Preparing your Computer for Westmont

Change your Computer and Workgroup Names

When computing on a network such as Westmont’s, each individual computer must have a unique name assigned to it and belong to a specific group. The best (and prefered) way to accomplish this is to change your computer’s name to your email username and your workgroup to your dorm name.

Windows XP/2000:

Click the Start menu
S elect Settings
Select Control Panel
Double click on Network
Click on the Advanced tab at the top of the window.
Enter your full name for Computer Description
Click change
Under computer name, enter your email user name (without @westmont.edu)
Click the radio button next to Workgroup
Enter your full Dorm name (clark, page, armington…).
Click OK

Remove any existing Virus Protection software from your computer.

The Westmont network is equiped with a powerful anti-virus protection system that will be installed on your computer when you connect to the network on campus. With good computing practices and a little routine maintenance, this system will help keep your computer running virus free while your at Westmont.

Warning! Having two virus scan programs on one computer can cause serious perfomance issues. If you don’t uninstall your previous antivirus program, it will cause considerable system slowness when the Westmont provided virus protection system is installed and run.

Click the Start menu
S elect Settings
Select Control Panel
Double click Add or Remove Programs
Find and click on your virus protection software and click Remove.
Some examples include: McAfee, Norton Antivirus, Norton Security, Trend Micro, Sophos, AVG, Panda Antivrus etc…
Follow the prompts to remove this software. You may need to reboot to complete the uninstall.
Once the uninstall is complete, click here and click open to install the new software agent.
After the agent installs, leave your computer on and within 5 to 30 minutes, the McAfee Antivirus program will automatically be downloaded and installed. You will be required to reboot your computer when the install is complete.

What about when I go home for Christmas or the summer?

Don’t worry. This software will protect your system for as long as you are a student at Westmont, on campus or off. While you are on campus it is maintained by our servers and when you’re off, it defaults to McAfee’s servers. It’s automatically updated and maintained providing constant protection with little to no required interaction on your part.

Help!!! I have a virus!

Click here for help on what to do about it.

Protecting yourself From Spyware

Learn about Spyware here
Install Spybot Search & Destroy, Adaware, and SpywareBlaster and run them every couple weeks and you computer will love you for it!!!

When you leave Westmont (A legal note)

The software license agreement under which Westmont is able to use the antivirus software requires the user (that’s you) to remove the software once you are no longer a student at Westmont. Go to the Control Panel click Add or Remove Programs, select McAfee Virus Scan Enterprise, click Remove and follow the prompts to remove this software.