May 1, 2014 MyCharleston Service Disruption Analysis
Summary: On May 1, 2014 at 4:30pm, Information Technology received a report that students were having issues logging into MyCharleston. As a result, IT immediately looked into the issue. All three of the MyCharleston servers were functioning properly and servicing users. IT discovered that one of the web servers, which houses campus applications, was showing a long login time. As a result, some users were experiencing slow response times when accessing MyCharleston. At 6:06PM, the three web servers were restarted. At 6:23PM, the system administrator reported that all applications were functioning normally. Full recovery was achieved by 6:23pm on May 1, 2014.
Quick Tip: Since the possibility is low that all three of MyCharleston web servers would be experiencing a problem at the same time, users should be instructed by Helpdesk to clear their browser cache and try again or try to connect using a different browser. If a user does not clear the browser cache between login attempts to MyCharleston, the system will repeatedly try to reach the same server. If that server is experiencing issues, the user will not be able to login even though there may be other web servers available that are functioning normally.
Cause: This service disruption occurred during finals week when faculty, staff and students heavily use MyCharleston. A definitive cause is currently unknown; however, IT will proactively monitor the web servers for similar login errors while researching possible causes.
Prevention: IT will proactively monitor the web servers for similar login errors while researching possible causes. In addition, IT will continue to pursue installation of the newer, more stable, version of MyCharleston as expeditiously as possible.