518 King Science Library • 179 Funkhouser Drive • Lexington, KY 40506-0039 • (859)-257-3377 • Fax (859) 257-2987

BASIC INSTRUCTIONS FOR USING BLACKBOARD

REQUESTING A LINK BLUE ACCOUNT

LinkBlue accounts will be created automatically for newly accepted students. If you need to request an account or determine your login ID please follow one of the methods below:

Call the IT Customer Service Center (859) 218-HELP, and ask them to check if you have an account. (Please let them know if you have had a recent name change.) If you have an account, the IT Customer Service Center will provide you with the account ID and reset your password (which you will have to change – see Changing Your Password below).
If indeed you do not have an account, an official Security Liaison of your college/department will need to fill out/sign the Computing Accounts Request Form. The form must be delivered or faxed (859 257-9374) to the IT Customer Service Center. Alternatively, the Security Liaison can send an email request to the CSC's Accounts team (accounts@lsv.uky.edu).

ACTIVATING YOUR ACCOUNT/CHANGING YOUR PASSWORD

You must change your password to activate your LinkBlue account and every 90 days thereafter. Although this may seem inconvenient, it is now required for internet security reasons and is a University policy. To activate your account or change your password, use the LinkBlue Account Manager. Please follow the guidelines below when choosing your password:

Password Requirements:

Minimum Length – 8 characters. On systems with a maximum password length of less than 8 characters, use the maximum length that the system supports.
Expiration – 90 days or less.
Password History – 8 password changes are required before reusing a previous password. (To prevent recycling passwords.)
Minimum Password Age – 1 day. You may only change your password once each day. (To prevent recycling passwords.)
Lockout – After 5 unsuccessful log-on attempts. The password will be unlocked automatically by the system after 30 minutes, or by a request from an authorized person who must verify the identity of the requestor.
Composition – Must contain characters from three of these categories, and be enforced when a password is created or changed:
- Upper Case Letters: A through Z
- Lower Case Letters: a through z
- Numerals: 0 through 9
- All non-alphanumeric characters, such as: ! @ # % $
- No more than two identical characters in a row
- The password cannot contain the user's first name, middle name, last name, or username.

Activating Your Account/Changing Your Password:

Go to the Account Manager
Click on the Manage Your Account option and login.
- Login with your default (or old) password. (The initial, or reset password, goes to the default - u$ followed by the last six digits of your student number.)
Choose the Change Password option and follow the instructions.

FORWARDING EMAIL

Blackboard uses your UK email address as a default. We suggest that you continue to use this address for use in your course(s). Typically, if you want to forward your email to another address, it is suggested that you do so through the Account Manager. Please Note: When forwarding your email, you will no longer be able to login to your UK Exchange mailbox or view any mail stored there. The following are instructions for setting up email forwarding:

Go to the Account Manager
Choose the Manage Your Account option and login.
Choose Change Email Forwarding Address from the Management Options.

LOGIN TO BLACKBOARD

There are several ways in which you can login to your Blackboard account. Below are two of the most common. (Note: Do NOT put AD\ or MC\ in front of your user name when logging in):

Through the MyUK Portal:
- Using your UK LinkBlue account*, login into the MyUK Portal. (You can also get to the MyUK Portal from the link blue button in the upper-right corner of the UK homepage.)
- Click on the “Blackboard” tab. This will take you directly into Blackboard where you can select from the courses in which you are registered.
Directly through Blackboard:
- Go to http://elearning.uky.edu
- On the Blackboard “Login” tab, you will be prompted to enter your user name (LinkBlue ID) and password.
- Click Login to continue. This will take you directly into Blackboard where you can select from the courses in which you are registered.
Once you are in Blackboard and have registered for courses, those courses should automatically appear in Blackboard. (Note: It may take 1 business day after registration for courses to appear.)
When you have finished with the Blackboard system, click on the LOGOUT button and close your web browser.
*If you do not have a UK LinkBlue account, you will need to request one. (See Requesting A LinkBlue Account.)

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE

Please check our Technical Requirements and Recommendations page for more information on the hardware and software needed for Distance Learning Courses.

BLACKBOARD HELP

Students may contact the IT Customer Service Center with any problems with the Blackboard system.