Extended campus users and distance learning

About Off Campus Sign In

Some of the Library's resources—databases, electronic journals, and selected Virginia Tech electronic theses and dissertations - are restricted to currently employed faculty/staff, currently enrolled students registered in degree or credit courses, and retirees. Access is controlled by Internet address. 

Users on the campus network (including users on the Blacksburg campus, extended campuses, and the VPN or modem pool) are automatically allowed access to these restricted resources.

Users outside the campus network who access the Internet through a commercial ISP or through their business or school network would not be recognized as being affiliated with Virginia Tech and thus must go through an extra step to gain that recognition.

You are authenticated through a program called EZProxy (Off Campus Sign In) that prompts you to enter a Virginia Tech PID and password. After authenticating, you will be able to access most of our restricted resources.

Off Campus Sign In access

Before you start, be sure that previous proxy settings have been removed and that cookies and JavaScript have been enabled (depending on your browser settings, you may not have to do anything).

1. 

   Use the Off Campus Sign In button on any library page, enter your Virginia Tech PID and password, then hit the Submit button. If you get a blank screen or an error screen immediately after clicking the button, or after submitting your PID and password, use our Off Campus Sign In Frequently Asked Questions page which lists potential solutions to these errors.

2. 

   Authorized users will then pass through to the library page, where restricted resources can be accessed. The Off Campus Sign In button will now display You Are Signed In, to indicate you have been authenticated. If this button changes back to Off Campus Sign In, you have somehow been disconnected from the service and will need to sign in again.
3. The links to restricted resources will look different than the on-campus direct links. EZproxy links include the string ezproxy.lib.vt.edu somewhere in the URL. If you do not see this URL pattern when you attempt to access a database or ejournal, you have been disconnected from the service and will need to sign in again.

LibX proxy shortcut

LibX is a browser extension that can make reconnecting to a resource via EZProxy (Off Campus Sign In) much easier. If you have reached a restricted resource, such as a database or ejournal, but forgot to use Off Campus Sign In first, and thus are not able to access the resource, a simple right-click on the page will bring up a menu including a Reload via Off Campus Sign In option. Simply log in and the page you were trying to access will now work.

Problems with Off Campus Sign In access

See the Off Campus Sign In Frequently Asked Questions if you have any problems using the service.