DCS Technology Knowledge Base

Tech Help Tickets

Tech Help Tickets

This is where you will go to submit a ticket for almost every technology support issue. There are a variety of help topics in the drop-down menu on the ticket form. Selecting the correct help topic will ensure that your ticket is addressed as quickly as possible. You do not need to know who to contact, all you need to do is select the issue closest to yours in the help topic drop-down list.

This page may be accessed from anywhere you have internet access.

help topics

Checking the Status of a Help Ticket

When you click the Submit button, you will get a page that shows your ticket number.

ticket number

Save this ticket number. You can then log in to check the status of your ticket using the ticket number and your DCS Office365 email address.

To check the status of a ticket, go to Tech Help Tickets and select "Check Ticket Status." Enter your DCS email address and the ticket number, then click View Ticket.

check ticket status

Accounts (General)

The DCS Technology Department maintains accounts for "DCS User / Computer" login as well as "Office365 / Email." These account credentials are used to access a growing variety of sites and services. The passwords for both of these accounts are now synchronized and can be used interchangeably in most cases. Staff may reset this password yourselves.

It is your responsibility to keep your account credentials secret to deter unauthorized access to your accounts. Never provide your password in response to an email request. No one should ever request your password. No one else should ever know it.

How to Keep Your Microsoft Account Safe and Secure

Where can I use my DCS username and password?

Your username is your "@dcsms.org" email address. You will use this username for all of these sites and services." (Microsoft Single Sign On)

System Name Faculty Students
Computer log-in Email address & password Email address & password
Office 365 Email address & password Email address & password
Schoology Email address & password Email address & password
DCS_RADIUS Wi-Fi * Username & password Faculty Only
Linewize web filter * Username & password Username & password
MyVRSpot Email address & password Email address & password
SchoolinSites Email address & password Faculty only
Adobe Creative Cloud Email address & password Email address & password
* For DCS_RADIUS and Linewize login just use your simple Username; the part of your email address before the @.

If you have set up Multi-Factor Authentication on your Office365 account you can reset your password by going to Office 365 Login, entering your email address, and clicking "Forgot my password." Follow the instructions to reset the password"

For other accounts' passwords please submit a ticket, select "Username / Passord Issues" as the "Help Topic," and select the apprrpriate "Account Type."

To change or reset your password:

If you can log in to your email:

Go to email and login with your computer password. Then go to your picture in the upper, right-hand corner, click it and go to "View Account."

From the Account overview, click "Change Password" on the Password tile. You can now change the password for Office 365, which will change your login for all of the above services.

security info

If you cannot log in to your email:

Click the "Forgot my password" link on the login page after entering your email address. Then follow the recovery steps as you would for any online account.

reset password Office365

For assistance with login issues for either of these accounts (and their related sites and services above), if you have already reset your password, please submit a Help Ticket. Select "Username / Password Issues" from the "Help Topic" drop-down list and ensure that you select the appropriate "Account Type" from the "Account Type" drop-down list.

What to do if you get a new phone and / or a different phone number.

Logging in to your Office 365 account requires (MFA) Multi-Factor Authentication if you are not on our network.
This security feature is in place to protect your Office 365 account from unauthorized access. Therefore, it may be easiest to edit these settings from a device connected to your school network.

Adding or Removing an authentication device from your account:

On the Security Info overview page you will see the devices listed for the "Default sign-in method" for your account. Here is where you change authentication devices and phone number when you get a new phone or change your phone number.

From the Account overview, click Security Info.

o365 security info

If you have a new phone, but the phone number has not changed:

If you have a new phone and a new phone number:

If you need further assistance, submit a help ticket. Select "Office365 / MFA Training" from the "Help Topic" drop-down menu and provide the requested information.

DCS User Accounts (Computer login and more...)

All staff, teachers, teacher assistants, and k-12th grade students have a DCS User / computer account.

Once you have initially logged in to your account and set your own password, you may then use that password you set to log in to your teacher website, MYVRSpot, DCS_RADIUS wi-fi at campuses, and other services.

You may use this account to log into any computer in the county. When you do so you will have access to your personal OneDrive (Windows only) as well as any resources deployed to you at your campus (shared folder, printers, etc.).

Everyone should log into computers as themselves for security and proper access to resources. You should not let anyone else know your password for this account as you are responsible for anything done logged in under this account. This is especially important now that your DCS User / Computer account and Office365 / Email account share a password.

This account is more than just access to school computers and the number of things for which it is used continues to grow.

Click here to see what you can access.

Resetting your password
Click here for more information on resetting your DCS User Account password.

If you have issues using this login and have already reset your password, please submit a ticket. Select "Username / Password Issues" from the Help Topic dropdown list and "Computer" as the account type.

More information on Help Tickets

Office 365 / Email

All staff, teachers, teacher assistants, and k-12th grade students have an Office 365 account.

DeSoto County Schools provides you with an Office 365 account. In addition to Outlook for email, your Office 365 account includes OneDrive, Office Web Apps, Calendar, OneNote, Teams, and several other useful applications.

You must use your full email address (including the @dcsms.org) to log in to Office365 applications including Outlook (email) and Teams. If you have never logged in to Office365, or you have received a password reset, you must first login to Office365 in a web browser and set your own password. Only then can you use your newly set password to access your email in a mail client such as Outlook on a mobile device app.

Resetting your password
Click here for more information on resetting your DCS User Account password.

Safari, Internet Explorer, and Edge are not suitable for accessing Office365 (including Teams), nor indeed many modern websites at all.

safari web browser internet explorer web browser edge web browser

Chrome and Firefox should both work fine. Chrome is recommended. The new Chromium Edge browser will work similarly to Chrome.

chrome web browser firefox web browser Chromium Edge web browser


Just want to get to the settings page? Office 365 Security Settings page.


Your Office 365 account uses modern, multi-factor authentication and requires a device to be set up to authorize login requests.

MFA is not enabled for student accounts at this time.

Microsoft is in the process of deprecating SMS notifications for Office 365 authentication. The current, recommended solution is to use the Microsoft Authenticator App on your mobile phone.

If you have a brand new account, you will be prompted to set up Multi-Factor Authentication on your initial login. For existing accounts, you can get to the settings to set up Authtenticator by following the below steps:

These are also the options you will have for recovering your account. We recommend you check at least two (2) different methods: i.e alternate email and phone number

Click here for more information on resetting your DCS User Account password.

You must use the Microsoft Outlook app for Android or iOS to get emails on your phone or tablet. The built-in mail apps in Android and iOS are no longer supported.


Download Microsoft Authenticator App
Download Instructions for Authenticator
Download Microsoft Outlook App

Once you have followed the steps above:

  1. Add your school account to the Outlook App for iOS, or Android.
  2. How do I save my Outlook contacts to the default Contacts app?



Microsoft Authenticator App

Setting up the Microsoft Authenticator app or changing the phone number for authorization

This is the process for initial setup and if you change phones, but keep the same number

From your phone:

Open the Microsoft Authenticator app on your device.

Go to the menu and select "+ Add Account"

Select Work or school account

From a web browser on a computer:

Log in to your Office 365 account

Click on your name in the upper, right-hand corner, then select "My Account."

On the next page, under Security & Privacy, select "Manage Security & Privacy."

On the next page, select Additional Security verification, then Update your phone numbers used for account security.

Be sure to select "Notify me through app" from the dropdown at the top under "What's your preferred option?"

Click "Set up authenticator app" to get the QR code

You may delete the old instance of the authenticated phone from here.

Scan the QR code on the screen using the authenticator app on your phone.

Don't forget to save!!!

If you get a different phone number

You will probably no longer be able to access the authorization request sent to your old phone number.

Submit a ticket

Select "Username / Password Issues" from the Help Topic Dropdown.

Mention that your phone number has changed and include the new phone number. Your administrator will change the phone number associated with the account.

Student Accounts

All kindergarten through 12th grade students have both a DCS User account (for computer access, wifi login, permissions grouping, and more) and an Office 365 Account for email, One Drive, Teams access, etc. The student accounts are very similar to the faculty accounts for familiarity and interoperability.

Student usernames follow the format 'js234567@dcsms.org' - 2 letters and 6 numbers. The 2 letters are the initials of their first and last names and the 6 numbers are the last six digits of their lunch number for a total of 8 characters.

Example: If Amy King's lunch number is 1234567, her computer/wifi username is ak234567, and her email address is ak234567@dcsms.org

Student passwords are the school mascot plus their 6-digit birthdate in the format MMDDYY.

Example: Tigers030406

You must use your full email address (including the @dcsms.org) to log in to online applications including Schoology, Outlook (email), and most others.

Self-Service password reset is not enabled for students at this time. If you need assistance, please submit a help ticket. Select "Username / Password Issues" from the Help Topic drop-down list and "Email/Office365" as the Account Type.

More information on Help Tickets

Resetting your password

Self-Service password reset is not enabled for students at this time.

Click here for more information on resetting your DCS User Account password.

The first time you log in (and every time thereafter until you complete the recovery configuration) you will be prompted to set a recovery cell phone number and / or alternate email address. You cannot reset the password yourself until this is done. This does not apply to student accounts at this time.

Login Issues

School Computer Login

If a user has issues logging in to a school-managed, Windows computer, the error message on the screen reveals the reason for the failure. There are several different messages and each has a different cause.

When users have issues logging in to a device they should submit a Help Ticket. Include the exact message with the Help Ticket to help the support team most quickly address your need. You may include a photo of the error message. Do not paste it in the text box, select the image icon and upload it.

ticket upload icon

Please refer to the chart below to assist you in selecting the appropriate Help Topic for your Help Ticket.

Login MessageHelp Topic
The username or password is incorrect.Username / Password Issues

Select Email / Office 365 as the account type.

The security database on the server does not have a computer account for this workstation trust relationship.Computer power / operational Issues
The trust relationship between this workstation and the primary domain failed.Computer power / operational Issues
We can't sign you in with this credential because your domain isn't available. Make sure your device is connected to your organization's network and try again ....Try simply connectng to DCS_RADIUS. If you are unable to connect, select Computer power / operational Issues
Your account has been disabled. Please see your system administrator.Computer power / operational Issues

OneDrive and File Storage

Click here for an overview of One Drive features and usage.

Using One Drive

Your computer should not be considered a safe place to store documents and data. In the event of catastrophic hard drive failure, infection from a variety of malicious software (viruses, spyware, ransomware, etc.), or a number of other possible issues, any data on the computer may be lost.

You've been provided one terabyte of cloud storage in the form of OneDrive with your Office 365 / email account. This is the appropriate place to save and access any important documents and data you may need.

This is Secure Storage for your own personal information and by default anyting saved there is accessible only by you. You may control the permissions and sharing settings on individual files and folders to allow others to access, view only, or edit items stored in your OneDrive.

Known Folder Sync for the following folders is enabled for you:

Saving files in any of these three locations automatically syncs them to your One Drive, so they are backed up for you. Saving to any other folders (Downloads, Music, Videos, etc.) will not automatically back up.

Backing Up Files from your Mac to One Drive

One Drive Tips

Rather than attaching copies of files to emails, you may send links to share documents in your OneDrive allowing multiple people access to view and or edit the same document. This has the benefit of allowing you one location to make changes to said document which would then be accessible by everyone with whom you have shared the link. Additionally, this is a way to share files which are too large to be attached to an email.

For more information on using OneDrive Microsoft has a selection of very short and concise videos: One Drive Training

Teacher Websites

New Teachers and Certified Staff click here to get started.

To get to your teacher website, go to your school's webpage and click "Login" in the upper, right-hand corner.

schoolinsiteslogo

You log in to your DCS SCHOOLinSITES teacher page with your DCS Email Address.

Find your Webmaster

Teacher Website Tutorials

Teacher Website How-to Videos

Wi-Fi Access

Connecting to Wi-Fi

From a device assigned to you and managed by DeSoto County Schools
You should not need to do anything to connect to Wi-Fi from your assigned DCS device. The Wi-Fi authentication should be deployed to your device through our management system.

If this is not the case, your device may not be communicating properly with the management system.

If you have just received the device, restart the computer and log in with your DCS User account. Allow a half hour or so for the policies to synchronize and for everything to update. Then restart the computer and log in once more.

From a device you own that is not managed by DeSoto County Schools

To login to the Wifi from a personal or unmanaged wireless device (anything that doesn't automatically connect):

Select the DCS_Radius network.

Login using the username and password for your DCS User Account (computer login). This is the short form of your DCS User account name, which is your email address without the "@dcsms.org."

There is no simple passphrase for wifi access. You must use a username and password.

This is one reason personal printers cannot be connected to our wifi.

If you have trouble logging in to wifi, "forget" the connection in your wifi settings, then login.

Linewize Internet Filter Authentication

To check your authentication status in the Linewize Internet Filter, go to my.linewize.net.

If you get a School Manager page with your name in the upper, left-hand corner, you are logged in and should be filtered properly.

If you see this:

Linewize not authenticated

click the link that says "here" and enter the short form of your DCS User account name, which is your email address without the "@dcsms.org."

Once you are authenticated, you should see your name on the School Manager page.


What to do if you still have issues

If, after the above steps, you are still unable to connect to Wi-Fi from your assigned device, please submit a Help Ticket so that your school Tech can assess the issue.

To submit a Help Ticket, go to Help Tickets, fill in the required information, and select "Internet / Network Problems" from the Help Topic drop-down selector. Complete the ticket by providing the required information.

In the ticket details box please add informtion from the right column of the block page including at least:

  • The website address
and ideally the
  • Username
  • Policy Name
  • any other data listed
Or just attach a screenshot of the block page.


Network settings for Android and Chromebook

SSID: DCS_RADIUS
Security: 802.1x EAP
EAP Method: PEAP
Phase 2 Authentication: MSCHAPV2 (may be under Advanced)
CA Certificate: Don't Validate or Do Not Check
Identity: your.username
Anonymouse Identity: Ignore / leave blank
Password: your account password
Domain: dcsms.org

IMPORTANT

For Android versions 11 and higher: You cannot select CA Certificate: Don't Validate or Do Not Check (It will say "CA Certificate must be selected."). You must download the DCS_Radius Certificate below, install it, and select that certificate under this CA Certificate section.


Download

This certificate should not be needed on a school-asigned device. The certificate is made available here for instances in which it is needed on a personal device.


Installing the DCS_Radius Certificate (Android 11 and higher, Amazon Fire, etc.)

Password Complexity Requirements

There are minimum requirements for password complexity which must be met when creating passwords. These are requirements for most systems, including DCS User Account (computer login) and Office365 (email). They are as follows:

  1. Minimum of 8 characters
  2. Must have 3 of the 4:
    Uppercase letters
    Lowercase letters
    Numerals
    Symbols
    WITHIN THE FIRST 8 CHARACTERS

    For example, Password1 will not work, because the numeral is the ninth character.

  3. Cannot contain part of your Name, username, birthdate, or school mascot
  4. Cannot be any of your previous 3 passwords

Printers

DeSoto County Schools provides printers and copiers through an exclusive contract with Logista. The provided printers and copiers are owned by Logista and they are responsible for the maintenance of these devices. If you have issues with the copiers or printers, please use the phone number or email address on the Logista label on the printer to submit a work order to have a Logista technician sent out.

How to set your default printer

Most printers are assigned to users and specific computers by your administrator. You should have access to the printers assigned to you when you log in to any DCS PC at any campus.

Follow the steps below on Windows 10 computers.

  1. Click the start button - bottom left on the desktop

    start menu screenshot
  2. Type "Printer"

  3. Locate and open "Printers and Scanners"

    printer and scanners screenshot
  4. Scroll to the bottom of page:

  5. Uncheck "Let Windows Manage my default printer"

    check box screenshot
  6. Scroll up and under "Printer and Scanners" click on the printer you'd like make the default. After locating the printer you'd like to make default, click on Manage.

    manage printer screenshot
  7. Choose "Set as Default"

    set default printer screenshot
  8. The selected printer should now show up as the default choice in print dialogs. (Note: some applications allow for overriding this choice.)

Managing / Releasing Print Jobs

Printing has long been one of our highest expenditures. We have systems in place to help mitigate those expenses and be as efficient as possible with supplies.

One such system is the print management currently implemented through Print Audit. Print jobs from your PC are sent to a print server and queued for printing on your available devices. The job is not printed until you go to the copier and release it using your PIN (Your PIN is the same as your Kronos ID you use at the time clock).

Once you send your print job to a copier, you may release the print job on any copier. It does not have to be the machine to which you sent it. If there are 3 copiers in a workroom and you send a print job to copier #1, you may release it on copier #1, #2, or #3. In fact, it does not have to be a copier in that room. Any copier on our network can be used to releasae a print job sent to any other copier. If you have a copier installed for your school, but are at a different school, you can send the print job to the one you have installed and release it from the copier at your current location.

These features are not available from Mac OS X.

There are various benefits to this system including:

  • Secure printing - Your print job does not print until you are there to retrieve it. Printed documents do not sit in the output and cannot be viewed or moved by anyone else.
  • Reduced waste - Documents are not printed until you are physically there to retrieve them. No more stacks of hundreds of sheets of printouts sitting on the device which will never be picked up.
  • Consolidated printing - If you need to print multiple different documents you can do so from your computer and then relese them all at once. Additionally, if you decide you do not need one or more of those print jobs, you can simply elect to not release it. This can save paper and the unreleased print job will simply be removed from memory afer a few days.
  • Redundant options - Let's say you have 3 copiers in a workroom and you print your job to copier #1. You get to the workroom and see that copier #1 is not working. No problem. You can then elect to release the print job from any other copier in that room.
  • Accountability - These printing and duplication devices are provided for you to help you get your job done. Nonetheless, there may be times these resources are abused. Administrators can review unusual usage patterns and address issues with specific users. This helps to prevent blanket restrictions on everyone due to the actions of one or a few.

Personal Printers

Printers not provided by DeSoto County Schools through Logista are not officially supported. The printing system provided through Logista allows us to save money on printing costs, materials, supplies, and maintenance time. One way this is achieved is in time saved by computer techs not having to troubleshoot a wide variety of consumer-grade printers. These home / consumer-grade printers often have no serviceable parts anyway. Your computer tech may install the printer drivers for you at their convenience. Other issues which computer techs must address will take precidence over personal printer installation.

Personal printers may not be connected to our network. They must be connected to your computer via USB. Not all printers come with a USB cable, so you may need to purchase a cable in order to use the device.

How To Use Finishing Options on a Kyocera TASKalfa Copier

  1. Open a multi-page document
  2. Click File > Print
  3. In the Printer Name drop down, select a copier with finishing capabilities
  4. Click properties
  5. Click the Finishing tab
  6. Check Staple or 3 Hole Punch
  7. Click OK
  8. Click Print

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why can't I login to my account (Office365, Email, Schoology, etc.)

A: The most likely answer is that you are not using your complete email address as your user name. If this is not the case, please submit a Tech Help Ticket. Select Username / Password Issues as the Help Topic and select the appropriate Account Type ("Email/Office365").


Q: What if I can log into my email, but cannot log in to Schoology?

A: Please submit a Tech Help Ticket. Select "Schoology Help Needed" as the Help Topic and complete the form.


Q: What if I cannot log into my email and I am using my full email address?

A: Try clicking the "Forgot my password" link beneath the password field. Otherwise, please submit a Tech Help Ticket. Select "Username / Password Issues" as the Help Topic. Select "Email/Office365" as the Account Type, then complete the form.


Q: Why can I not connect to the school WI-Fi on my personal device?

A: See here for connecting to DCS_RADIUS.

Connecting to the wi-fi is only one step in accessing content. To have proper access you will also need to authenticate with the Linewize web filter.

Go to my.linewize.net and sign in with your credentials to get proper access.

Please check here for settings for specific devices, instructions on installing the certificate, and other Wi-Fi related information. For Android and Chromebook devices pay special attention to the "EAP Method," "Phase 2 Authentication," and "CA Certificate" settings.


Q: What's the deal with Chrome Extensions?

A: Chrome Extensions are applications that run within the Google Chrome web browser. They are a favorite target of hackers since they are somewhat "hidden" within Chrome. Additionally, each extension runs as its own process "sandboxed" in Chrome. This is very resource intensive as each extension is another application constantly running in the background.

We deploy the "Paper" extension to each computer in the district. The following extensions are available for each user to install on their own machine, if needed. Each extension you install will take up useful memory on your computer, so only install what you need.