When the library subscribes to a database or an electronic journal, we must sign a license agreement with the vendor of that resource. The agreements provide that content can be served to any computer connected to the WesternU Network, but that remote access via a proxy server may be granted to authorized users only. “Authorized users” are WesternU’s currently enrolled students, faculty, and staff.
The Library’s license agreements with vendors of electronic resources also stipulate that it is the responsibility of individual users to ensure that electronic resources are used for personal and/or educational non-commercial purposes without systematically downloading, printing, distributing, retaining substantial portions, or sharing of password information.
Logging into the proxy
WesternU students, faculty, & staff: Use your WesternU username (without @westernu.edu) and password
Clinical Faculty, OPTI-West, & UHS Residents: Use the username and password provided to you by the library. If you do not have a username and password, submit a Remote Access request.
Accessing E-Resources from off-campus
- Go to the library’s Electronic Resources
- Click on a resource link.
- You will be directed to the WesternU EZProxy login page. Enter your WesternU username and password.
- Click Submit
Troubleshooting Common Proxy Issues
Error message when logging into the proxy (The username and/or password used to login is incorrect)
WesternU Students, Faculty, and Staff:
- Make sure you are not entering the “@westernu.edu” part of your email in the username.
- You may be entering the wrong password. To test this, try logging into ILLiad. If you cannot successfully log in, you may need to reset your password.
- If these steps don’t resolve the issue, contact us at reference@westernu.edu or 909-469-5323
Clinical Faculty, OPTI-west, and UHS Residents:
- If you have an existing account, contact reference@westernu.edu.
- If you need an account, complete the Remote Access form.
The resource you are using is telling you that your institution does not subscribe to the restricted content.
Are you using the library’s Electronic Resources web page as your starting point for access?
Each subscription E-Journal or Database is linked to our Electronic Resources page using a special URL that routes you through the proxy server. If you directly type in a web site address into your browser, you will not be asked for a proxy server password and will not have permission to use the resource.
You have already entered in the proxy password and have been granted access to the database you wish to search. You are trying to access a full-text article within the database but are told your institution does not have access.
In some instances, the library subscribes to only a portion of the full-text material within a database. An example is ScienceDirect. ScienceDirect offers 23 full-text subject collections. Our institution subscribes to 6 subject collections.
One way to check if the library has an electronic subscription to a journal is to use the E-Journal/E-Book search available on the library’s Electronic Resources webpage.
I have followed all of the above troubleshooting advice and I am still unable to access the library’s E-Resources remotely.
Please e-mail the following information to reference@westernu.edu so we can troubleshoot the issue.
- Copy and paste or screenshot the error message, if any, into the email.
- What database and/or article are you trying to access?
- What Internet browser and version number are you using?