1/4/26 2:30 Update re: Microsoft Issues and Start of Winter Quarter

Dear Campus Community,

We want to provide a brief follow-up regarding last week’s Microsoft system challenges as we begin winter quarter.

Winter quarter will move forward starting tomorrow (1/5/26) as planned, despite the fact that Microsoft email, SharePoint, and related services have not yet been fully restored. Supporting students as they start the quarter remains our top priority.

We want to extend sincere thanks to Technology Support Services (TSS), who have been working tirelessly to resolve this issue and remain in close contact with Microsoft. Unfortunately, Microsoft has been minimally responsive, likely due to the New Year’s holiday weekend, and we are hopeful to have a resolution on Monday. We will keep you posted as we receive further updates.

We ask all employees to work closely with their supervisors to ensure coverage and provide face-to-face student support whenever possible. A Zoom support room will also be available so students can receive assistance remotely between 9:30am-4:00pm. We will continue messaging to students to let them know that email and phone access remain unavailable, and that in-person and Zoom support are currently the best ways to get help as they begin the quarter.

As we move through the first days of the quarter under less-than-ideal circumstances, we ask that you extend patience and flexibility to one another and to our students as we work to resolve system issues and catch up on delayed work.

Faculty: Please see the message below from Vice President Aiello with additional guidance and information for the first day of classes. This is also posted in Canvas (which we DO have access to).

Thank you for the professionalism, collaboration, and care you continue to show our students and each other.

Sincerely,
Shoreline College
Public Information Office

From VP Aiello for Faculty

Hello Faculty and Colleagues,

First, I hope this finds you well as we have entered January 2026. You may have seen some messages from the college that Microsoft access is down. Currently this is still the status.

The past week was filled with working around the clock to remedy this issue with Microsoft, but we have been unsuccessful. Leaders have gone above and beyond developing alternative solutions and temporary plans and we will continue to work around the clock until all Microsoft applications and platforms are restored. At this time, classes will resume as scheduled.

Please know we realize this has created challenges in workflow and preparation. Our ask is for each of us to be as flexible as possible within all our roles and responsibilities as faculty and staff, and of course for our students who will be impacted by this due to the inability to communicate via email and other platforms. This will include modifying schedules, processes, deadlines, and communication.

Please seem some important information below that will help answer some of your questions.

What if Microsoft issue is not fixed by Monday?

• Issue: Microsoft single sign on processes is not functioning and so no one on campus has access to all the resources that we use it for.

What is still working?

• Canvas: Full access for students, faculty and staff (Note: If you are having problems logging into Canvas, there are instructions below to guide other ways to login)
• Canvas Inbox: You can message people and students in Canvas using the Canvas Inbox if you are in a Canvas Class shell with them.
• Panopto via Canvas
• Zoom – login as you normally do
• CTCLink – if you use your Shoreline email to receive your multi-factor authentication (MFA) code, click on the option to use another way to receive this.
• Campus Computers – you and your students can log into campus computers.
  • Students should use their new login email format -FirstName.LastName@shoreline.edu and their usual password to log into the computers.
  • Note: You can work on documents, spreadsheets, etc if you have a downloaded copy. It will not save to the cloud or autosave though so save your work frequently.
  • Note: If you need to share a document, options are to put it on canvas and send that way, put it on a flash drive and share, or print a hard copy and share.
• Campus CE (Continuing Education)
• Social Media

What is not working?

There is currently no access to:

• Teams, Outlook, or SharePoint/One Drive
• Web versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint
• Our campus ticketing system (TDX)
• Teams Phones or Teams Texting
• Starfish
• AIM Portal for SAS Students
• Shoreline.edu website editing tools (this is why we can’t post any kind of emergency messaging on the website)
• Vector Training from Human Resources

CTCLink and Canvas are both accessible as usual, but if you dual authenticate with a Teams phone or @shoreline.edu email, you will need to select an alternative dual factor method when prompted.

WIFI and on campus computers work fine with your usual login. This is not a network issue. It only effects our instance of Microsoft.

How to create/share/present materials to students

• Create content on your local machine using Canvas, Panopto for Videos, Desktop versions of PowerPoint, Excel and Word.
• Save your work frequently to your local machine.
• Then upload into Canvas and/or put on a thumb/ flash drive and bring into the classroom.

For January 5th & 6th, 9:30-4:30 or longer if needed, eLearning will have a Zoom room for drop in questions: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85894450800

You can also use this for any eLearning requests such as course merges, adding people to courses, etc.

Help – I cannot login to Canvas!!!

Everyone should be able to log into Canvas since this authentication process is separate from our Microsoft Single Sign On that is not operational. However, if your primary multi-factor authentication verification code process uses your Shoreline.edu email, you will not be able to access that.

• Two Alternative Options
  • Choose another verification option
    • Chose another verification option such as “Receive a voice call instead.”
    • Click on the “Verify with something else” option.
  • Reset Your CTCLink Account Login
    • Connect with TSS, confirm your identity and they will reset your CTCLink Account Login process.
      • Again – Monday and Tuesday (January 5th & 6th) – join the college’s zoom roomfor fastest service
        • Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85894450800
        • 9:30AM – 4:30PMb. After Microsoft things are restored, you can submit a request via support@shoreline.edu or walk into TSS oOices for assistance in the lower level of the Library.

Thank you in advance for working together in navigating the start of Winter Term through this challenging time. Please do not hesitate to reach out to me with any questions, suggestions, feedback, and or concerns. See the Canvas announcement for how to reach me via my cellphone.

Sincerely,

Ryan Aiello, Ph.D.

Vice President of Student Affairs/Interim Vice President of Academic AOairs