OR&R’s Spatial Data Branch Launches Updated Version of Environmental Response Management Application (ERMA)
This week OR&R’s Spatial Data Branch launched an updated version of the Environmental Response Management Application (ERMA).
The updated web-based Geographic Information System tool is the first official NOAA system to be hosted on a federally approved external cloud service provider.
Many of the improvements happened behind-the-scenes, but these enhancements will increase the scalability of the application and strengthen ERMA’s data management practices. Additionally, ERMA users will now have a single log-in for all regional sites where they have accounts and will notice changes to bookmarked data layers.
The update will improve the performance of the application that is widely used by emergency responders and environmental resource managers when dealing with incidents that may adversely impact the environment.
Detailed information about how the update will impact users is provided below. For questions or concerns about your ERMA account, please e-mail: orr.ermaaccounts@noaa.gov.
Password Reset
The update includes increased security within ERMA. When you log in to ERMA for the first time following the launch, you will be required to reset your password. Your username and new password will now be used to access all regional ERMA sites where you have an account. Your password will need to be reset every 90 days.
New passwords must abide by the following guidelines:
- Be at least 12 characters long
- Include at least one uppercase and one lowercase letter
- Include a non-alpha-numeric character such as !,#,$,%,*
- Include a number 0-9
- Not include any dictionary words longer than three characters
- Not have any spaces or tabs
Please make a note of your new ERMA password. The ERMA update includes an additional security measure that will lock a user out of their account after three failed password attempts. If this happens, please e-mail orr.ermaaccounts@noaa.gov to have your account unlocked.
URL ERMA Bookmarks
The URLs of ERMA layers will also change with this update. If you currently use URL bookmarks, or Web links, to view sets of ERMA layers (meaning you copied the URL for a particular ERMA layer view, and use it to get back to a set of ERMA layers), these will be changing and will need to be updated.
To make sure you always have quick access to your sets of ERMA layers, consider creating ERMA Bookmark Views within your ERMA account. If you are unfamiliar with the ERMA Bookmark View tool, or need help finding layers you previously accessed as a URL bookmark, please contact orr.erma@noaa.gov.
For more information, please contact Katie.Wagner@noaa.gov.
Go back to OR&R Weekly Report.