UCLA will be making some changes to their Usenet service this weekend.  After their July 1st update access will be restricted to the UCLA campus network.  Users who wish to access newsgroups from off campus will need to first connect to the UCLA VPN.  The changes will take place between 12:01 am and 1:00 am Sunday, July 1st.  You can visit the BOL maintenance page for more details including Usenet and VPN setup instructions.

Some might find the UCLA update confusing.  As we started by saying the Usenet service will be restricted to their on campus network and then mention use of the UCLA VPN when off campus.  Basically UCLA’s VPN allows you to connect to the UCLA network from off site.  Granting you an IP address just as if you were sitting on campus.  The same way personal VPN services assign IP addresses from around the world.

Once you’re on campus or connected through the VPN you can access the Usenet service using your email address.  The UCLA news server (news.ucla.edu) does not require authentication.  However it will only be accessible if you have a UCLA IP address.  If you have questions about setting up their Usenet access visit the UCLA news server page.  Bruin Online also has a page dedicated to helping you setup UCLA VPN access.

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