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Biology IT

So that we can help you with your computer, other IT equipment and installation of software, we need to limit ourselves to certain standard models. As a public authority, we are also obliged to comply with laws and regulations. This means that we are not able to use whichever software we like, as data may be stored on servers in a third country.

Support

If you need help with your computer or another issue relating to IT, feel free to contact the Department of Biology’s helpdesk. You can contact them by writing an email to helpdesk [at] biol [dot] lu [dot] se.
Note: You can only email the helpdesk from your “biol” address.

Another way of contacting the helpdesk is via the website, at helpdesk.biol.lu.se. You can log in there using your Lucat ID and fill in a pre-prepared form. You will also find up-to-date FAQs.

Purchasing IT equipment

You should always contact the IT group when purchasing new IT equipment, such as computers, monitors, computer accessories, tablets, printing devices and photocopiers. We are not able to provide support for every single brand or model. You can find prices in LUPIN.

When you purchase a computer through us, contact helpdesk [at] biol [dot] lu [dot] se and tell them which standard model you were thinking to buy. We then order your computer and install the required software to ensure it is ready to use.

We recommend a laptop connected to an external monitor with a keyboard and mouse. If you need a more powerful computer, you could consider having a desktop computer that can be remotely controlled where necessary using a simpler laptop.

Shared printers are spread out throughout the building. If you still need your own printer, you should buy one that is directly connected to the computer via USB and not via the network.

Installation – operating system

To make things easier for you and to ensure secure, sustainable maintenance and storage, we use Lund University’s central solution: pc.lu.se which is free of charge.

The pc.lu.se system manages Windows-operated computers by creating a connection to a central server that ensures you obtain automatic security updates. You can also download apps and back up your home directory via pc.lu.se.

You can log in to pc.lu.se from any computer you like and still always access your data. If your computer is stolen, you can immediately continue working from one of our loaned computers. You can also work while disconnected; your files will be synced when you reconnect to the network.

If you need administrative rights for your computer, you can obtain these even if you use pc.lu.se.

More information about this can be found on the website of the Faculty of Medicine.

If you do not want to use pc.lu.se, you must take care of installation, maintenance and updates for your computer yourself. The Windows operating system can be downloaded from LDC’s software database. You can download and install Mac OS X from the internet.

Installation – software

Lund University has a license for the entire University for certain software – known as a “site license”. Other software requires your own license. Check first whether the software you need has a site license. If it does not, contact our helpdesk. State:

  1. Desired software and version
  2. Activity for the invoice
  3. IP address (must be within the interval 130.235.44.0 - 130.235.47.255 OR 130.235.244.0 - 130.235.245.255)
  4. Your LU email address
  5. Mac or Windows computer

Normal software without a site license includes Adobe software, SPSS and SAS. There are several good software alternatives to Adobe, such as PDF Xchange and Affinity. You can download these yourself from LDC’s software database.

You can also download software that has a site license from Microsoft Office, GIS software, AppsAnywhere and Software Centre. You can read more below about where to find these and which software you can download.

Go to the Office website and log in with Lucat-ID [at] lu [dot] se as your username. You will then come to a page where you can log in using your Lucat ID as normal. There are many Office apps on this site that you can either download to your computer or use via the browser.

On GIS Software’s site, you can download software such as ArcGIS Pro, ArcGIS Desktop and FME (Feature Manipulation Engine). You can log in using your Lucat ID.

You can download Matlab, Comsol and Maple via LTH’s website. Log in using your Lucat ID.

Via LDC you can find software such as Affinity Designer, Affinity Photo, Affinity Publisher, Windows 10, LabView, Pausit, PDF Xchange Pro and TorTalk.

AppsAnywhere’s software portal allows students and employees using Windows to download software. Much of the software can be accessed from either a private computer, an employee computer or a computer in a computer room. For licensing reasons, there are certain types of software that can only be accessed via a computer room. Outside LU’s network, you often need to have a VPN (Virtual Private Network) to access the software.

You can log in to AppsAnywhere using your Lucat ID. If you are using a pc.lu.se computer, launch the Software Centre and install AppsAnywhere’s client first.

You can download software on a pc.lu.se computer via the Software Centre. On the pc.lu.se website, you can see which software is available in the Software Centre and which ones have been pre-installed on the pc.lu.se computer.

Storage

It is important for all your data to be stored on a server and not just your computer, in case it should break or is stolen. The computer should also be encrypted to prevent unauthorised persons from accessing it. If you store your data in a cloud-based service, you can access it immediately when changing computers.

For those who use pc.lu.se, the files are stored by default in Work Folders (max 100 GB), OneDrive (max 5000 GB) and LU Box (max 20 GB). Those who do not use pc.lu.se can also make use of these services. OneDrive and LU Box work on both Macs and Windows, while Work Folders only works on Windows. You can also share files with other users via many of the storage services.

Storage options available at the department

You can connect to Work Folders from Windows 10, Android and iOS. Work Folders does not work on Mac OS X. The stored files are placed on a server but are also synchronised locally to the Windows computer so that you can also work when disconnected.

If you want to use Work Folders from an iPhone or iPad, download the app from the App Store. The client is in-built in Windows 10 and you can choose whether your files are synched or not in Windows settings.

Four icons display the status of the files.

  1. A cloud means that you can only access the file when your computer is online
  2. Two arrows in a circle mean the file is in the process of being synchronised
  3. A solid green circle with a tick means the file is accessible at all times on your computer
  4. A hollow green circle with a tick means the file is accessible on your computer but that it may be moved to the bin if space is needed for something else

You can control types of access to different folders in Work Folders. To free up space on your computer, we recommend that you use “On-Demand File Access”. This means Windows manages the files that are accessible locally on your computer.

You can log in to OneDrive using your Lucat-ID [at] lu [dot] se. More information about OneDrive can be found on Microsoft’s website.

OneDrive works on Mac OS X, Windows, tablets and mobile phones. You can use OneDrive to store, access, edit and synchronise documents. You can also share and work on documents together with others. OneDrive is entirely cloud-based.

Do not sync all files, the risk is that your hard drive will quickly become full! Contact LDC's Service Desk if you need more than 1 TB of OneDrive's standard storage space. There is no limit to the amount of space available to you. Four icons show the status of the files - see the information under WorkFolders above.

There is a version history that enables you to restore older versions of documents should you need to. OneDrive saves the most recent 100 files, but you can restore files that are not more than 93 days old from the recycle bin. You can also restore all content from the past 30 days if a major problem occurs.

Log in to Teams using your Lucat-id [at] li [dot] se. Teams works on both Mac OS X and Windows. In Teams, you can store, share and collaborate in files. You can also chat, ring and hold video meetings. Storage space in Teams is 25 TB, and you can manage the 100 most recent versions of a file. You can access Teams via your browser or an app that you have downloaded to your computer and/or mobile phone.

You can log in to LU Box using your Lucat ID. LU Box works on both Mac OS X and Windows. You can store, share and collaborate on files and sync them to your computer. You can also access LU Box via an app on your mobile phone or tablet. You can share your files with people both within and outside Lund University. LU Box gives you 20 GB of storage space.

Contact Helpdesk if you need a shared group directory for your research team in which all members of the team can store and access all data.

If you have ensured that all of your data is stored in one of the aforementioned storage spaces, you can restore all of your data whenever you need to. LU backs up WorkFolders and Group Directories/Network Disks. Lost data can then usually be recovered via LDC for a certain period of time after the loss or through self-service via the services' file version management. Other storage services usually have built-in version management that you handle yourself. Contact the help desk if you need help recovering lost data. The best scenario is to not be dependent solely on locally stored data; instead, all your data should be on external servers that are backed up in turn. If you want to have a personal backup so that you can take your data with you when leaving Lund University, we recommend that you use the open-source software FreeFileSync.

If you have data that is no longer being amended and does not need to be available on your computer, you can archive it. Lund University does not have a central archive solution. We recommend that you use the open-source software FreeFileSync to archive data on two cloned hard disks that you store disconnected in a fireproof, locked space.

E-mail lists

At the department, we have these mailing lists:

  • Anslagstavlan (staff at the department + other interested people associated with biology, all may post to the list)
  • Biologi (personnel at the department, only the administration can post)
  • Biologistudent (students at the department)

The units and some research groups have their own lists. You will be added automatically to the lists, depending on your role in LUCAT. If not, please ask your HR administrator to help you.

Central IT-support