions: We invite you to join our Connect+Learn sessions where we will provide an overview of the 30-day Teams Chat Retention Policy and an opportunity to ask questions.
    • Teams Chat Retention Information Session 01 – June 12, 11 a.m. Add to Calendar
    • Teams Chat Retention Information Session 02 – June 19, 11 a.m. Add to Calendar
  • If you have questions regarding this policy, please feel free to contact the support team.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. We appreciate your understanding as we work to enhance security, promote efficient communication practices and adhere to industry standards.

Kind regards,

Enterprise Applications & Solutions Integration (EASI)
Information Technology Services, University of Toronto
215 Huron Street, Toronto
Ontario M5S 1A2
easi.its.utoronto.ca

 

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Channel owners and administrators can now archive channels

As per Microsoft latest update, Microsoft Teams channel owners and administrators can now archive channels to avoid any activity on them and can restore if needed. Channel members will not be able to take actions on the channel like messaging, reacting, commenting, editing etc., but they can still access and read through the channel content.

Channel owners and administrators now have the ability to archive channels. This new functionality is designed to preserve the integrity of the channel’s content while halting all active participation and interactions.

Once a channel is archived:

    • All activities within the channel will be suspended. This means members will not be able to send messages, react to posts, comment, or make any edits.
    • Despite the suspension of activities, all channel content will remain accessible. Members can still view past discussions, files, and other shared materials for reference or record-keeping purposes.

Should the need arise, archived channels can be restored to full activity by an owner or administrator, allowing members to resume interactions as before.

This feature is particularly useful for:

    • Preserving historical data of projects or events that have concluded.
    • Reducing clutter in the channel list without losing valuable information.
    • Maintaining compliance with record-keeping policies.