This article outlines how to access the Beta environment for Faculty Success. Depending on how your institution authenticates users, you can access Beta in one of two ways: through Watermark Navigator single sign-on (SSO), or through Local Authentication, which is available by default. All administrators and developers with Beta access can follow the steps in this article.
Regardless of which method you use, keep in mind that the Beta environment refreshes weekly on Saturday.
Prerequisites
- If your institution uses Navigator as an authentication method, confirm whether your account has been assigned the Beta SSO Access security permission. If it has, you can skip directly to the Accessing Beta via Navigator SSO section below.
- If you will be using Local Authentication, know your Faculty Success Username (not your email address). If you are unsure of your username, contact your Faculty Success administrator.
Choosing an Access Method
Faculty Success supports two ways to reach the Beta environment:
- Navigator SSO: If your institution uses Navigator authentication and your account has been assigned the Beta SSO Access permission, you can switch between Production and Beta using the same single sign-on credentials. No weekly password reset is required.
- Local Authentication: Every Beta account is set to Local Authentication by default, which means you create a separate password specifically for Beta. If your Production account is not also set to Local Authentication, your Beta credentials will need to be reset weekly, since Beta refreshes every Saturday.
Note: If you expect to need frequent access to Beta and are not using Navigator SSO, consider asking your administrator to set your Production account to Local Authentication as well. This way, the same credentials work in both environments and do not need to be reset weekly.
Accessing Beta via Navigator SSO
Institutions using Navigator authentication can request a security permission called Beta SSO Access, which allows assigned users to toggle between Production and Beta using their existing single sign-on login.
- Confirm that your account has been assigned the Beta SSO Access permission. If it has not been set up yet, an administrator can submit a Work Request to create the role and assign it.
- Log in to Faculty Success as you normally would using your institution's SSO.
- Select the Product Picker or App Switcher, and choose Faculty Success Beta from the list.
Once selected, you will be taken directly into the Beta environment. You can switch back to Production at any time using the same switcher.
Note: Users who are not assigned the Beta SSO Access permission can still reach Beta using Local Authentication, as described in the next section.
Accessing Beta via Local Authentication
If your institution does not use Navigator SSO, or your account has not been assigned the Beta SSO Access permission, you can access Beta using Local Authentication. Since every Beta account defaults to Local Authentication, you will need to complete a password reset the first time you log in, and again on a weekly basis unless your Production account is also set to Local Authentication.
Creating the Beta Login URL
Create your Beta login URL using the following structure, replacing [org] with your institution's domain:
https://beta.digitalmeasures.com/login/[org]/faculty/authentication/showLogin.do
You can find your institution's domain by logging into the Production environment and viewing the URL. For example, a Beta login URL might look like: https://beta.digitalmeasures.com/login/watermarkfacultysuccess/faculty/authentication/showLogin.do
Resetting Your Password
-
Navigate to the Beta login URL you created. You will notice the login prompt looks different from your usual login screen, since this is the login page for Local Authentication. To begin accessing your Beta account, select the "Need Help?" link located below the credential fields.
-
From the "Get Login Help" box that appears, select the "Reset Your Password" link.
-
Enter your Faculty Success Username (not your email address prefix) and select "Reset Password" to receive a password reset email.
-
A password reset email will arrive from support@watermarkinsights.com. To avoid caching issues, right-click the "Request Password" button in the email and open it in a private or incognito browser window.
-
In the new window, enter your Faculty Success username again and select "Reset Password." You will be returned to the main login screen and can safely close this tab.
-
After a few moments, you will receive a second email from support@watermarkinsights.com. To avoid caching issues, right-click the "Reset Password" button in this email and open it in a private or incognito browser window.
-
In the window that opens, enter your Faculty Success Username in the Email field, enter and confirm your new password in the remaining fields, then select "Change Password" to finish.
After selecting "Change Password," you will be logged in to your Beta Faculty Success account. You'll know you're in the Beta environment because "beta" will appear in the URL.
Important: Store your Beta password information securely in accordance with your institution's policies. If your Production account is not set to Local Authentication, you will need to repeat this reset process weekly.
Whichever method you use, you now have everything you need to access and test features in the Beta environment. If you run into login issues that aren't covered here, contact your Faculty Success administrator or Watermark Support.