System Design

• World Wide Web software is multi-platform and freely available.

• The combination of HTML forms and CGI scripts is extremely flexible.

• The store-and-forward capabilities of electronic mail allows asynchronous operation of the system.

• Documentation for the system could be easily built in.

• The university is in the early stages of adopting WWW technology in a major way and this project will serve as a good trial of one of the technology's capabilities.

Message Protocol

1. Add User

   This message requests the creation of a new account on the system. If the account already exists on the system it is ignored.The format of the message is AU:Login:Name:Password:Groups where:

   • AU indicates Add User.
   • Login is the login name.
   • Name is the name of the account holder.
   • Password is the initial password for the account.
   • Groups is a comma-separated list of groups which correspond to units that the student is enrolled in. If a group does not exist on a system, it is ignored.

   Note that for Add User messages sent to the modem pool, information about units is dropped and the message modified to AU:Login:Name:Password:Type where:

   • Type is either U (undergraduate), P (postgraduate), or S (staff). The distinction is required because undergraduate students use a modem pool number different to the one used by staff and postgraduate students (postgraduate students are considered equivalent to staff).

   This divergence occurred because of the late addition of the modem pool to the account creation system. The two message formats will eventually be blended into a single message format.

2. Remove User

   This message requests the removal of an existing account from the system. The format of the message is RU:Login where:

   • RU indicates Remove User.
   • Login is the login name.

3. Add Group

   This message requests the addition of an existing account to the specified group. The format of the message is AG:Login:Group where:

   • AG indicates Add Group.
   • Login is the login name.
   • Group is the group name, which corresponds to a unit code.

4. Remove Group

   This message requests the removal of an existing account from the specified group. The format of the message is RG:Login:Group where:

   • RG indicates Remove Group.
   • Login is the login name.
   • Group is the group name, which corresponds to a unit code.

Account Creation Process

1. Student Accounts

   The login account creation process for students occurs as follows:

   1. A student completes and signs a login account application form. This is necessary since the student must agree to abide by the rules of computer use within the university.

   2. The form is then submitted to a campus IT support officer who uses a HTML form to enter the student's ID number, plus select the systems on which the login account is to be created.

   3. The form is submitted to a CGI script which searches a database of students for the ID number. If found, the script returns another HTML form displaying:
      • The student's ID number.
      • Their full name.
      • Their login name and initial password.
      • Units they were enrolled in, and
      • The systems selected for account creation. This has been structured so that every student that applies for an account on any system will automatically be given an account on the modem pool.

   4. If the displayed information corresponds to that on the application form, the IT support officer prints a copy of the form for the student, then submits it to another CGI script which appends an Add User command to account creation files for each system selected for account creation.

   5. At hourly intervals, a script on the HTTP server system emails the contents of each system's account creation file to a nominated email address on the system. A server process on that system then creates the actual account.

2. Staff Accounts

   The account creation process for staff occurs as follows:

   1. A staff member provides a campus IT support officer with their staff ID number, name and their university email alias.

   2. The IT support officer then enters the staff ID and email alias into a HTML form and submits it to a CGI script. If the staff ID is found in the staff database and they are currently employed and the specified email alias exists, another HTML form is returned displaying:
      • The staff ID number.
      • The staff member's name.
      • Their login name.
      • Their initial password.

   3. If the displayed information is correct, the IT support officer submits the form to another CGI script which appends an Add User command to the modem pool account creation file. Details of the staff member's login ID and initial password are automatically e-mailed to their email alias. The form can also be printed for the staff member if required.

   4. At hourly intervals, a script on the HTTP server system emails the contents of the account creation file to the modem pool. A server process on that system then creates the actual account.