UVa Wireless Network

Change to WPA2 Encryption on the cavalier Wireless Network

About the UVa Wireless Network Upgrade

ITS began a transition from WPA Enterprise (802.1X WPA-TKIP) to WPA2 Enterprise (802.1x WPA2-AES) in May 2011.

As of Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2011, the old encryption method (WPA) has been turned off; the only connection available to the UVa cavalier wireless network is via WPA2.

This upgrade increases the protection provided by the wireless encryption method, and is a necessary step in enabling higher bandwidth 802.11n WiFi access at the University.

How to Connect to the Upgraded cavalier Network

If You Have a Windows Computer...

Simply download and run the ITS Network Setup Tool, which will make the change to WPA2 for you. If you did not do this before Tuesday, Oct. 18, or if your installation failed, you have lost the ability to connect to the UVa cavalier wireless network.

To restore your connection, download and run the latest version of the ITS Network Setup Tool, which may be able to automatically configure your computer to connect to the updated network. (See below for info on why running this Tool might not work and what to do about it.)

If You Have a Macintosh Computer and/or Device...

Your Apple computer(s), including iOS devices such as iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touches, will connect to cavalier using WPA2 automatically, with no changes required at all.

Did You Receive Multiple Reminder Emails?

Individual emails were sent to all Windows users at UVa who needed to make this change. If you received several reminder emails, but thought that you had made the necessary changes, consider the following possible reasons you may have continued to receive the reminder message even after you took action:

• Your Network Setup Tool installation may have failed.
  • If you got an error when running the Tool, see the info on error solutions below.
  • A new version of the Tool was released on 10/3/11. If you ran the Tool as instructed before that date, but received additional warning messages, try downloading and running the Tool again. The newer version of the Tool may address your issue, even if the old one did not, particularly if you have a Windows 7 computer.
  • Although the Tool is the preferred method for configuring Windows to connect to cavalier, manual instructions are available for connecting a Windows 7 or Vista computer to the cavalier network, or connecting to cavalier on Windows XP. You may want to try these instead.
  • If you still need assistance, contact the UVa Help Desk for a solution and/or referral to ITS staff.
• You may have more than one computer registered to your computing ID.
  • Have you run the Network Setup Tool on every computer for which you are responsible, including older ones? You may have addressed the problem on one, but not all, the machine(s) registered to you.
  • Are you not a local administrator on the computer in question? If you lack administrator privileges on your computer, the changes made by the Tool will not “stick.” Ask your departmental LSP about this, if you have one, or contact the UVa Help Desk for a solution and/or referral to ITS staff.
  • Your department or organization may have group-managed computers which are owned by one person and managed by another. Ask your departmental LSP or contact the UVa Help Desk for a solution and/or referral to ITS staff.

Get an ITS Network Setup Tool Error?

Some Windows computers manufactured before 2006 might need an update before they can support WPA2. If you got an error when running the Tool, one of the following may help:

• If the ITS Network Setup Tool reported “Problem: The setup of your cavalier wireless networking service failed,” you may need to install an updated driver for your wireless card.
• If a WPA2 driver is not available, you can purchase a new wireless adapter with WPA2 support. Then you can re-run the Network Setup Tool to connect to the upgraded cavalier network.

If you take neither of the above steps, your older computer may be unable to connect to the encrypted cavalier wireless network after Oct. 18, 2011.

Need Additional Assistance?

Ask your departmental LSP if you have one, or contact the UVa Help Desk if you encounter additional problems connecting to the upgraded WPA2 network on your Windows computer.