Farmington Hills: (248) 286-1166
As a Safety Net client, your systems are set up to require password changes on a regular schedule. It’s one of many pieces of the security puzzle that’s so important. When you’re working at the office, on the company network, you are prompted to change your password. You follow some basic steps, and you’re all set. However, if you are working remotely, off the company network, the process changes. Here are four quick steps to take to successfully change your password while working remotely.
1. Act promptly
The first major difference you’ll notice is that you won’t see a pop-up prompting you to change your password. Instead, you will receive a notification email 10 days in advance of your required password change deadline. We recommend acting on the notification as soon as you receive the it, so it doesn’t slip through the cracks. If you forget, the server will generate a temporary password and you will have to contact Safety Net to request it. You will not be able to access your computer until you get the temporary password from us. You can avoid that frustration and extra work by changing your password as soon as you receive the notification email.
2. Connect to VPN
Before changing your password, connect to your SonicWall NetExtender VPN client. This will connect you to your company’s secure network and enable your password change to be system-wide and not just on your local PC. If you forget this step, your password will change on your PC but will not change across the system. That will cause you to get an incorrect password error next time you try to login. You’ll also be unable to log in to email and other apps that use your Windows password. To successfully change your password while working remotely, you must first connect to your VPN.
3. Change your password
One you’re connected to your VPN (SonicWall NetExtender), you are ready to change your password. Simply press Control + Alt + Delete, and then click “Change a Password.” You will be prompted to choose a new password. We encourage you to choose one with some complexity, for instance, both capital letters and lower case, symbols such as $,@,& or !, and numbers. You must use several characters; the exact number is dependent upon your company’s policy. The system will prompt you if the password you selected is not long or complex enough. Please do not reuse passwords from one site or application to another – they should ALL be unique and difficult to guess.
4. Test for functionality
Once you have changed the password and saved it, please log out of your computer and log back in using your newly created password to verify it’s working. If you still encounter any issues, please call us at 231-944-1100 or 248-286-1166 and select option 2 to reach a technician for a new ticket.
