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Key Points:
- SIS (Student Information System) and HCM (Human Capital Management) are two applications that are hosted under the bigger application name of PeopleSoft* and is used to conduct academic-related transactions such as tracking student tuition payments, course enrollment and grading history data, and time sheet information for employees to track the number of hours worked each week.
*PeopleSoft also hosts AIS (Administrative Information System).
- All PeopleSoft applications are web-based meaning that in order to access them, you must have an active Internet connection and use a modern web browser like Google Chrome, Safari, Mozilla Firefox, or Microsoft Edge.
- From time to time, connection to the PeopleSoft applications can time out and lead to a host of unwanted consequences when you web browser attempts to connect to them, such as pages freezing up or even failing to load at all. Standard troubleshooting (see the Instructions section below) for fixing website connection issues can -- but not always -- fix these connection issues.
Instructions:
To resolve connection issues with PeopleSoft applications -- like SIS and HCM -- you can try some or all of these troubleshooting suggestions in your web browser.
- With your web browser window open, press Ctrl + Shift + Delete on your keyboard -- if you are using a Mac computer, press Command + Shift + Backspace instead. A clear browsing history dialog box should appear on your screen. Select the appropriate time range of web history to clear. The individual items that will be cleared from your browser will be selected by default; you can choose to select or deselect any item. To start the clearing process, click the appropriate option such as Clear now or Clear data (the actual option you see will depend on the browser you are using).
Tip: To completely clear your browser's history, it is recommended to select the All time or Everything option (the option you see will depend on the browser you are using). Selecting a time range such as Last hour will keep some browsing history and it may not be enough to resolve the connection issue to SIS and/or HCM.
Depending on how much history your browser has stored, it can take up to a few minutes for the process to complete. Once your browser has finished clearing its history, completely close out of the browser, then re-open it and navigate back to SIS and/or HCM to verify that the application pages now load properly in the browser.
- Use a different web browser to see if that helps you access SIS and/or HCM.
- Restart your computer.
- Use a different computer or computer device (such as a smartphone or tablet) to access SIS and/or HCM.
Additional Suggestions That May Work
- Clear out your web browser's site cookies by clicking the padlock icon in the address bar -- to the left of the website address. You should see an option to click on that says something similar to Clear cookies and site data. After you click the option, a dialog box will appear warning you that clearing cookies and site data can log you out of websites. Click Remove to proceed.
Note: A cookie is a text file that is stored on your computer's hard drive that stores website information such as login information and the content you visited. Cookies can be classified into two types: session cookies and persistent cookies. While cookies in general can be convenient in allowing you to re-access previously visited sites easily, the problem is that they can pile up on the hard drive that can contribute to your computer slowing down.
A second problem with cookies is that they can store website connection information that can quickly become out-of-date (this refers to session cookies). Every browser stores valid website cookie information for a finite (limited) amount of time before the information becomes invalid. When the information is invalid, the browser can struggle to regain access to websites because it can't validate the connection information to process the request to access them as you did previously.
A third -- and perhaps most critical -- problem with cookies is that they can be used maliciously to track your historical Internet browsing habits that can leave you vulnerable in receiving unwanted advertisements in your browser or for potential compromise of website account security, especially if password and other sensitive information is stored (this refers to persistent cookies).
- On the SIS or HCM page that is not loading, go to your browser's address bar and you will see a string of characters that make up the web address that your browser is failing to connect to.
For example, if you are trying to connect to HCM, the browser should direct you to this webpage: hr.vccs.edu/psc/h92prod/EMPLOYEE/HRMS/c/NUI_FRAMEWORK.PT_LANDINGPAGE.GBL?. Take your mouse cursor and remove the portion of the web address that says /HRMS/c/NUI_FRAMEWORK.PT_LANDINGPAGE.GBL? and click the Enter key. Then, close the browser tab and navigate back to HCM and verify that the page now loads correctly.
This tip can work for SIS, too. When you connect to SIS, your browser will try to load the webpage of https://ps-sis.vccs.edu/psc/s92prod/EMPLOYEE/HRMS/c/NUI_FRAMEWORK.PT_LANDINGPAGE.GBL?. Take your mouse cursor and remove the portion of the web address that says /HRMS/c/NUI_FRAMEWORK.PT_LANDINGPAGE.GBL? and click the Enter key. Then, close the browser tab and navigate back to SIS and verify that the page now loads correctly.
Tip: If you are having a hard time removing the correct portion of the web address in your browser's address bar, see the video located at https://vccs.instructuremedia.com/embed/6d36262a-2070-4b3b-a570-58a44e1c820a for a visual guide of what to do (Courtesy of the video goes to Brightpoint Community College for creating it and the VCCS System Office for making it available).