CDSAR outage may impact upcoming lieutenant colonel board Published June 10, 2010 By Scott Knuteson MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- A computer system managing various aspects of Air Force education experienced a serious technical malfunction May 13. This outage could affect officers meeting the upcoming lieutenant colonel promotion board scheduled to convene at the Air Reserve Personnel Center June 14. The outage impacts Air University distance learning, related education records and test control facilities Air Force-wide. Specifically affected are enlisted and officer distance learning for professional military and continuing education, testing and delivery of enlisted career development courses and various specialty courses. A team of technicians is working to restore the system to a fully functioning state. A mirror backup of the system also failed shortly after the primary crashed. Technicians have been able to replace server hard drives without further failures, but are experiencing software restoral challenges. In the interim, a number of workarounds are being implemented to mitigate the effects of the system breakdown. "We're working around the clock to get the system back online," said Col. Anthony Zucco, director of Education Logistics and Communications for Air University. "Our goal is to minimize the impact on our Airmen, specifically their ability to access records and continue with their educational endeavors." If a student completed course work or finalized a test immediately prior to May 13, the data may have successfully posted to their record. Active duty Airmen can check the Air Force Personnel Center website and Guard or Reserve Airmen can check the Air Reserve Personnel Center's website to ensure all education data has posted. The failing system, known as the Course Development, Student Administration and Registrar system, or CDSAR, has an effect on personnel actions since many actions partially rely on education data and verification. Of particular importance is the ability for upcoming promotion boards to verify graduations and course completions since May 13, according to officials. Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard majors scheduled to meet the lieutenant colonel board in June who recently completed intermediate Developmental Education have an option to write a letter to the board president. The letter should inform the board of information that may be missing from the individual's officer selection brief. Letters should be submitted electronically via the Virtual Personnel Center- Guard and Reserve at https://arpc.afrc.af.mil/vPC-GR/Dashboard.asp using board identifier V0510B, W0510B or U0510B. Once logged in, select Action Requests and Promotion Board Letter. Submitter will receive an e-mail confirming receipt of the letter. . Some senior noncommissioned officers needing verification of Senior NCO Academy completion for their senior rater endorsements may also experience difficulty accessing those records. Many Air University distance learning students may be unable to complete testing at their local test control facility since testing prerequisites and scores are primarily accessed through the downed system. An active duty enlisted supplemental board scheduled for June will not require updating. The next enlisted board, for chief master sergeants, will not be until October. Airmen with questions about the status of their personnel records can contact the Total Force Service Center at 800-525-0102. Tech. Sgt. Stacy Simon, ARPC/PA, contributed to this article.