IT, Student Techs Tackle WiFi Issue

Whether watching a movie on Netflix, talking to their parents through Skype, or simply browsing the web, students and faculty at Exeter have experienced the recent issues with the school’s Internet.In the past, Exeter’s Internet services have remained consistent, but this year, the campus has experienced lagging and blackouts. In an attempt to improve the quality of the Internet, Exeter’s Internet Technology Services Department (IT) has already scheduled and performed maintenance days.As far as the reason behind the connection issues, some students are wondering whether the increased number of iPads on campus have taxed the school’s Internet capacity. The IT department says that the real issue with the internet is the school’s firewall.“The root cause of the problem is in the firewall that directs traffic in and out of the Internet and provides security for our technology resources. The firewall is doing its job to secure our resources and direct traffic, however it is dropping some traffic that is valid,” Director of Technology Services Diane Fandrich said.Fandrich further explained that students may be misunderstanding the issue. “To a student or employee, this may look like the Internet service has slowed down or stopped or it may look like wireless has dropped a connection,” she continued.For students, the Internet troubles have impacted the quality of student life outside of classes, as well as communication outside of the Exeter “bubble.”Upper Annie Ning commented on the difficulty the internet causes in communicating with her family.“It's hard enough trying to deal with the time difference to talk to people back home, but the Internet connection makes it so much worse. Almost every call I make over Skype is disconnected every few minutes, and it’s impossible to have a decent conversation,” she said.During their free time, Exonians enjoy checking their social media, sending Snapchats and iMessages and playing online games. With the recent problems with the Exeter Internet, however, students have found themselves unable to access these applications.Lower Alex Rothstein complained that the Internet issues are forcing her to use her 4G data plan, which is expensive. “My Snapchat never works with the WiFi and so I have to use all my data,” she said.Lower Lara Galligani explained a similar dilemma when she tried to play a game on her iPhone.“It's really annoying that the WiFi turns off in certain places. I like playing the Kim Kardashian game, but it’s hard to enjoy it when I walk outside and it won't connect. It would help if they improved the campus-wide WiFi,” she said.In some cases, the issues with Internet have also affected academic life.Prep Katie Lee was unable to finish her homework because of the poor Internet.“When the WiFi shut down, I had to do my bio homework and all of the assignments are on Google Drive and I couldn’t get it done,” she said. “I had to wake up early the next day to complete it.”Prep Mary Le has faced similar problems.“My math teacher was trying to incorporate the iPad in class, but the WiFi crashed and I was left with no resources and couldn't participate," she said.The timing of the Internet problems are also proving especially inconvenient—the Academy has recently incorporated many new technological services that are dependent on WiFi.One example is the new printing system, uPrint. With the unaccountability of the WiFi, many students have had difficulty printing out their homework and papers.Prep Maria Lee also encountered this issue. “It fluctuates a lot: sometimes it works but other times it doesn’t. I was trying to connect to uPrint but my document wouldn’t send to the printer,” she said.“I had to go to Agora until the WiFi worked. It’s been frustrating when a lot of homework depends on efficient WiFi.”While students have been frustrated with the Internet, teachers haven’t seen the issue quite as much.Modern languages instructor Ting Yuan has not had any problems. “I never have any problem with WiFi connection. I use it in the dorm and Phillips Hall mostly,” she said.Exonians will not have to worry much longer, though, as IT is working on solving the problem.“We are working closely with the firewall vendor for resolution. In order to fully isolate and resolve the issue, we are having to step through a series of changes recommended by the vendor,” Fandrich said.