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Library Authentication Errors

Error text:

Authentication Failure: The Access/Friends of Penn State ID you entered was not found in the library's database.

Where you see it:

My Library Account, Renew Books, I Want It, Course Reserve lists

What it could mean:

  • The user mis-keyed the Access or Friends of Penn State (FPS) ID
  • The ALT ID field in the user's record in Workflows is blank or the ID is incorrect
  • The user does not have a user record in Workflows (user not registered with the library)

What to do:

  1. Refer user to a library circulation/lending desk
  2. At the circulation desk, lookup the user record in Workflows
  3. If a user record exists, verify that the ALT ID matches the Access or FPS ID that the user is trying to log in with. If it doesn't, add or change the ALT ID.  Non-PSU users may need to create a new FPS account
  4. If there's no user record in Workflows, register the user. Non-PSU users may need to visit a library and present proof of residency

 

Error text:

Authentication Failure: The database that you selected is for use by the students, faculty and staff of the Pennsylvania State University only.

Where you see it:

Library databases, links to Course Reserve full-text articles

What it could mean:

  • User is not a current PSU student, faculty or staff member
  • User is logged in with an incorrect credential (FPS instead of Access ID)

What to do:

  1. Ask user to log into another WebAccess authenticated resource, like ANGEL or My Library Account, and have the user try the database link again
  2. If the user still encounters the authentication error, then she/he may be logged in with an FPS account instead of an Access account. This is more likely with users whose account IDs are numbered in the 5000+ range (abc5001, xyz5002, etc.) because their FPS and Access IDs are identical. If they created an Access password identical to their FPS password, then they may be logged in through FPS, with restricted access to resources
  3. Have the user visit the FPS reset page: https://fps.psu.edu/pwreset/index.html to reset her/his password. Alternatively, she/he can visit work.psu.edu to change her/his Access password. The two passwords must not be identical.
  4. If the user is a current student, faculty or staff member but can't log into ANGEL or My Library Account, or can't access a library database after changing the FPS or Access password, then refer the user to an ITS helpdesk with a signature station or to 814-865-HELP (4957). 865-HELP is available 24/7, except on holidays.