PLEASE NOTE: The vast majority of users do not need to use the CO Apps VPN. If you have not been asked to use the CO Apps VPN, please disregard these instructions.
Starting 8/11/2022, connections to Chancellor's Office legacy reporting applications will require the use of the CO Apps VPN.
Which applications require use of the CO Apps VPN?
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Academic Calendar Database (ACAL)
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Academic Degrees and Transfer (ADT)
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Academic Planning Database (APDB)
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Cash Management Operations (CMO)
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Employee Salary Projection System (ESP)
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Enrollment Reporting System (ERS)
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Financial Information Record Management System (FIRMS)
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Grievance and Arbitration (GRARB)
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Space and Facilities Planning Database (SFDB)
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University Advancement Database (UADB)
Who has access to these applications?
The Chancellor's Office worked with Chico State IT to identify a list of users who will need access to the CO Apps VPN. Only those users have been given access.
Why is this required?
The Chancellor's Office is addressing a security audit finding. They have indicated that this is a temporary workaround, but we do not know how long it will need to be in place.
First-time setup
All campus-managed computers should have GlobalProtect already installed. Find the GlobalProtect icon in your system tray.
Click to open GlobalProtect, and you should see it is connected to the campus network.
Click to open the Settings menu.
Here is the default appearance of the Settings menu. By default, the Portals box should list only one entry, which is the campus connection ao-vpn.csuchico.edu.
If you do not see a second entry, click Add, then type in coappsvpn.calstate.edu and click Save.
Once both entries are shown in the Portal settings list, click the X to exit the settings menu.
Using the CO Apps VPN
Once you have completed the "First-time setup" instructions above, the GlobalProtect main window should show a dropdown selector:
You can choose which Portal to connect to:
- The Chico State network is ao-vpn.csuchico.edu
- The CO Apps network is coappsvpn.calstate.edu
Unfortunately, GlobalProtect cannot use both of these networks at the same time; it can only connect to one network at a time. It is recommended that you use the Chico State network in general; please switch to the CO Apps network only temporarily when you need to, and then switch back to the Chico State network afterwards.
Troubleshooting - Stale Request
During testing, some users encountered an error message from the login prompt which reads, "Error: You may be seeing this page because you used the Back button while browsing a secure website or application."
This error is usually caused by a caching issue that is causing the GP client to send a stale login request.
If you encounter this error, please try the following steps:
- Close the login window
- Try to log in again, but stop just before entering your username and password
- On the login prompt, right-click to open a menu
- In the right-click menu, find and click the option to Refresh the page
- Finish logging in as you normally would
In addition, some users have reported that clicking on the login button (rather than pressing ENTER) can avoid this problem.
If those steps do not resolve the issue, please open a support ticket. In the ticket, please specify that you are using the "CO Apps VPN", not the campus VPN, otherwise your ticket may not be routed to the correct team(s).
Troubleshooting - Script Error
During testing, some users encountered a popup message titled "Script Error. An Error has occurred in the script on this page." with error detail "Unable to set property 'nodeValue' of undefined or null reference."
This error does not seem to prevent logging in. If the software asks if you would like to continue running scripts on the page, please click Yes.
In addition, some users have reported that clicking on the login button (rather than pressing ENTER) can avoid this problem.