Overview
Connecting to the file server is a 2-stage process. First you need to establish a connection to the College of Education VPN server. Once a connection to the VPN server has been established you can proceed to connect to the file server. If you have never connected to the College of Education VPN server then you will first need to install the VPN client program into your computer.
- Click here for instructions on how to install the College of Education VPN program on your computer.
Step 1 - Establish a Connection to the College of Education VPN Server
NOTE: If you have never connected to the College of Education VPN server then you need to first install the VPN program on your computer. The College of Education VPN server is different from the UT VPN server. Click here for instructions on how to install the College of Education VPN program onto your computer.
1. First check to see if you are already connected to the College of Education VPN server. An active connection to the VPN server is indicated by a green icon with a check mark for the OpenVPN Connect program. The program icon should be located in the notification area of your task bar to the left of the clock. If the icon is hidden, click the little up arrow to expose the hidden icons.
- If you are currently connected to the College of Education VPN server, proceed to section Step 2 - Connect to the File Server.
- If you are not currently connected to the College of Education VPN server the OpenVPN Connect program icon will be gray with an X as pictured in the screenshot above. Continue to Step 2 if you need to establish a connection to the College of Education VPN server.
2. To establish a connection to the College of Education VPN server, locate the OpenVPN Connect program icon in the notification area of your task bar to the left of the clock.
3. After locating the OpenVPN Connect program icon in the notification area of your task bar, click on it once and then select the Connect to connect.edb.utexas.edu menu option.
4. In the window that appears make sure the Server field contains the address connect.edb.utexas.edu. Then enter your EID username and password. Once you have entered your EID username and password press the Connect button.
- NOTE: If the connection attempt fails, try entering your EID username in all lower-case letters.
- If prompted to allow the VPN connection, click the Yes button.
5. A connection attempt will now be made to the College of Education VPN server. The OpenVPN Connect program icon in the notification area should change to a yellow color with right pointing arrow indicating a connection attempt is being made. Then the icon should change to a green color with a check mark indicating a successful connection to the VPN server.
- If you do not see the OpenVPN Connect program icon change to green or change color at all, repeat steps 2-5 to try again. If you had a typo in your EID credentials the VPN server connection attempt will fail. If you continue to have problems contact LTC Technical Support for help.
Step 2- Connect to the File Server
Once you have established a connection to the College of Education VPN server, you can now connect to the file server.
1. Click on the Start Menu globe in the lower left-hand corner of your desktop. In the menu that appears locate the Search programs and files field and type the following into it: \\files.connect.edb.utexas.edu. Then press the Enter key on your keyboard.
2. A username/password dialog box will pop up. Enter the following and click the OK button when done:
- Username: AUSTIN\yourEID
- Change "yourEID" to your EID username.
- IMPORTANT: You MUST prefix your EID username with "AUSTIN\" as shown.
- Password: ( your EID password )
- Optionally you can check the Remember my credentials box to save your server login information so that you don't need to type it again in the future.
3. A window will now display showing all the file shares you have access to on the server. Double-click the file share that contains the files you want to access.
4. You can now navigate through the files and folders as you normally would on your computer.
Disconnect from the VPN Server When you are Done
When you are finished working with the file server please disconnect from the VPN server to free up resources for other users. To disconnect from the College of Education VPN server select the Disconnect connect.edb.utexas.edu option from the OpenVPN menu bar icon as shown in the screenshot below.
