Requesting Access: Students that need to utilize Azure VM will need to submit a ticket with ITS requesting access, this request can also be made by the students instructor.  Information needed: Course ID Student ID/Username Application(s) that need to be utilized for the course If a student is submitting the request, ITS will need the confirmation of the students instructor before proceeding. It's important to find out what applications are required to ensure that the student is placed into the correct Azure VM group. Systems will need to be notified, as they will handle granting the students access and moving them to the correct group.  How to submit a ticket with ITS: 1. In a web browser, navigate to the following link: https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/home 2. Select "Submit Ticket" in the top right corner 3. Sign in with your Forsyth Tech credentials and fill out all necessary fields > Submit.

Creating a weblink in your Blackboard course: 1. Navigate to your course in Blackboard & click the plus sign at the top of the left toolbar. 2. In the drop down, select "Web link" 3. In the Web link creation window, ensure that the following is filled out: Name: Azure VM Desktop (The name of the tab that students will click to access the resource) URL: https://client.wvd.microsoft.com/arm/webclient/index.html (The link used to access their Azure Virtual Machine) Check "Available to Users" 4. After clicking "Submit", a link will be generated as a clickable option in the left toolbar (The link often appears towards the bottom of the left toolbar). Click and drag the up/down arrow on the left hand side of the link to move the location of the link in the toolbar - ITS recommends moving the option under "Quick Links" 5. **IMPORTANT** Click the dropdown arrow on the right side of the link and select "Set Link to Open in a New Window". Note: If you do not add this option, the Azure VM will not open. Students will now be able to click that link to access their Azure Virtual Machine after they have been granted access by ITS. Your students will need to sign in using their Forsyth Tech login information. Known issues: If your students receive the following message, please direct them to contact ITS: Students can only have one instance of Azure Virtual Machine open at a time. If they try to open multiple VM's, their VM will freeze up.

How to upload files from your local machine to your virtual machine: Example: You download a file from your Blackboard course, but you don't have the program needed to complete it on your personal computer. Boot up and login to your Azure VM and complete the following: 1. After you are signed into your VM, navigate to the upload button located on the top right corner of your screen 2. After clicking the upload button, a File Explorer window will open. This allows you to select files from your personal computer/Chromebook to upload and edit into the Virtual Machine. Navigate to the folder that your assignment/file is located in, select it and click "Open" 3. After you have uploaded your file to your Azure VM, navigate to the folder labeled "Virtual Drive" on the desktop 4. Select "Uploads" 5. Once in the Uploads folder, you should see the file you uploaded from your personal computer/Chromebook, and can now open/edit the file in Azure VM. Important - Final step: 6. You will need to either click and drag or copy & paste the files from the upload folder to the desktop of the VM before exiting your session, the upload folder is cleared after the VM is closed.

How to download a file from Azure VM to your personal computer/Chromebook: Example: You have completed an assignment for your course in Azure VM, and need to move it over to your personal computer for turn in.  1. In your Azure VM, navigate to the "Virtual Drive" folder located on the desktop. 2. Open the "Downloads" folder 3. Anything you put into the Virtual Drive "Downloads" folder will be downloaded to your personal computer/Chromebook. Right click the file you want to download and select "Copy"  4. In the Virtual Drive Downloads folder, right click in the open space and select "Paste".  5. A prompt will appear in the top right corner asking if you are sure you would like to download this file, select "Confirm" 6. After confirming your download, your personal computer will download the file. You can find it in your personal computers download folder.

How should you save files in Azure VM? Example: You have been working on a project for one of your courses in Azure VM, but you need to save your work for the night and resume tomorrow. Your user profile in Azure VM is persistent - meaning files you save to the desktop of the Virtual Machine will be there the next time you login. However, it is highly recommended that you save your files to your Onedrive or your personal computer before exiting your session. To download your file to your personal device, see the following guide: Download files from Azure VM to your personal computer To upload your files to Onedrive from within Azure VM, use one of the web browsers to navigate to https://onedrive.live.com/about/en-us/signin/ Sign into Onedrive by using your Forsyth Tech login information After signing in, select "Upload" - after selecting upload, you can select "Folder" if you have an entire folder you would like to upload, or "File" for an individual file. Navigate to the location of the file/folder you wish to upload, select the desired file and click "Open" The file will begin uploading to your Onedrive. You can now access that file on any device when signed into your Onedrive. Known issues: The OneDrive desktop application will not function correctly if your session times out. Azure is not able to reopen your profile within the VM if your session times out / expires. You must exit and start a new session if you wish to utilize the OneDrive desktop app, or your persistent Desktop storage in Azure. (This only applies if your session expires and you try to resume where you left off without starting a fresh VM instance)

Course Announcement Template To convey information about Azure VMs please add the following information to your course as an announcement.   Azure VM Environment: The Azure VM Environment provides access to a virtual machine (VM) for student use. These VMs provided by the college are for students whose personal computer is not capable of running the required software for their course, i.e. the software only runs in Windows or the laptop / Chromebook doesn’t have a graphics card that can render a 3D environment.   Requesting Access: Students that need to utilize Azure VM will need to submit a ticket with ITS requesting access, this request can also be made by the student's instructor.    Information needed: Course ID Student ID/Username Application(s) that need to be utilized for the course   If a student is submitting the request, ITS will need the confirmation of the student's instructor before proceeding. It's important to find out what applications are required to ensure that the student is placed into the correct Azure VM group. Systems will need to be notified, as they will handle granting the students access and moving them to the correct group.    How to submit a ticket with ITS: 1. In a web browser, navigate to the following link: https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/home 2. Select "Submit Ticket" in the top right corner 3. Sign in with your Forsyth Tech credentials and fill out all necessary fields > Submit. Reference KB Guide: Request access to Azure VM   KB Guides to get you started: Uploading files to Azure VM Download files from Azure VM to your personal computer Saving files in Azure VM

Common Issues: Sign in issues To sign into Azure VM, you'll need to use your TechID and password (these are the same credentials used to sign into your email, Blackboard, Techlink, etc.) If you receive an error that states invalid username/password, double check your username and password are both correct. If you're on a Chromebook, ensure you're signed into your Chromebook with your Forsyth Tech account. If you're using a personal Chromebook and you don't want to sign in with your Forsyth Tech account, open your Azure VM in a private browsing window. See the following guide if you're unsure how to open a private browsing tab: https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/solutions/articles/10000076076 If you receive the following error(s) when attempting to sign in, please submit a ticket with us at https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/home Azure VM won't load/doesn't prompt login If you have issues with the VM loading (get stuck on black screen, no option to sign in, infinite loading), please ensure that you're using a link within your Blackboard course to access the VM. If there isn't a link to the VM within your course, or if your VM doesn't open in a new tab, please reach out and let ITS know by submitting a ticket at: https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/home If you or your instructor hasn't already reached out to us to request access, you will need to do so before you're able to utilize this resource. Can't find saved files from a previous session If you saved your files to any location other than the desktop, your files will be lost after your session is ended. The desktop of the VM is persistent, meaning anything you save to the desktop will be available to you each time you sign into the VM. ITS recommends saving files to your VM's desktop, as well as your Onedrive before exiting your session. See the following guide for more information: https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/solutions/articles/10000073268 If your session expires / times out and you continue working without starting a fresh session, anything you save to the VM will be lost. Known Issues: You will not be able to access more than one instance of Azure VM at a time. You can only have one active session open at any given time. Azure VM must be set to open in a new tab. This must be set through Blackboard, instructors are able to make this change. If you're unsure how to accomplish this, please contact ITS or see the following guide for assistance (Applies to Faculty & ITS only): https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/solutions/articles/10000073264 When trying to launch a VM, an RDP file is downloaded instead. In your Azure VM dashboard, click the cog wheel in the top right corner and select the highlighted option (Resources Launch Method > Open resources in the browser) shown below:

If you're having trouble figuring out how to access your Azure Virtual Machine, follow the steps below: 1. Login to Blackboard and open the course you'll be utilizing your virtual machine for. 2. Once you're in your Blackboard course, check your courses navigation pane on the left of your screen. You should see a header named "Quick Links", under Quick Links select "Azure VM Desktop". 3. A new tab should open with your virtual machine. You'll need to select "Session Desktop" and then sign in using your TechID and password. See the clip below: If you don't see a link to Azure VM in your course, please reach out to your instructor and let them know.  Experiencing problems? See the following link for a list of common problems and known issues. https://its.forsythtech.edu/support/solutions/articles/10000078049

Creating a weblink in your Blackboard course: 1. Navigate to your course in Blackboard & click the plus sign at the top of the course content area or Add content or 2. After you select the plus sign or Add content, select Create 3. In the Create item screen, select Link 4.  4. In the New Link screen, ensure the following is filled out. Name: Azure VM Desktop (The name of the tab that students will click to access the resource) URL: https://client.wvd.microsoft.com/arm/webclient/index.html (The link used to access their Azure Virtual Machine) Select "Visible to students"  Check Open in a new window 5. After clicking "Submit", a link will be generated as a clickable option in the Course Content area. You can click and drag the the link you created to move its location within the course content area. Students will now be able to click that link to access their Azure Virtual Machine after they have been granted access by ITS. Your students will need to sign in using their Forsyth Tech login information.  Known issues:  If your students receive the following message, please direct them to contact ITS:   Students can only have one instance of Azure Virtual Machine open at a time. If they try to open multiple VM's, their VM will freeze up.