Stanford Instant Messaging
Overview
Instant messaging is a real-time, online communication tool. If one of your IM contacts is logged in, they'll show up in your contact list and you can send a message which will appear on their screen.
Usually a conversation between two individuals, instant messages can also be shared among a group. Instant messages sent during a group chat can be seen simultaneously by all signed-in group members regardless of location: in a conference room, in a campus office, while working at home, or while traveling.
Many of us already use instant messaging services such as AIM, Yahoo! Messenger, or Google Talk to communicate during the day with co-workers, students, colleagues at other universities, and even family members. Stanford Instant Messaging gives you a safe and secure way to conduct Confidential Stanford business online, real-time.
Stanford Instant Messaging
Stanford Instant Messaging (Stanford IM) is a centrally-funded service provided free-of-charge to the Stanford community. Stanford IM runs on a secure Stanford server and network and takes advantage of Kerberos-based authentication and SSL encryption. The service helps University staff to communicate securely about University business with their co-workers. Stanford IM supports these third-party desktop IM clients:
- Adium (Macintosh)
- Pidgin (Windows)
A full-service SUNet ID is required for access to Stanford IM.
Features and benefits
- SUNet ID and password authentication
- SSL encryption
- Secure communication over Stanford networks
- Your user name is your SUNet ID
- Group chat
- Uses Internet standard protocols (XMPP)
Data security restrictions
Classified data
Stanford IM cannot be used to transfer files, and should only be used to discuss data classified as public or confidential, as defined by the Information Security Office. Do not use to discuss or transmit prohibited data such as:
- Social Security numbers
- credit card numbers
- financial account numbers, such as checking or investment account numbers
- driver’s license numbers
- health insurance Policy ID Numbers
We encourage you to use Stanford IM whenever you are conducting University business with other Stanford employees. Always observe data security restrictions, and note that the service is only secure if both parties in the conversation are using the service. See the box below for more information.
Logging of chat sessions
Both Adium and Pidgin have the the capability to log all chat sessions in a file on your computer. If your chat sessions contain non-public data, logging should be turned off or the log file must be encrypted (see the Data Encryption at Stanford web site to learn more). If chat logging is turned on, you should also make sure that a login password is required on your computer.
Alternatively, you can configure your chat client preferences to not log data. See the Windows or Macintosh configuration files to learn how.
How to use
With one of the recommended IM clients installed and configured, you can communicate with others at Stanford without going outside Stanford's network.
Adium and Pidgin are multiprotocol applications which also allow you to incorporate, in one chat window, a variety of other IM services. These include Yahoo! Messenger, Google Talk, MSN Messenger, AIM, ICQ, and Jabber. Some of your co-workers at Stanford may have accounts on both Stanford IM and with one of these services. Remember that chats between Stanford IM and external services are not secure; see the box below for more information.
N.B. Use of Adium or Pidgin to communicate with others using IM clients such as Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, MSN Messenger, AIM, ICQ, and Jabber is not secure; these chats go outside the Stanford network. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are using Stanford's IM service when conducting Stanford business. If you are conducting Stanford business over IM, both parties in the conversation must use Stanford IM for the conversation to be secure. To avoid confusion, you might consider adding a group named Stanford IM for your Stanford contacts.
To confirm that you are chatting with someone on the Stanford Instant Messaging server, hover your pointer over their user name in the chat application window. It should display as their SUNetID@stanford.edu.
Getting started
Adium and Pidgin are free, third-party instant messaging clients. The pages in the list below contain software download links as well as installation and configuration instructions.
- Install and Configure Adium (Macintosh)
- Install and Configure Pidgin (Windows only; we do not support Pidgin for Macintosh)
Once you have installed and configured your IM client, you must specifically invite your co-workers for them to show up on your IM contact list. See the instructions to manage contacts for more information.
When an application at Stanford requires Kerberos authentication (e.g., Stanford IM, Mac OS X Mail, Stanford OpenAFS) you are prompted automatically to log into Kerberos. If you want a convenient way to manage your Kerberos login, install Stanford Desktop Tools. See the ESS web site for more information.
Support
The Stanford IM service is monitored 24x7 for performance and component failures. Systems personnel are alerted to failures and will respond to alerts.
Currently, Adium for Macintosh and Pidgin for Windows are the only clients supported by IT Services for the Stanford IM service. For assistance with these IM clients, or about instant messaging in general, contact the Stanford IT Help Desk at 650-725-4357 (5-HELP) or submit a HelpSU request. Support is available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
iChat, the popular instant messaging program bundled with the Macintosh OS, is not currently supported for Stanford IM. iChat does not strictly follow the instant messaging XMPP protocol and will not work with the Stanford service. We continue to look for a workaround.
Frequently asked questions
Information on a variety of advanced topics may be found in the Frequently Asked Questions.
Rates
The Stanford Instant Messaging service is a centrally-funded service provided free-of-charge to the Stanford community. The supported IM clients are freeware, i.e., they are available for download at no cost.
