UW Information Technology (UW-IT) offers three Wi-Fi networks for the UW community:
The eduroam network is an encrypted Wi-Fi network available at the UW, and it is the preferred Wi-Fi connection method for UW students, faculty, and staff. The eduroam network is a general-purpose Wi-Fi network using private IP address space and WPA2/WPA3 Enterprise encryption. It is available at UW Campuses, UW Facilities, UW Medical Centers, and other eduroam connected institutions around the world.
Users need to onboard their devices using the SecureW2 onboarding tool provided through UW's onboarding process to gain access to this Wi-Fi network. SecureW2 supports most common devices and will help ensure that your device is properly and securely configured for eduroam. For more information about SecureW2 click here. UW's onboarding information is available via the Eduroam page.
UW-IT recommends connecting to the "eduroam" Wi-Fi network for the added security of encrypted data transmission and roaming. Once the device is onboarded, the user simply selects the eduroam SSID to connect. More information about Eduroam and Eduroam onboarding is available on the Eduroam page.
If your device does not have a web browser (e.g., some phones, printers, etc.), consider manually registering your device for use on the secure, encrypted UW MPSK Wi-Fi network: manual device registration page.
The UW MPSK network is an encrypted Wi-Fi network available at the UW, and it is the recommended Wi-Fi connection method for IoT, TVs, game consoles and other 'headless devices' (i.e., without a keyboard) that require a Pre-Shared Key Wi-Fi network. The UW MPSK network is a special use Wi-Fi network using private IP address space and WPA2 Personal encryption. It is available at UW Campuses, UW Facilities and UW Medical Centers. Users need to register each device before accessing this Wi-Fi network. Visit the manual device registration page.
Note: be sure to turn off the use of private MAC addresses or MAC randomization; these features cause the MAC address to change over time and will cause Wi-Fi access to fail unexpectedly.
Future access to the UW MPSK will automatically connect as long as the network is in range.
For more information about UW MPSK, see the UW MPSK page.
The University of Washington network is an unencrypted Wi-Fi network available at the UW. It is only recommended for devices that do not support eduroam or UW MPSK. This network is also used for devices connecting for the first time in order to configure the device for eduroam without logging in. The University of Washington network is considered the "network of last resort." The University of Washington network is a general-purpose Wi-Fi network using private IP address space. It is only available at UW Campuses, UW Facilities, and UW Medical Centers.
When a device first connects to this network, a captive portal splash page is presented in the user's browser. If you are not selecting the Eduroam onboarding option, select the "Continue to login" button to proceed; you will need your UW NetID. Once authentication is successful, the device will be registered and allowed access to the network. If the UW NetID login page does not display, open a web browser and go to a basic, un-encrypted website such as example.com. This should redirect you to the UW NetID login page.
For more information about the University of Washington wireless network, see the University of Washington Wi-Fi page.
Wi-Fi Network Information:
For more detailed information see "Wi-Fi Access for Guests/Visitors".
The preferred methods of connecting to UW's wireless services, in order by network SSID, are as follows:
Note: AnyRoam.net is a third-party complementary service to Eduraom that provides login credentials to people who are not associated with an existing Eduroam institution. AnyRoam is not meant to be used by people with Eduraom access through their home institution and may conflict with an existing Eduroam configuration. AnyRoam is an opt-in service. Not all Eduroam providers support AnyRoam. UW-IT is not responsible for AnyRaom service, and all questions related to the service should be directed to AnyRoam.net.
If a visitor attempts each solution and is unsuccessful in gaining access, the method of last resort is to have a UW staff or faculty member register the guest/visitor for a temporary UW NetID. The UW staff or faculty member must review the Temporary UW NetIDs information before creating a temporary UW NetID.
The UW Information Technology (UW-IT) organization manages all Wi-Fi on UW campuses, UW Medicine, and several remote locations. Do-it-yourself wireless networking is not allowed without express written authorization from UW-IT. Request for non-UW managed Wi-Fi may be submitted via email to help@uw.edu.
Most UW Campus buildings offer indoor Wi-Fi connectivity for eduroam, UW MPSK and University of Washington Wi-Fi networks. Most UW Medical buildings offer indoor Wi-Fi connectivity for eduroam, UW MPSK, and University of Washington Wi-Fi networks.
Outdoor Wi-Fi service is available in a number of locations across the UW Campuses. The maps below are interactive and show current UW Wi-Fi zones, which are highlighted in purple. Planned UW Wi-Fi zones are highlighted in grey.