URSA back up to speed after resolving problem

An error in the University Records System Access Web site
network was identified and resolved Friday afternoon, after causing
students problems while enrolling for spring quarter classes last
week.

Some students said they were unable to log on to URSA last week
to enroll in classes and plan their schedules, especially during
peak hours. URSA also loaded more slowly than normal.

A configuration problem in the URSA network connection caused
traffic to slow down because it took much longer for the server to
connect to the network, said Karen Melick, administrative
information systems director of systems and information.

Though the error had been in the system since Feb. 3, the
problem was not apparent until heavy use of the system during the
enrollment process, Melick said.

“It was difficult to solve because no error message was
produced for us, just a system timeout,” Melick said.
“We really try to keep the system stable during the
enrollment period because we know how critical it is.”

Ordinarily, changes are not made to URSA during peak usage times
to prevent such problems from occurring, Melick said.

URSA has been noticeably faster since Friday, said Justin Wong,
first-year sociology student.

“It was really a pain last week because it took me forever
to log on before, and everything was really slow to load,”
Wong said. “This week, everything seems to be back to normal
speed.”

Fourth-year history student Virginia Lewis said though she
experienced difficulty with URSA last week, she logged on Friday
evening and was successfully able to plan her classes.

Melick said students experiencing difficulties with URSA should
report them to the Registrar’s office.

Compiled by Jackie Brosamer, Bruin contributor.