Role accounts are a special type of DS account, for staff use only. They are non-personal accounts that are used by several people to fulfil a single business function. An example would be the account help@strath.ac.uk used by Information Services Enquiries.
All role accounts have a "sponsor", who must be a member of staff, and is usually the person who requests the account. The sponsor takes responsibility for making sure that the account is used properly.
What services can be used by a role account?
The most common use for role accounts is to provide a role email address. When a role account is created, a corresponding mailbox is automatically created on the University's email system.
Role accounts can also be used on some other services including:
However, they cannot log in to:
Get a new role account created
Please contact Information Services if you are a member of staff and would like a role account. If your application is successful, you will be the named sponsor of the account. This means you will be responsible for making sure that it is used properly.
Please remember that we cannot guarantee to provide the specific email address you request. You should also consider the display name for the account, as this determines how the account will appear to other users.
We have provided further guidelines on how to choose a group email address. You must not publicise an email address and display name until they have been formally allocated and notified by us.
Using a role account
Once your role account and email address are set up, you can share access with other members of staff in your group by:
- Sharing the group username and password provided to you by us, or
- Asking us (or your local IT support) to set up the shared mailbox so that all the relevant members of staff can access it using their own username and password.
You should consult with your local IT support about which approach they would normally recommend.
If you are using option 1 above, then you can change the password at any time. (See also the rules below).
If you are using option 2 above, then you can ask us at any time to add or remove staff who can use the role account.
What are the rules about the legitimate use of role accounts?
The sponsor must retain a list of all individuals who have access to the account. All such individuals must be employees of the University. When anyone leaves or changes roles that had access to a role account, the sponsor must do the following:
- If the person who is leaving or changing roles knows the password on the role account, then the sponsor must change the password, and inform any other staff users who need the new password.
- If the person who is changing roles should no longer have access to the shared mailbox using their own username and password, then the sponsor must contact Information Services or their local IT support. We, or the local IT support, will then remove that person's permissions on the shared mailbox.
Should the sponsor of a role account leave or change role, they should arrange a new sponsor for the account. They should contact Information Services to tell us about this before they leave or change roles. In the event that an account no longer has a sponsor, we will ask the Head of Department to nominate a new sponsor.