How to Get Wi-Fi Access at UCI

A Step By Step Guide

Want to use your laptop from any of the Wi-Fi Access Points all across campus? Follow this simple tutorial.

Step 1: Visit the NACS Website

Let’s first begin by visiting the NACS Website. If you haven’t already been there, NACS is the center for technology, network, email, security settings at UCI. The website is located at http://nacs.uci.edu.

Once you reach the website, locate UCInet Mobile Access - WiFi on the right-hand menu. Click on this.


This will take you to UCInet Mobile Access page. Immediately click on the Registration link on the silver menu bar. When the page loads, you will see a bright blue rectangular box on the right-hand side that says Register to Use Mobile Access. Click on this box.

Step 2: UCInetIDs and MAC Addresses

Checklist

In order to continue this process, please make certain you have the following items:

  • UCInetID - this is provided to you when you are accepted to the University. If you do not have a UCInetID, please follow this link and click on the box that says Activate My UCInetID.
  • Wireless Network Interface Card (NIC) - this is the card that allows you to connect to the Wi-Fi network. Ask your manufacturer if you are unsure whether you have this installed or not.
  • MAC Address - this is a unique address that identifies your specific NIC. If you are unaware of how to find your MAC address, do not worry. We will provide this information below.

Mac Address

NACS has already provided a well-written tutorial on how to find your MAC Address. Please visit http://www.nacs.uci.edu/mobile/find_mac.html. Once you have figured out your MAC Address, please continue with the registration page.

Step 3: Registration

Once you’ve reached the registration page, please log in using your UCInetID. The table of MAC Addresses registered to your account should be blank, if you’ve never registered before. You will see a button that says Add MAC Address. Click on this to continue.

The following form will load. Please fill in the MAC Address field with the address you collected. Do not use spaces or dashes to separate the characters. Make sure wireless is checked. Comments are not necessary, but it is wise to add something like “Amy’s Laptop” to distinguish between any addresses you might add in the future. Leave the IP Address field empty as you will receive a dynamic IP through the DHCP server.

Click add. You are now all done. You should now be able to access the Wi-Fi network through this laptop.

Please Note: In order to follow these steps, you must have access to the internet. Therefore it is recommended that you are connected through a wired network while performing the Registration and then disconnect the LAN to test the Wi-Fi access.

Step 4: Access Points

Though UCI tries to provide Wi-Fi access in as many locations on-campus as possible, there are certain areas where Wi-Fi is limited. Click on the map below to view a full-sized map of all possible Wi-Fi locations on campus. For a detailed list of locations, please click here.