- U-M
- //
- LSA
- //
- Department & Units
- //
- Majors & Minors
- //
- LSA Gateway
- //
- Knowledgebase
Technology Services works with you to match your file storage needs with the various on- and off-campus solutions provided, including:
Home (H:) and Shared Group (S:) Directories (on MiStorage)
Information on Mapping Shared Drives
Google at U-M, also known as Google Drive
Research Storage (2TB sponsored on either MiStorage or Turbo)
Turbo Research Storage (NFSv3 or NFSv4+kerberos)
There is a comparison chart at the bottom of the page to help you decide which of these services is right for you. If you are or will be storing any sensitive data, including but not limited to credit card or payment card industry (PCI) information, export-controlled research, private personal information (PPI), protected health information (PHI), or social security numbers, please refer to the Sensitive Data Guide for guidance as to what types of sensitive data can be stored on these services. If you're still not sure which of these services is right for you, please contact the LSA Technology Service Desk or your regional support team for assistance.
Only the home and group directories and research storage services are administered directly through LSA Technology Services; for all of the other services, we just coordinate and liaise with ITS. Please refer to the ITS Storage Services portal page for additional information on their services.
This chart compares the various LSA-offered file storage services to each other to help you decide which is right for you.
For more information, please see ITS' Storage Solutions Summary Chart. While that chart doesn't list the LSA-specific Home and Group Directories (H: and S:) service, it uses MiStorage.
| Feature | Services | |||||||
| AFS | FileSender | H: & S: | Box at U-M | Google at U-M | MiStorage | Research Storage | Turbo Storage | |
| Size | — | 9.77 TB max | 10 GB chunks | 50 GB max | Unlimited | 1 GB chunks | 2 TB to start, 1 TB chunks | 1 TB chunks |
| Sponsored | No | No | No | No | No | No | First 2 TB | No |
| Sensitive Data | No | N/A ¹ | Most | Some | Some | Most | Maybe ² | Most |
| On Flux | No | N/A | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| On Linux | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| On macOS | Yes (with BlueDisc) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| On Windows | Yes (with BlueDisc) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Snapshots | Daily | No | Yes ³ | No | Change-by-change | If requested | If requested | — |
| Web Access | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Read Only | No |
| Security | Detailed ACLs for users and groups | Only available to people you give the URL | Standard Windows (CIFS) | Role-based access controls; password- and time-based sharing | Broad ACLs for users and groups | Standard Windows (CIFS) | Standard Unix (NFSv3) or Windows (CIFS) | Standard Unix (NFSv3 or NFSv4 with Kerberos) |
| Typical Use Case | Personal or group files that don't need to be shared, or which need to be shared with other AFS institutions | Transferring very large files to individuals, stored for 2 weeks or less | Home (H:) for personal files; Group (S:) for unit-shared files | Personal or group files, shared within and outside U-M | Personal or group files, shared within and outside U-M | Personal or group files | Research files, shared among a U-M project team | Research files with high I/O or bulk access |
| ¹ |
IA has not defined what sensitive data can be stored on FileSender. If you encrypt the data before sending it may be allowed; if you don't it may not. Contact the ITS Service Center for assistance. |
|
| ² |
Research Storage can store sensitive data only under certain circumstances. Refer to the MiStorage section for more information and please consult us if you have questions or concerns. |
|
| ³ |
MiStorage, on which the H: and S: drives are stored, takes snapshots daily at 12pm and 4pm, retained for 3 days; nightly at 12am, retained for 7 days; and weekly Sundays at 12am, retained for 8 weeks. You can perform restores yourself by going into the appropriate snapshot and copying your file(s) back out. |
Faculty, Staff, & Researchers
