NoMAD, which stands for No More Active Directory, comes in two parts: NoMAD and NoMAD Login. NoMAD connects your Mac to the Active Directory domain server without the need of binding it. Binding the computer to the domain can cause a lot of complications with passwords and Keychain passwords, as they do not sync at the same time. NoMAD, however, does update and sync with Keychain. This means that when you change your NCU password, NoMAD will detect that, and update the Keychain Login password accordingly.
NoMAD Login provides us with the fancy login screen as well as giving you the ability to login to your domain account from your Mac.
NoMAD and NoMAD Login
When you start up your computer, you will be greeted with this new login window.
The function of this window is the same as any standard login window, simply enter your NCU username (addevall) and password to access your Mac computer. If you have never signed into the PC before, you will need to be connected to a hardwired connection in order to have your account downloaded onto the Mac. If you have signed into your account before, you will be able to access your account and computer without any problems.
Once you are signed in, NoMAD should launch automatically. You will be greeted with one of two windows: The information window or the sign-in window. NoMAD will attempt to carry your NCU credentials over and sign-in on it’s own. If it is unable to do so, for whatever reason, you should be prompted with a sign-in window:
Simply sign in using your NCU username and password to sync your computer with Active Directory.
Once you have successfully been signed in, you will be presented with an informative window:
This is simply just giving you brief information about NoMAD, what it does and where to find it. Click the “Don’t show this window again” checkbox at the bottom-left if you don’t want to see this alert anymore. Otherwise, it will open every time you sign into your machine.
The NoMAD application will continue to run in the background of your machine from this point forward. It can be found in the bar across the top of the screen. You can locate it by looking for the triangle icon. If the triangle has a checkmark, that means you successfully syncing with Active Directory. It will also show you how long until your password expires (739d means 739 days).
NOTE: Active Directory is only accessible via Northcentral network. If you take your laptop home, or leave the NCU campus, NoMAD will show as Not Connected. Do not fret, this will not hinder anything. NoMAD will re-checkin as soon as you return to campus and continue as normal.
Ease of Use
The best part about NoMAD is that you do not need to touch anything once you have signed in. It all runs in the background and continuously syncs on its own. NoMAD also comes pre-built with a lot of Quality of Life changes that can assist you with managing your NCU Account. If you click the triangle icon, it will bring a drop down menu with more options that will help smooth your utilization of a Mac machine. I have detailed each option below:
Renew Tickets: This will force NoMAD to check in with the system to ensure that your account is still active and your password is still valid. It will not display any notification if this button is clicked. As long as the green checkmark remains, you are good to go. If you are on campus, and the checkmark disappears, one of two things probably happened. 1: You lost internet connection. Or 2: Your account got locked out. Feel free to contact the IT Department if you lose the Green, happy checkmark, and we can assist you.
Change Password: This will open your default web browser to https://passwordchange.northcentral.edu, which will allow you to force change your password within our system. This can be completed while on campus or at home. More detailed information on the best practices of changing your password will be detailed below.
Contact IT: This is a quick and easy button that will take you directly to the IT Service Site where you can browse Knowledge Base articles, view your tickets, or submit a new one. As always, we are also available by phone at 612.343.4170.
About: This will bring up that informative window regarding NoMAD.
The Preferences window is where the settings are located that tell NoMAD how to connect to Active Directory. Changing these settings may cause your Mac to not function properly, so IT has chosen to disable this option.
Changing Your Password
Previously, after a Mac user had updated their password, they would then need to go through keychain and update their password for every system individually. Now, we can do that all in one go. It is easier than ever to change your password. Simply click the Change Password button located within the NoMAD window, and follow the on-screen instructions.
- Enter your NCU email address.
- Enter your Current NCU password
- Enter a new password
- Verify the new password
- Click submit.
Remember Your password must follow the policies listed below:
- Contain at least 1 Uppercase Letter
- Contain at least 1 Lowercase letter
- Contain at least 1 Number OR symbol
- Be at least 12 characters in length
- Cannot have your name as part of the password
- Cannot re-use any old password.
These requirements are in place to ensure that you are using a strong password to protect any sensitive data that may be housed within your NCU account. If you are experiencing issues changing your password, please do not hesitate to contact the IT Department, and we will be more than happy to assist you.
Once you have changed your Password, it is highly recommended that you force NoMAD to check-in by selecting the Renew Tickets button within the NoMAD Menu. This will prompt NoMAD to re-check in with Active Directory to ensure that the password is the same as it’s always been (which it is not).
Once NoMAD has checked in, it will recognize that the password has been changed, and will then prompt you with a notification recommending that you re-sign in, so that it can update your Keychain password. Click the Sign In button to allow NoMAD to update keychain with your new NCU Password.
NoMAD will then attempt to update your Local Keychain password to the new one but will need your authority to do so. You will be presented with a box asking you to enter your Mac password. This will be your OLD NCU Password. This is because Macs check Keychain to ensure that the password to log in to the Mac is correct. Since we have not yet had a chance to update keychain, we will need to enter the old password here.
Once this is complete, NoMAD will then update ALL NCU Related keychain passwords to your new NCU Password.