Laptop Requirements

Overview

All law students, whether in the JD or Graduate Division, enrolled in or registered for any course at New York University School of Law are required to have, for exams and other purposes, a laptop that meets the following requirements. Every student is required to type their exams on a laptop or desktop computer; handwriting will not be permitted on exams. Device requirements for exams are listed and kept up-to-date in the Academic Policies Guide. Students may not use a tablet or e-reader for their exams.

If using a work laptop you must clear the use of Exam4 with your IT department.  You will need to ensure that you have administrator rights in order to run the Exam4 exam software and the firewall must allow outbound traffic on TCP port 4577.

Laptops must meet the minimum hardware and software requirements outlined below. Students are responsible for meeting these requirements and keeping their laptop in good working order. Law ITS are not responsible for providing laptops to students during the semester or during the final exam period. 

Requirements are regularly reviewed and updated. Students must continue to meet these requirements while enrolled at the Law School.

Hardware Requirements

For incoming 1L students, we recommend using a laptop that is no more than 4 years old. 

Supported Operating Systems

When Microsoft and Apple release new versions of their operating systems, the exam software vendors must certify that the new operating system will work with the exam software. Since this is one of the focal points of computing at NYU Law, you must have a computer that meets the operating system requirement. If you are looking at upgrading your operating system, or purchasing a new laptop, pay careful attention to these requirements, and the computer/operating system you are purchasing.  Operating systems newer or older than what is listed below are not supported and will not work with our exam software.

Exam4 currently supports: (What OS Version do I have?)

• Windows 10 (Home, Pro, Edu and Enterprise) [versions 20H2, 21H1, 21H2, 22H2]
• Windows 11 (Home, Pro, Edu and Enterprise) [versions 21H2, 22H2, 23H2, 24H2]
• macOS 15.x.x Sequoia
• macOS 14.x.x Sonoma
• macOS 13.x.x Ventura
• macOS 12.x.x Monterey

Do not install any OS version not explicitly listed above.  This includes beta/preview versions, new releases, and older versions.  If it is not listed above it is not supported and will not allow the exam software to operate.

Dual-booted systems are not supported for exams (e.g. Windows via Boot Camp on a Mac).

All students must have Administrator rights on their laptop and must know their username and password.  If using a work or friend's laptop, be sure to obtain administrator rights.

Software Requirements

Students are required to have a basic set of software on their laptops in order to fully take advantage of technology provided by NYU Law.

• Antivirus software (e.g. Malwarebytes, provided free by NYU) with a current subscription and up-to-date definitions.
  More information about ensuring your security on the 'nyu' network as well as instructions for setting up anti-virus can be found here.
• Office productivity software (e.g. Microsoft Office, Apple Pages, or LibreOffice)
  Microsoft currently offers Office 365 free to all currently enrolled university students.
• PDF reading software (e.g. Adobe Reader, Apple Preview)
  Adobe Acrobat Professional is available on all Law School public lab computers.

You must have a licensed copy of the operating system and productivity software. NYU Law ITS reserve the right to refuse service to laptops with non-licensed or unactivated copies of the software.