Summary
Exchanging data with the SEVIS batch processing servers has not been a very transparent process for universities to-date. The specifications released by EDS have been moving targets, and the documents' emphasis has definitely been on completeness and accuracy over brevity or simplicity. This tutorial takes a different approach, walking you through just what you need to know to begin sending files to the INS using free, cross-platform software. The first part of the tutorial, dealing with digital certificate preparation, will be of interest to IT departments who are planning on implementing vendor-provided SEVIS software. The second part of the tutorial, concerning the actual transfer process, will be more of interest to institutions that plan on implementing the batch method on their own.