Crucial Research Systems Remain Offline: UCI Works Tirelessly Towards Cayuse Restoration

Irvine, CA – The University of California, Irvine (UCI) continues to grapple with a significant disruption to its critical research administration platforms, as the Cayuse research systems remain unavailable. This extended outage, which began on the morning of Monday, October 16th, has impacted vital operations across Cayuse SP (proposals and awards), Cayuse IRB (institutional review board), and Cayuse COI (conflict of interest).

The root cause of this persistent unavailability has been identified as a severe hardware failure that led to extensive data corruption.

This complex issue has unfortunately prolonged the restoration process, presenting a formidable challenge for the teams dedicated to bringing these essential services back online.

Since the initial system crash, dedicated teams from UCI’s Office of Research Administration (ORA) and Office of Information Technology (OIT) have been working around the clock, in close collaboration with the Cayuse vendor.

Their combined expertise is focused on an intensive, 24/7 effort to diagnose, mitigate, and ultimately restore the integrity and functionality of the affected systems. However, the nature of data corruption means that this is not a simple fix, requiring meticulous and painstaking work to ensure data recovery and system stability.

While every possible resource is being deployed, a definitive timeline for full restoration remains elusive.

The priority is to ensure a complete and stable recovery, which may take additional time given the technical complexities involved. UCI understands the immense frustration and disruption this outage is causing for its dedicated researchers, faculty, and staff, who rely heavily on these platforms for their critical work.

In light of this ongoing situation, UCI urges researchers with urgent deadlines or pressing submission needs to reach out directly to the relevant offices.

For Cayuse SP-related concerns, please contact the ORA staff. For IRB matters, the IRB office is available for guidance, and similarly, the COI office can provide assistance for conflict of interest declarations. These teams are prepared to offer alternative solutions and support to minimize the impact on essential research activities.

UCI is committed to transparent and timely communication throughout this challenging period.

Further updates will be provided as significant progress is made or new information becomes available. The university appreciates the patience and understanding of its research community as it navigates this unforeseen technical challenge and works diligently to restore full service.