User accounts and passwords

This guide includes the most important instructions related to user accounts. You can find more help from this instructions site by using, for example, the search. If you cannot solve the problem with the instructions, don’t hesitate to contact the IT Helpdesk.

In their work or studies, University staff and students require a username and related password to access the University of Helsinki IT systems. The primary account is the “AD account”, with which you log in to the University computers and the most common network services, such as email and Flamma.

All the University employees or students registered as attending are granted a personal username. The username provides access to the University IT systems as well as an @helsinki.fi email address.

Students

Students (including non-degree students) obtain a username automatically without applying for it separately.

New students: Activate your user account according to these instructions.

• Read the IT Helpdesk’s tips for new University staff and students

University staff and other members

All other members of the University community excluding students complete a user account application. 

File

Username application form

• Follow the separate instructions for completing the user account application.
• NB! Also remember to activate multi-factor authentication (MFA)!
   
• If you have questions concerning user accounts, please turn to your contact person for IT matters.
   
• Also read the IT Helpdesk’s tips for new employees.

By default, the user account includes the right to use the University’s workstations and most common IT systems. Some IT systems may require separate access rights.

• You can apply for additional rights through the HERO person role register.

• You can check your user account details with a separate tool (requires you to log in)
• You can also find your account details in Flamma (requires you to log in)

In addition to personal user accounts, various other accounts are used for different situations at the University. 

These include, for example, course and conference accounts, guest accounts and paid user accounts. 

More detailed instructions on the various accounts are available from IT Helpdesk (the contact details can be found at the end of each help page).

Non-personal user accounts do not continue automatically. Please contact IT Helpdesk if you need an extension for your account.

Limited user accounts

You can use the limited user account for the University’s services that require identification, such as Flamma, Wiki, Moodle or Sisu. Some of the services require that the user account information includes the user’s personal identity code or email address. Limited user accounts cannot be used to log in to University workstations.

• Read more about limited user accounts in the separate instructions

An employee can order a limited user account (and other special accounts) using the e-form without separate approval. A student must discuss any special accounts with the student adviser.

• Use this e-form to apply for a limited user account

Conference accounts

Conference accounts are suitable for persons making shorter visits, e.g. for conference guests. Conference accounts allow access to shared workstations and classroom computers. Systems such as Moodle, Sisu or email cannot be accessed with a conference account.

• University employees use this e-form to order a conference account.

NB! If the visitor is employed by the University and uses Sole to record their working hours, a personal user account must be applied for instead (for further instructions, see How do I get a user account?).

Roaming accounts

Visitors from other universities can also access the eduroam wireless guest network with their home university user account if their home university is part of the eduroam network.

Members of the Finnish Haka identity federation can use their home university user account to log in to services such as Wiki.

Visitors can also use the HelsinkiUni Guest Network. Read more about the guest network in the separate instructions.

Course account for teaching

A regular account can also be granted for external students for short-term use. The student must apply for it themselves according to these instructions.

The course teacher can apply for course accounts for their group. Course accounts are suitable for students from outside the University who do not have a personal user account. Course accounts allow access to the University’s shared computers and the classroom computers, but they cannot be used to access systems such as Moodle or Sisu.

• The teacher applies for course accounts using this e-form.

Jointly used group user accounts

A jointly used group user account is shared by several people. For example, it can be used to access a specific machine or for a task where the person in charge changes frequently.

Such an account must have a person in charge to whom it is issued.

Note! With the Windows 11 change, the use of jointly used group user accounts on certain machines is not possible due to licensing requirements. Jointly used group user account can still be used on shared machines. The Helpdesk may need to individually assess whether a jointly used group user account can be created for the requested purpose

• University employees apply for group usernames using this e-form.

Administrator and main user accounts

• Use this e-form to apply for administrator and main user accounts.

Please note that no automated messages are sent out on the expiry of administrator and main user accounts. To receive them in your inbox, add your email address in the format firstname.lastname@adm.helsinki.fi on the form for user account details. The mail will be directed to your Microsoft 365 inbox.

• Please log in to the form with the account you wish to change.

• You can add an email address by clicking on External email address can be changed. 

  

University accounts are also used by third parties, such as consultants and developers. Such accounts are applied for in the same way as for University staff, but a separate confidentiality agreement is required for third parties*. More detailed instructions on applying for accounts for external parties are available in these instructions.

*) A confidentiality agreement is required, for example, from employees of companies outside the University of Helsinki Group or from people who will be processing non-public or confidential information. 

User accounts are valid for a set period. Validity periods are usually extended automatically, but in some cases users are required to regularly extend them. User accounts expire at the end of employment or studies. A temporary absence from work or studies also leads to the loss of the user account.

A message about the username and password expiring is automatically sent to the @helsinki.fi inbox linked to the user account. If no University email address is linked to the user account, the expiration message can be sent to an external email address.

You can add an external email address to your user account details in the MyAccount service (requires you to log in).

Students

Students’ user accounts are valid for a single term or the full academic year, depending on attendance.

• For those registered for attendance for the whole academic year or for the spring term, user accounts are valid until 30 September.
• For those registered for attendance for the autumn term, user accounts are valid until 31 January.

Graduating in the middle of the term does not end the validity of the user account. For example, if you graduate in October, your user account will remain valid until the end of January.

Non-attendance registration for students, doctoral students and others (further instructions in the My Studies service)

Staff

Staff user accounts are valid for a maximum of eighteen months at a time. For temporary staff members, the validity of accounts is linked to the duration of the employment relationship. The period of validity expires 14 days after the end of the employment relationship. However, the maximum period of validity of user accounts is eighteen months at a time.

Other user accounts

User accounts other than personal ones (see Different types of user accounts) do not renew automatically. The account holder can request an extension for an expiring group username from the Helpdesk.

Further information about the period of validity and extension of user accounts is available in these instructions.

After your user account expires, you can no longer log in to the University’s online services (e.g. workstations in computer facilities, email, Sisu).

• Further information about the impacts of the user account’s expiry (e.g. logging in to the University’s services, email, copying your own files elsewhere) is available in these instructions.
   
• Tip: Obtain an alumni email address alongside your University email address that is about to expire and indicate it as your new address.
   
• You can restore your expired user account in MyAccount service.

Reasons for your user account not working include an incorrect password, an expired account or an uncompleted IT security test.

• Read more about IT security test for staff in Flamma
• Read more about IT security test for students in Studies service

Make sure you entered the password correctly and the username in the correct format.

If the reason is none of these, and you cannot get your account to work, please contact IT Helpdesk.

The password linked to the University’s user account is valid for one year at a time. Of course, you can change your password more often for information security reasons. 

You will receive a weekly email notification about your password expiring every Sunday, starting around 1½ months before the password expires. The password expiration message is automatically sent only to the account’s @helsinki.fi address.

You can change or reset your password yourself via the MyAccount service.

Attention users of the university’s centralised Macs! University Mac users are advised to change their password following the separate instructions (to avoid various issues). You can check your password settings in the MyAccount service, but the Mac’s own password change tool also checks the password’s suitability. 

• You can change your password in MyAccount service
• More instructions for MyAccout service and changing the password

The password must be difficult to guess. A good password contains both upper and lower case letters, numbers, and certain allowed special characters. A good password is as long as possible, yet one that you can remember and no one else can guess. It may be difficult to remember a long and seemingly random password, but there are some memory-assisting techniques you can use.