Your Password is used for accessing the University’s computer services. It is used in conjunction with your Username [1]. A password is assigned automatically to your Central Login Account [2].
NOTE
Keep your Password confidential.
Do not disclose your Password to anyone, including University support staff.
Never log in to your University account at a site you do not trust.
Your University password should always be unique and never reused.
You should change your assigned password immediately upon your first login and regularly thereafter. To do so, link to the Change Your Password [3] webpage.
For more information about passwords, refer to one of these sections:
Choosing a Secure Password
Your password should be difficult for others to guess but easy for you to remember so that you don’t need to write it down.
To ensure a secure password:
- Make it at least 10 to 30 characters long.
- Use a combination of alphabetic and numeric characters (for example, “aaa11aaa”). But, do not use a dictionary word or a 4-digit year because that combination can be broken using trial-and-error robotic algorithms.
- Because passwords are case sensitive, use a combination of upper- and lower-case characters (for example, “Aaa11Bbb”).
- Include special characters (for example, “Aa.11.Bb”). These special characters can be used: $ ( ) ! + - _ . = { }
- Please note that these characters are not allowed as they may be problematic for some applications: < > ' " ; , @ \ % & `
- Substitute the digit zero for the capital letter "O" or vice versa.
- Your password should be changed regularly
To change your password, refer to Changing Your Password.
Changing Your Password
There are various ways to change your password, depending on your situation.
Situation | Classification | Action |
---|---|---|
You know your password. | all | Link to the Change Your Password [3] utility, then change it online. |
You have forgotten your password and you have subscribed to Password Reset [4]. | all | Link to the Password Reset [4] utility, then create a new password. |
You have forgotten your password and you have not subscribed to Password Reset [4]. | all | Visit the CCS Help Desk in the Library with your University photo ID to have a new password assigned. |
You have forgotten your password and you have not subscribed to Password Reset [4]. | Student | Contact the CCS Help Centre to have a new password assigned. (58888help@uoguelph.ca [5] , or x58888) |
You have forgotten your password and you have not subscribed to Password Reset [4]. | Non-student | Contact your departmental administrator or computer support person to have a new password assigned. |
Reminder - After changing your password, please ensure you update it on your mobile devices to continue receiving email and access the wireless network on those devices. You may also need to update your password for access to certain applications or resources such as CFS.
Retrieving a Forgotten Password
If you have forgotten your password and have already subscribed to Password Reset [4] you can reset your own password using the Password Reset [4] service. Otherwise, a forgotten password can only be changed, not retrieved (see the Changing Your Password section for more information).