Managed Device Service
The managed service provides managed laptop computers to staff in a secure, systematically managed, and supported environment.
This service is available to all staff that have been migrated to the ITS centrally managed service. This includes all of Professional Services and a number of Academic schools. Please see the Device choices by staff group for more information.
The service is based on providing users a choice of device from the standard IT services offering. These devices are procured via purchase agreements with suppliers for Dell and Apple, and work on a centrally managed service. Schools and Institutes are asked to give sufficient notice to ensure on-time delivery. We ask that you allow 5 working days for ordering, building and installation of standard managed devices.
*Funding: Devices for PhD students and pooled/loan devices (e.g. laptops) in a School/Institute office are funded by the School or Institute.
What is a Managed Device?
A Managed device is a Queen Mary-owned laptop, desktop or Mac which runs on the Centrally Managed Service. Staff can work on these devices, in a secure, systematically managed, and supported environment. This helps keep Queen Mary’s network secure, protecting staff and student’s data. This includes:
- A centrally managed application distribution system that provides a core application set and other commonly used applications at current versions.
- Many business applications are made available through this service.
- Patching and security updates are automated.
- Centrally managed file services and computers mean you can use any managed computer, not just the one at your desk and have your files available to you.
- Remote working is available with the managed staff service. More information can be found on the Working from home page.
|
Features |
Standard Managed Service |
Managed Research Desktop Service (MRDS) |
| Eligibility1 | QMUL default service | Assessment required |
| Administrative rights | N | N (Only within a Virtual Desktop) |
| Business critical systems e.g. Finance - Agresso, HR Resource Link, SISTs client | Y | N (Only web versions if available) |
| Access to storageOneDrive and SharePoint | Y | Y (Research Data Store) |
| Authentication | Y | Y |
| VPN | Y | Y |
| Application/Software Request, test, deployments and updates | Y 20-day SLA | Only if available on the standard managed service |
| Security patches and updates | Y | Y |
| Maintenance and audit | Y | Y |
| Device refresh Rota (4 years) | Y | Y |
1 Please note, the standard Managed Service is still the default image/service for a device request. Should the standard Managed Service not meet your requirements/fulfil your needs, you will need a business case to justify reason(s) with approval from your line manager and/or FDO for assessment from ITS research. Please find the template in the Exceptions section below.
What is the Managed Research Desktop Service (mRDS)?
Predominantly aimed at research staff and students, mRDS provides an additional secure Virtual Machine for users to download and experiment with software as they please. The device still runs on a centrally managed service, but users can open a Virtual Machine also known as, Play Area/Dev Environment/ Sand Pit, to carry out their research requirements, whilst not compromising the security of the wider QM network.
mRDS inherits all the security and management features of the standard managed service including access to the wide and rich list of packaged applications/software.
A Virtual Machine is integrated as part of the mRDS build and this is the secure safe space/environment where users will have full administrative rights to carry out their testing, development, research, and teaching work.
To ensure we mitigate any risk to QM’s managed network where our core/critical business systems reside, mRDS sits on a new, completely separate and segregated security network.
Specifications & Features:
|
# |
MRDS Features |
Windows |
Linux |
Mac |
|
1 |
Laptop devices spec |
Option D from the service catalogue 14” Screen Enhanced Graphics 12th Gen. Intel® Core™ i7 Nvidia GeForce MX550 Discrete Graphics w/Thunderbolt 16 GB Memory 1 TB Hard Drive |
MacBook Pro 13-inch |
|
|
2 |
Admin rights |
No |
No |
No |
|
3 |
Managed network (SD25) |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
4 |
MS Office 365 license |
A5 |
A5 |
A5 |
|
5 |
Desktop Virtual Machine (VM) |
Oracle Enterprise Desktop VirtualBox |
Desktop Parallels Business |
|
|
a) Admin rights |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
|
b) GPU Passthrough |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
|
|
|
c) Other |
Spin up Windows and Linux VM |
Spin up Windows and Linux VM |
AppleID not available in VM |
|
6 |
Application and Software Requests
List from standard managed service list here |
No 800+ for Windows As per School/Institute standard managed collection |
No |
No |
|
7 |
ISO27001 Compliant |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
8 |
Wired Service |
Upon Request mRDS Auditing end user connections Checklist Template.docx |
Upon Request mRDS Auditing end user connections Checklist Template.docx |
Upon Request |
OS & Devices Offered
Windows
Laptops and Desktops
Mac
MacBook, iMac and iPad
*iPhones Excluded
Linux
Laptop and Desktop
Software
Software provided on the Staff Managed Device Service falls into two categories, standard software which is installed on workstations by default, and optional software. Optional software includes specialised applications and applications which are not used by most people. Licenses may need to be purchased for some items.
Standard Software
- Windows
- Microsoft Word (Office 365)
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Microsoft Publisher
- Microsoft Access
- Microsoft OneNote
- Microsoft Outlook
- Microsoft Teams
- Microsoft Edge
- Mozilla FireFox
- Google Chrome
- Adobe Acrobat PDF Reader
- 7-Zip
- QMFonts
- FileOpen Client
- Antivirus/malware
Mac OS Software
- MS Office, including Teams, Outlook, Powerpoint, OneNote, Excel, & Word
- Horizon
- Firefox
- Chrome
- RDS client
- SPSS 27
- Endnote
- Emacs
- Mitel Micollab client
- Adobe apps - individual licenses must be acquired from Business Support
Linux Software
- Standard Linux environment
- Open Office (LibraOffice)
- Horizon
- Firefox
- Chrome
- RDS client
- Emacs
- Teams
- Magma
- Maple
- Mathematica
- Matlab
- MiKTeX
- Python - Anaconda 3.8
- SageMath
- Scilab
Examples of software available on request
- Microsoft Visio
- Microsoft Project
- Microsoft Office Mix plugin for PowerPoint
- Stats packages: SPSS, Stata, Genstat
- Putty SSH client
- Oracle client
- Adobe CC products (Audition, Encore, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Dreamweaver etc.)
- Adobe Acrobat Professional
- EndNote
- DDS software including Zoomtext and Jaws
- Claro Read (assistive software for reading and writing)
- Maths software including Matlab, Mathematica & Maple
- SAS
- Esri ArcGIS
- Dragon Naturally Speaking
How to Request Additional Software
Requests for additional software applications can be done via our IT Service Desk self service portal or by emailing servicedesk@qmul.ac.uk. Please allow a minimum of 15* working days to perform software evaluation and installation. Requested software must be tested by the person requesting the software or somebody with the appropriate skills to carry out the required tests at least 5 working days before the intended use.
Software request should include the following:
- Software Title
- Business requirements for the application (What is its purpose)
- Software installation media or web link that the software can be downloaded from
- Software licensing information (what are the terms? is there a license file? or key?)
- The number of users of the application, as well as a nominated person(s) for pilot/User Acceptance Testing (UAT)
- Make, model and service tag of the computer to be used for UAT
- Any specific custom configurations required for the application (e.g to use special hardware)
- If similar alternative software of the same type is already available via the managed service, justification for your new app will need to include reasons that the current alternative does not meet your requirements.
Please note, IT Services are obliged to evaluate the software to ensure that it doesn't violate any of our security policies.
Replacing your device
Where a device is either no longer fit for purpose, or beyond economical repair, IT Services will replace on a like-for-like* basis. Where a user then requests an upgrade/higher specification (e.g. additional RAM to run memory intensive applications, screen quality, accessibility) from the standard IT Services’ offering**, this must first be approved by the School/Institute Manager and funded from the School/Institute budget.
*Desktop PC; laptop; Mac device
**The standard support and desktop provision from IT Services is for one device per user.
Should there be a need for a device to be used both in the office and at home/other locations we promote the laptop, docking station and monitor solution in the office. Please refer to the service catalogue to view the standard range of models available. Note: if the user has access to the central File Store, the QMUL policy is that documents and files should be stored centrally, not on the device hard drive for security reasons – this therefore should not necessitate the need for higher capacity storage.
Before ordering, please ensure the user familiarises themselves with the Health and Safety Display Screen Equipment (DSE) guidance.
IT Services will provide the current standard device unless a specific request is made for a higher specification Dell, Dell laptop or current standard Mac device. This will be classed as a non-recommended device.
Should a non-standard device be required, you will need a business case to justify reason(s) with approval for any additional cost from the School/Institute Manager and funded from the School/Institute budget. The lead time for non-standard devices is 90 working days.
IT Services may re-issue the computing device from the previous incumbent, after resetting the device, removing data from the previous user and updating the records, or provide a like for like or better replacement device from stock.
Device Collection or Courier
Should the end-user want to collect, or arrange for a courier to collect, the device for home use, then Campus Support are available between 9am and 5pm in G.15 in Francis Bancroft, Mile End Campus.
We request that they arrange a date/time through the ITS Service Desk.
Note that we are unable to offer packaging services – this needs to be organised by the person requesting the service or via the courier company.
Availability
Hours of Service: 24/7/365
Supported Monday to Friday 7am–7pm (with limited out-of-hours support available on Bank Holidays and University closure days).
Support
Contact the IT Service Desk
Call: +44 (0)20 7882 8888
Email: servicedesk@qmul.ac.uk
Self-service: IT Service Desk
Exceptions
Should the standard Managed Service not meet your requirements/fulfil your needs, a business case to justify reason(s) should be submitted via the IT Service Desk to be approved by relevant teams.