Effective storage of research data is critical if data is to be shared and reused.
- This involves integration with metadata maintenance for continued access and curation
- Different choices of data storage have implications for metadata management and data access
- Follow international good practice for repository certification, e.g. Repository Audit and Certification DSA-WDS Partnership WG Recommendations
ANDS Data Storage Guide covers:
- Obligations and Expectations: Why Data Storage matters
- Types of Storage options/solutions
- Which solution is right for my data?
- Interaction between storage solutions
Research data storage solutions
Each research data storage option offers advantages and disadvantages. Criteria in assessing which is suitable may include: working data versus high value/reuse data, complying with publisher and/or funder guidelines.
- Individual / project data store
- Institutional repository
- Institutional data store
- Australian national data store infrastructure
- Cloud stores (corporate data store infrastructure)
- Discipline repository
Storage solutions are not mutually exclusive, but complementary: they are designed to address different needs. In designing a data management strategy, institutions need to harness all the available types of storage. Focusing on just one (such as institutional data stores or repositories) foregoes the advantages of the others, and does not satisfy all the requirements of researchers themselves.
The University of South Australia has developed a one page storage options guide for their researchers.
Australian National Research Data Storage Services
Research Data Services (RDS) Project (2015- ) enables researchers to easily store, discover, access and share their data for better research outcomes. The RDS project is strategically aligning priorities with other federally funded e-infrastructure investments in:
- Computational infrastructure in supercomputing through National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) and Pawsey Supercomputing Centre
- Cloud, Virtual Labs, tools and services through National eResearch Collaboration Tools and Resources project (NeCTAR)
- Data management through Australian National Data Service (ANDS)