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LibGuides

MSE 494 - Materials Identification Databases: Troubleshooting

Links to and descriptions of materials databases.

Access issues

If you're having issues accessing materials, especially if you are off-campus, here are a couple things to try. 


Manually Adding a Proxy String

This option allows you to manually do what the proxy bookmarklet does for you automatically – just by editing your URL. This can be especially useful if you want to share a link to an electronic resource with other people (like on a syllabus or course site).

Just add https://proxy2.library.illinois.edu/login?url= to the beginning of the link,

For example: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25432036 would become https://proxy2.library.illinois.edu/login?url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/25432036

If the electronic resource provides a "permalink" or stable url, insert the proxy string before that base URL, instead of the one in your browser's bar. 


VPN (Virtual Private Network)

Installing the campus VPN client will allow you to securely connect to resources from off campus by routing your activity through the campus network. This method is especially useful if you’re using a lot of different resources, browser bookmarks, or unproxied links you find outside of the library domain (e.g., Google or Google Scholar). This method also allows you to bypass the proxy server if you manually remove the proxy string from the URL. NOTE: Do not use the default “Split-Tunnel” profile, please select “Tunnel-All” for this to work.

  1. Follow instructions for VPN download and installation provided by campus Technology Services.
  2. Very important: make sure it’s set to “Tunnel All” (see VPN for accessing library materials for more information).