UPDATE: If you would like to request support for the 802.1x technologies in the iPhone, submit a suggestion to Apple at http://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone.html.
Information Technology Services (ITS) has confirmed that the new iPhone does not include support for the industry standards required to work on the ‘restricted.utexas.edu’ wireless network at The University of Texas at Austin. All students, faculty, staff, and official visitors are required to use the ‘restricted.utexas.edu’ wireless network on campus.
In order for any device to connect to the ‘restricted.utexas.edu’ wireless network, it must have a piece of software, called a ‘supplicant,’ that supports certain protocols. The iPhone does not support the WPA Enterprise protocol, the industry standard used to support user login on the UT network. Many mobile devices do not support this standard.
iPhone users have two choices for Internet access at UT:
- The AT&T subscription plan allows for data access over the cellular EDGE network, and that coverage is available on campus. This network is very slow in today’s terms, and users may not have the download speeds to enjoy the Web and multimedia capabilities of the iPhone.
- The phones do support regular Wi-Fi, which is available on the ‘utexas’ network. iPhone owners can fill out an exception request on the Public Network site and continue to use the ‘utexas’ wireless network. If they choose to use ‘utexas,’ they will have to log in more often and will not have encryption on the wireless portion of the network.
As we do with all our vendors, ITS continues to work with our representative from Apple to communicate the need for full support of the industry standards in use at UT. ITS is committed to supporting the students, faculty and staff of UT in using the latest technologies and devices on campus.
