Employee Computer Accounts

Computer Account Basics

Employee computer accounts are automatically created by Human Resources when:
a) an appointment has been entered into the Human Resources system and 
b) a request is made for an account by the area contact of the new employee's department.

Account maintenance, such as the disabling of inactive accounts is done through an automated system. A disabled account can be automatically re-enabled by Human Resources when conditions a) and b) above are met.

Username

Your employee computer account and VMS account usernames are identical.

Your username is automatically generated by the computer system. The basic form takes up to the first 8 characters of the user's surname followed by their first initial. In some cases additional initials or a numeric value may be required to differentiate between usernames. Your username is not case sensitive, so Joe Name's username can be entered as namej or NameJ.

If you have had a formal name change, and your new name has been entered by Human Resources into the StarGarden system, you can send a request to the IT Helpdesk (ithelp@viu.ca) to have your username and Email address changed to reflect your new name.

Passwords

The password for both your employee computer account and VMS account is identical. For new employees it is initially set to your Social Insurance Number in the format of Sin######### (i.e. Sin123456789). For security reasons your password should never be left as your SIN. Click here for information on how to change your computer account/VMS password.

For details on the current VIU password expiration and complexity requirements view: VIU Password Standard

Remember your password is case-sensitive but your Username is not.

If you have any reason to suspect someone else may have learned your password, change it immediately. Please see our Password Security webpage for information on creating a strong password.