A firewall is a way to protect a computer network. It works by stopping all unauthorized communication between your computer and other computers on the internet.

Programs on the internet communicate with each other by first connecting to a computer (using its IP number), then communicating with a numbered "port" on that computer. For example, normally web sites are on port number "80". Firewalls can restrict access to these ports. Access can be disabled completely, or restricted only to certain trusted computers, only to certain times of the day, etc.

WebCT at EIU uses several different ports for tools like chat and the whiteboard. Your firewall (either a personal one installed on your computer, or one installed by your institution) may not allow communications on those ports. If that happens, you won't be able to use WebCT, or the WebCT tool assigned to that port.

The following are the port numbers which must be enabled for WebCT to work at EIU. If you use a personal firewall application, please open these ports so that your web browser can communicate on these port numbers. If you don't have a personal firewall but are still having problems, contact your local Internet Services Provider to ensure that they have enabled these ports on their institutional firewall.

Last modified: Mon 10/09/2006 11:23:33 am