UMA Wifi
Wifi Names
- eduroam is Encrypted Wireless with Federated Authentication available to all who have a Maine Street account. It is best Laptops, Tablets, and Smart Phones.
- MaineEDU-Open is for devices that do not work with eduroam in residence halls (e.g. game consoles)
- MaineEDU-Guest is for guests (for users without a University User ID). It has limited bandwidth and is restricted to specific applications.
Signing In
To register and connect to the wifi, open a web browser at a UMA location. The self-registration page should open. Enter your student email (@maine.edu) and password. If you have problems registering for Eduroam, contact the Helpdesk at 207-621-7400, 800-696-4357, help@maine.edu.
Location
Augusta and Bangor campuses, all of UMA’s Centers, and UMA Housing at Stevens Commons are equipped with state-of-the-art networking services.
Other Wifi Options
Public Wifi (library and businesses)
- Tech Help for ME lists public Maine Wifi locations
- Maine Study from Car Initiative lists public Maine wifi locations from educational institutions
- US:IT Internet Access Resources
- Many businesses also offer free Wi-Fi. Some examples: Public libraries, McDonald’s, Subway, Dunkin Donuts, Starbucks.
Paid and Discounted Wifi
- Lifeline is a wifi discount Federal government program that can help to lower the monthly cost of internet or phone services.
- Find Maine internet providers by city
- Spectrum Internet Assist Program has a wifi discount program
Troubleshooting Tips
- Move your laptop closer to your wireless router.
- Negotiate with other users in the household to share limited access. Limit non-essential activities (such as Netflix streaming or gaming).
- Try connecting directly to the router with an ethernet cable. If you use a Mac, you may need to change your System Preferences to prioritize your wired network
- Where you put your router matters. Try moving your router so that it has a line of sight to your computer. Things between your wifi signal and your computer might be slowing it down. If you can see your router, the signal has a clear connection.
- Make sure your router and modem are not TOO HOT! 🔥When any computer gets too hot it slows down to cool down.
- Reboot your router. It can take up to 10 minutes to reboot.
- If you have the option, connect to a 5GHz band instead of 2.4 GHz.
- Change the WiFi channel if the one you are using is too crowded. Check your router or Access Point manual for instructions.
- Contact your Internet Service Provider (ISP). Make sure that you are receiving the best possible speeds, and there are no issues with your router. They will go through a series of troubleshooting steps with you on the phone.
- Zoom issues solutions:
- Test the audio/video
- Plug the laptop into the wall
- Turn off the Zoom video
- Connect to Zooom audio
Speed Test
Recommended speed for Brightspace and Zoom: 15 Mbps download and 3 Mbps upload bandwidth.
Review Zoom speed requirements.
What is “bandwidth”?
Most modern Internet services are measured in Megabits Per Second (Mbps). A 1 Mbps connection provides speeds of 1 million bits per second or roughly 100 pages of plain text per second.
Typically, broadband services advertise both download and upload speeds. Download speeds refer to the speed at which you can obtain information from the network (such as by downloading a song), and upload speeds describe the speed at which you can send information back out (such as by sending an email with an attachment).
In Maine, the download speeds for residential internet services range from 15-250 Mbps. In practical terms, download speed affects how long it takes for a web page to load or to download pictures, or the quality of streaming video.
For example, Netflix recommends a broadband connection of at least 1.5 Mbps to stream movies on mobile, at least 3 Mbps to stream TV quality video, and at least 5 Mbps for HD quality video. For good gaming speeds, such as for games like Fortnite, 25-100 Mbps is recommended.
Contact the UMA Student Tech Hub for Live Support
Virtual support:
Chat, Phone & Zoom
Monday through Friday
10am-4pm