Sendit
Sendit is a secure file transfer service only recommended for large files that contain data classified as highly restricted information.
Accessing Sendit
Log in using your WatIAM credentials at https://sendit.uwaterloo.ca.
Table of contents
Using Sendit
Sending Files
- On-campus or off-campus the process is the same.
- Log in to Sendit using your Waterloo user ID and password
- Enter the email address(es) of the individual(s) that you want to send files to in the "Recipient's Email" field
- Enter a subject for the email message in the "Subject" field
- Enter the text of the email message in the "Short Note" field
- If you want to secure the file transfer using a password, enter a password in the "Secure Password" field. The password must:
- Be a minimum of six characters
- At least one non alpha-numeric character is required
- The username, first name or last name is not supported
- The less than/greater than and quotation symbols (i.e. , ") cannot be used in the password
- The password needs to be communicated to the recipient via phone or other method. If you do not wish to secure the file transfer with a password, you may skip this step. The recipient can access the file simply by clicking on the link found in the email from the sender.
- Click on the "Upload Files" button to browse for files to upload and send. Important:make sure that the text and email address(es) are correct before you click on the "Upload Files" button as you will not be able to come back and edit these entries after you select the files to upload
- Navigate to files and directories that you want to upload from your computer. To select a file or directory to send, click/select it in the left side list and click on the ">" icon to move it to the transfer queue list. The ">>" will move all files and directories from the list on the left to the transfer queue. Similarly, to remove a file select it in the transfer queue list and click the "
- Once you have selected all of the files to transfer, click on the "Start Upload" button and the file transfer will start. You will see a confirmation screen providing you with a tracking number and the list of emails that were sent the download information. An email will be sent to the recipient(s) with a link to the download and the tracking number that will allow them to see and download your files (and only your files)
- You will receive a confirmation email from IST administrator with the tracking number, date, and transaction details
Some additional notes on sending files
- If you selected a folder/directory to upload, the folder structure will be re-created when recipient downloads your files
- If you return to edit the email or navigate away from the file upload page, you will need to re-select your files again (the list of selected files is not saved)
- After sending the file, you can add recipients to your own contact list on Sendit. The next time you need to send the person a file, you can then select them from your contacts list instead of typing their email address
- As the sender, you will be notified by email when your files are successfully uploaded; when the download page is accessed by the recipients and when the recipients download the files
- Email notifications are sent by default but you can change this by clicking on the "Edit Profile" button on the main screen (after login). On the "Edit Profile" page, uncheck the "Send email notifications" option and click on the "Save" button to store that preference
- Files that are uploaded will remain on the server for ten (10) days and will be purged automatically
- If the files are not downloaded within ten (10) days, you will need to upload them again
- Sendit is not an archive system; files that are uploaded are not backed up to a central backup system
- For this reason, always keep a copy of the original files until you have confirmed that the files have been received at the other end
Receiving Files
Transfers between people within the University of Waterloo
These types of transfers are initiated by the sender. To receive files:
- Click on the link provided in the email
- You will be sent to a web page where you may be required to enter a password (if the sender has password protected the file)
- Once the password has been verified (if required), you will see a download page that displays the files included in this transfer
- You can download the individual files by clicking on the file name or download all of the files with one click
- Specify the location to store the files
Receiving files from an individual external to the University of Waterloo
Users without a valid University of Waterloo WatIAM ID will require a guest account to access and use Sendit. Anyone with a University of Waterloo WatIAM ID can create a guest account for somebody outside of the University.
Creating a Guest account
- Log in to Sendit using your Waterloo ID and password
- Click on the "Invite Others" (top right next to the "Log out" and "Help")
- Enter the guest account contact information using the following guidelines for the mandatory fields:
- User name: use the contact's email address for their User Name (this is the userid they will use to log in to Sendit)
- First name: enter the first name of the contact/guest
- Last name: enter the last name (surname) of the contact/guest
- Email address: enter the email address for the guest account. The account details will be sent in an invitation to this email address. The email address will be used for all notifications.
- Click Save to create the guest account and to send the invitation email with site log in details to the guest/contact
- As soon as the invitation is sent, a password is automatically generated and sent to the guest user, who will be required to enter the password before receiving the file(s)
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Permanent guest accounts for the Sendit service can be created, provided there is a business case. For example, if there will be long term collaboration between a Waterloo user and a non-Waterloo user. These accounts can be created by submitting an RT.
Viewing/Resending Files
You can view the status of your uploaded files, resend the files, or send them to somebody else (if, for example, you got a vacation message back from the original recipient).
- Log in to Sendit using your Waterloo userid and password
- Click on the "Previous Uploads" icon
- To see a status report, click on the word "View". A pop-up window will appear with details on the upload - when it was uploaded, the PIN, current status (e.g. sent and received)
- To resend the files (or send them to someone else), click on the word "Resend"
- You will then be presented with the same page that was used to send the files, but you can edit the transaction by adding or removing recipients, adding or removing files, and editing the subject and content of the email
- Click the "Finish" button and a new upload will be added (the modified upload will be treated as a new transaction, separate from the original upload)
Troubleshooting
If you are having problems using with Sendit, here are some solutions that have worked for others:
- Install and maintain Java on your computer to track your upload. Sendit does not require Java. However if the Java runtime environment is installed on your computer (and accessible within the browser) you are able to track your upload progress better than in the non-Java version. If you see a message after you log in that indicates that Java is not installed, you may consider installing Java on your computer if you can. Java can be download for free. Due to recent security concerns over Java, it is critical that the version of Java be kept current on your machine. Recent versions of Java will display a prompt when a web page attempts to use Java. To use Sendit with Java, you will need to allow it when prompted.
- Try a different browser. If you have more than one web browser available for you to use on your computer, try switching browsers. In some cases, individual browser settings may be causing an issue (see points 3 and 4).
- Reset your Internet Explorer (IE) settings. There are some settings in Internet Explorer that will not allow Sendit to function properly. You may see a message "Communication Problem: The servlet was unable to connect to the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server." In this case, some settings within IE may be preventing communication with with the Sendit server.
- Under the "Tools" pull down menu in IE, select the "Internet Options" and go to the "Advanced" tab
- You will see a Reset button and a note indicating that this should only be done if your browser is in an unusable state
- If you cannot use Java or a browser other than Internet Explorer, this may be your only option to get IE working with Sendit.
4. Safari issues locating files to upload.
While Sendit will work with Firefox by just clicking the on screen prompts to allow Java to run, Safari requires some additional steps to work.
NOTE: You will need to repeat these steps following future updates of your machine’s version of Java.
- Open Safari
- Log into Sendit
- Enter Recipient’s Email, Subject, and optionally a Short Note
- Click on the “Upload files” button
- Click on the “Java blocked for this website” prompt in the middle of the window
- Click the “Trust” button on the prompt “Do you want to trust the website “sendit.uwaterloo.ca” to use the “Java” plug-in?”
- Check the box for “Do not show this again for apps from the publisher and location above” and then click on the “Run” button
- At this point you will notice that no local folders or files are visible in the left-column on the screen.
- Click “Safari” on the main menu (top-left of your display), then click on “Preferences…” from the drop-down menu
- Click on the “Security” tab, then click on the “Manage Website Settings…” button (at lower right)
- Scroll down to “Java - Version Java 7 Update 51” in the left column; in the right column “sendit.uwaterloo.ca” will then be listed as a website to allow Java
- Click the drop-down menu at the right of sendit.uwaterloo.ca and click on “Run in Unsafe Mode"
- Click on the “Trust” button to run “sendit.uwaterloo.ca” in unsafe mode.
- Click on the “Return to Edit Upload” button near the bottom of the window
- Click on the “Upload files” button to refresh the files page and to now see your local folders and files listed in the left column
5. Submit a Request Ticket (RT). We want this service to work for you. If you are having problems, please submit an RT by email to request@rt.uwaterloo.ca. Include as much detail as possible. If you include "SendIt" in the subject line, the request will get to the right support people faster.
Sendit FAQ's
Who Can use the Sendit Service?
Sendit is available to anyone with valid University of Waterloo credentials. Sendit uses the Nexus active directory for authentication. For many, this is the same username and password that you use on a daily basis to either log in to your workstation or access your email.
Is Java required to use Sendit
- Upload as many files as you want in one upload. The non-Java version limits you to 12 files per upload.
- Download multiple files with one click. If you don't have Java installed and you are sent a link to a download with multiple files, you will need to download/click each file individually.
- Visually track the status of your upload with a progress bar. If you are using the non-Java version, no progress bar is displayed so the only visual cue that you have is that the browser appears to be loading a page. For large uploads, this may give the impression that the upload has stopped or is hung. In both cases, you will see an upload confirmation page when the upload is completed.