University students who experienced difficulty with their Internet connection over the weekend can blame SQL Slammer, a computer worm responsible for worldwide computer failures.
The worm, which originated Friday evening, plagued the computers of Lawn residents and kept ITC's staff on-call.
The Slammer worm, responsible for shutting down many ATM machines and U.S. Federal computers, moved onto the personal computers of some Lawn residents. Head Lawn Resident Jasmine Yoon reported receiving many complaints from her residents having problems with their Internet service.
"We had a mandatory meeting on the Lawn," Yoon said. "Five minutes after the meeting ended, people gathered and talked, because the Internet wasn't working and there was nothing else to do."
ITC Network Systems Engineer Dan Ozdowski attributed the high incidence of infected computers on the Lawn to the area's specific network servicing.
"Students living on the Lawn share a network that also resources a wireless connection for remote laptop connections that has had many problems with the worm," Ozdowski said. "Students living in McCormick or Alderman Road dorms have their own network connection and are not effected by the worm."
SQL Slammer infects a computer server through the information it sends out. According to ITC Help Desk Manager George Payne, the worm sends a small packet of information that can multiply into a large number of packets, affecting computers throughout the network.
Payne compared the worm's operation to a private conversation in a noisy room.
"Just as when you can't hear the person you're talking to because of the noise around you, U.Va students can't get onto the necessary server due to the increased traffic that the worm brings," Payne said.
Ozdowski said a worm is not as hard hitting as a virus, explaining that the Slammer has not caused as much damage as the NIMDA virus that struck the University last March. He however, noted that worms are more difficult to trace than viruses, which can be detected by simple software programs.
ITC has undertaken measures to eliminate the worm from students' computers by locating the infected computer, contacting the student, blocking the worm and momentarily pulling the computer out of the network. ITC provides a program for computer-savvy students to run or the option of allowing the ITC Help Desk to clear out the worm.
"We've had 30 or 35 machines blocked at a time, but only six of those affected were in the dorms," Ozdowski said.
Scott Ruffner, senior systems engineer for the computer science department, advised students with infected computers simply to "grin and bear it." Payne and Ozdowski, however, remained optimistic about ITC's progress on eliminating the worm from student computers.
Though the author of the Slammer remains unknown, Ozdowski said he suspects that the perpetrator has motives similar to the creator of NIMDA.
"This is just somebody who wants to cause trouble," he said.
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