Research File Share¶
Research File Share provides large scale, enterprise grade storage for Cambridge research data associated with principal investigators. It is suitable for research groups working on data sets that need high integrity, protection and accessibility. In particular, this service delivers a highly resilient storage solution that provides snapshots to allow fast recovery of lost files. Click here for more information on Research File Share.
RFS storage is accessed via the SMB/CIFS protocol, which is available on all major computing platforms. You can mount RFS directories on your own computer directly from the CUDN network.
Note
A number of PIs have requested the ability to have RFS storage projects mounted internally on the CSD3 login nodes in the same manner as RDS/RCS, this option is now available as an alternative to access via SMB/CIFS.
An overview is available on it’s dedicated page or contact us at support@hpc.cam.ac.uk for more information.
Key Features
Available on all research computing platforms
Optimised for large quantities of unstructured data, with no upper limit on the amount of data storage you can purchase
High availability due to fault tolerant design
Feature rich storage configured to snapshot data to allow users to quickly recover lost files (1 month window)
Support via the UIS service desk
Note
MacOS and restoring data from backups
Machines running MacOS are unable to browse and restore data from RFS snapshots, unfortunately this is a limitation imposed by Apple to avoid problems when mounting and unmounting ‘hidden’ directories such as the .snapshot ones used to store backups in RFS.
Mac users with a need to restore data and who do not have access to an alternative machine running Windows, Linux, etc. can contact the CSD3 helpdesk at support@hpc.cam.ac.uk for assistance.