Research Data Archive (Long Term Storage) User Documentation Version 6 8th June 2015
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Contents Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 3
Request for a new archive area via a Service Desk request ................................................................... 4
Making a request through the Service Desk ....................................................................................... 4
Principal Investigators (PI) .................................................................................................................. 8
Researchers ......................................................................................................................................... 8
Departmental Managers ..................................................................................................................... 8
Change to MidPlus folder ................................................................................................................... 8
Request access to MidPlus folder ( non PI request ) .......................................................................... 8
Mapping your archive area onto your desktop / laptop computer ........................................................ 9
Windows ............................................................................................................................................. 9
Linux .................................................................................................................................................. 11
MAC ................................................................................................................................................... 13
Copying files into the archive area........................................................................................................ 15
Metadata and how to make your data discoverable ............................................................................ 15
PURE and your archived data ............................................................................................................... 15
APPENDIX A: Workflow for the Service Desk call requesting access to an existing archive folder or
the creation of a new archive folder. ................................................................................................ 17
APPENDIX B: Metadata guidelines. ................................................................................................... 18
APPENDIX C: An example metadata file. ......................................................................................... 21
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Introduction
This service has been setup specifically to cater for researchers to deposit their data which
underpins their research. These datasets are safely and securely stored in the Universities long term
storage archive (MidPlus), the data is archived here at Birmingham and is then securely copied over
to the University of Nottingham, for disaster recovery.
The datasets must adhere to the following, which can be found here:
https://intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/finance/accounting/Research-Support-Group/Research-
Ethics/Links-and-Resources.aspx
Data Protection act
European data protection legislation
Framework for research ethics
We are committed to ensuring our research community makes the outputs from publicly-funded
research publicly available.
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Request for a new archive area via a Service Desk request
Making a request through the Service Desk
In order for an archive area to be created a Service Desk request must be made.
1. Go to www.itservicedesk.bham.ac.uk
2. Log in using your University ADF account. If you do not have a working username and
password, please use the No working username/password option in the left hand menu.
3. Once authenticated you must select Service Catalogue, this is listed in the left hand pane
under Launchpad. You may need to expand this option to see the Service Catalogue listed.
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4. Select "Create a new MidPlus Folder"
5. This will open up a new window which asks you to fill out details of your request.
If the MidPlus folder already exists and your request is that we give additional people access
to the folder AND if you are NOT the PI who owns the folder, click on the box and enter your
name and department. We will then check your request with the PI that owns this folder.
6. If the MidPlus folder you require for your project does NOT already exist and you ARE the PI
for that project, then enter the Project Number (Project Identification Code) from the
Research Grant System.
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7. Fill out the form requesting archive space. Note that storage requests for more than 1 TB
will be passed to BEAR Management Team for approval before IT Services can process your
request. However, more storage may be purchased1
8. Select the users who you want access for. Note that initially only names starting with the
letter A are displayed.
9. If you start typing in the "Search" box, names starting with that letter will be displayed.
Highlight each chosen name in turn and click the Add button.
1 Proposed Research Data Management Costing Guidelines
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10. In the Notes / Comments section please add any additional information (e.g. the urgency of
your request; additional people that need to know about progress with this request).
11. When the form is complete, click the Submit button in the top right hand corner.
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Principal Investigators (PI) The data being archived is looked after by the PI, they are solely responsible for storing the data.
This can be done by the PI themselves or by creating a procedure for the research group to archive
the relevant data.
The PI is the only person who can ask for an archive area to be created and is the only person who
can authorise other researchers, collaborators and data administrators to have access to the data.
Researchers Researchers are part of the group who are able to access the data, however they must be granted
permission by the PI, the owner of the data. Researchers cannot instigate the creation of a data
archive; only the PI can.
Departmental Managers Other staff members may be given the responsibility to look after the data and to create the
metadata surrounding the data. Only the PI can give authorisation for a data manager to have
access.
The workflow of the service desk call relating to this request is shown in Appendix A.
Change to MidPlus folder In order for a change to an existing archive folder to be initiated, a Service Desk request must be
made. A change would be defined as
Allowing new users to access the allocated storage area. (PI request)
Removing existing users access to the allocated storage area.(PI request)
Increasing storage ( there may be cost implications )
Reducing storage area ( the minimum allocated storage area is 1TB )
Request access to MidPlus folder ( non PI request ) If a user, who is not a PI, requests access to a storage area, can make a request. This request must
be verified to either the PI or allocated data manager within the PI’s group. Once done the user is
granted access.
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Mapping your archive area onto your desktop / laptop computer Once you’ve received your new archive store following your Service Now request, you are ready to
map this onto your desktop PC / laptop.
We are trying to make the copying of data from your local filestore to the archive storage easier and
have tested the following platforms.
Windows 1. Click on the start button and type in \\buarchive.bham.ac.uk\<your-archive>
-or-
1. Start Windows Explorer
2. You will see at the top of the window ( top ribbon ) ‘Map Network Drive’
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3. When you click the ‘Map Network Drive’ you will see the following window. You need to
add the storage archive path. In this example the archive folder is ghumraak-2014-002.
Replace this with the details of YOUR archive folder.
4. You will then have access to the storage
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Linux
Mounting a CIFS share on a Linux desktop (GNOME)
1. You can connect to a server by opening the run application window with the Alt+F2
keyboard shortcut. You will need to specify the server type by adding the protocol at the
beginning of the command. For example smb:// will connect to a samba share. Other
supported protocols are ssh, ftp, sftp, http, and https.
2. Add your path to the protocol and click on the Run button.
3. Now change the information to reflect your domain and enter your password. Then click on
Connect. You may need to add in ADF\ in front of the username.
The following window is displayed.
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4. On your desktop you will see the following icon.
If the user would like to use the command line in order to remotely mount the filestore then please
issue the following command, for example
mount -t cifs -o username=<username> //buarchive.bham.ac.uk/<folder> /mnt
mount -t cifs -o username=<username> //ccc48.bham.ac.uk/<folder> /mnt
Some operating systems may not like the lias name buarchive.bham.ac.uk so you may need to use
original name which is ccc48.bham.ac.uk
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MAC
There are many way of doing this and the following is an example
1. Click on FINDER to launch a new finder window 2. Click on the GO menu, which should be at the top of the screen. 3. Select Connect to Server from the GO menu
4. Enter the following in the SERVER ADDRESS field
The server address should reflect the directory which has been allocated to you.
5. Click CONNECT.
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5. You should now be prompted for a user name and password. Enter your ADF network
credentials and click CONNECT. You may need to add in ADF\ in front of the username.
6. Once authenticated you should be able to see the directory.
7. To access any of your network drives the next time you restart your computer and wish to connect:
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Open a FINDER window.
Select the GO menu along the top of your screen
Choose the RECENT FOLDERS option
Copying files into the archive area There are various methods of copying data from your own local filestore to the storage archive. The
most common would be to drag and drop files.
However, some users would like to use rsync to copy over a large number of files. In order to do this
you must first mount the filestore, as detailed above then use the following commands to copy the
data
rsync -avz /<data location on local drive> /mnt/NPD
Metadata and how to make your data discoverable Metadata is any information about the asset and its content. Metadata can make assets searchable
because that is what you are often using to search beyond the file name. The most common error in
digital asset management is applying little or no metadata to your data. The metadata is only as
good as the metadata associated with the data, its ability to facilitate the searching and move assets
into a workflow.
Metadata is now both a competitive advantage and a competitive necessity. If we really want
content to be found, audiences to be served and apps and revenue to be created, we need to give
metadata the attention it deserves.
Metadata guidelines can be found in Appendix B.
An example metadata file can be found in Appendix C.
PURE and your archived data
PURE is an abbreviation of ‘Publication and Research’. It is a database that stores and integrates information on research activity in a structured and standardised way.
Submitting and storing research information on PURE ultimately makes it available and searchable for the wider academic community as well as the public. Data in the system can be used for statistical purposes.
More information about PURE is available on the University web site at: intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/collaboration/pure/about-pure/index.aspx
Part of the metadata is a tag where we define where the data is located in the PURE system. If the
data is not in PURE but has a reference to another system (for example if it is held in the UK Data
Archive (www.data-archive.ac.uk/), then we would add this here instead.
<bham:ukda id="The PURE reference id" URL="http://pure.bham.ac.uk">
65f3b14d-08be-44d4-8af9-280beeb21aa0
</bham:ukda id>
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Other data repositories can be found here www.re3data.org
APPENDIX A:
Workflow for the Service Desk call requesting access to an existing archive folder or the creation of a new archive folder.
Start
PI or DM needs to give MidPlus team the
authorisation to give the user access
Close Call
Create Share*Amend Share*
Y NN
N
N
Y
YIs requestor thePI or the DM?
New folder requested?
PI or DM needs to give MidPlus team the
authorisation to give the user access
Y
N
N
Y
Y
N
Inform PI or DM that we require further
information
Inform User/PI/DM (as appropriate) that we
require further information
Version 0.5
* The following information will be required
1. Details of the project
2. Details of any additional researchers
3. The project code
Is requestor thePI or the DM?
All information provided?
Y
All information provided?
Authorisation received?
Authorisation received within 7
days?
APPENDIX B: Metadata guidelines. Introduction
These metadata guidelines explain how the MidPlus metadata application profile should be
implemented.
We have created this metadata information so that we can make your data searchable (if allowed)
via findit.bham.ac.uk, rab.bham.ac.uk and the University of Birmingham search facility.
Assumptions: There is a mapping of 1 dataset to 1 published paper, which equates to 1 metadata
file for each dataset.
dc element rioxxterms:creator
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments The creator of a resource may be a person, organisation or service. Where there is more than one creator, use a separate rioxxterms :creator element for each one. Enter as many creators as required. The rioxxterms:creator element should take an optional attribute called “id”. This will hold a machine readable unique identifier, where available, for the creator. Ideally the element will include a machine readable id and a text string in the body of the element. For example, <rioxxterms:creatorid=http://”identifier for this creator entity”> name of this creator entity</rioxxterms:creator> Where the creator is a person, the recommended format is Last Name, First Name(s) and to include an ORCID ID, if known, in its HTTP URI form, such as: <rioxxterms:creator id=http://orcid.org/0000000213953092>Lawson,Gerald</rioxxterms:creator> Note that if the creator is a person and you wish to record that person’s affiliation, the affiliation should be recorded using the rioxxterms:contributor element.
dc element dc:title
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments This refers to the resource’s title and any sub titles. Title should be entered using free text. Title is the form of words by which a resource will be formally known and should be represented using the original spelling and wording. Since these Guidelines are focused primarily on publications, journal and book titles are likely examples. The recommended format for subtitles is Title:Subtitle
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dc element dc:identifier
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments This element must contain a globally unique and persistent identifier for the resource being described. A commonly used example is a publisher’s DOI. The identifier should be an HTTP URI that can be dereferenced (and is, thus, actionable). The aim of this element is to allow access to the resource so it is recommended that the identifier points to the actual resource being described by the RIOXX record – such as a pdf, normally held in the local repository – rather than to an intermediary resource such as a repository web page.
dc element dc:language
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments This refers to the primary language in which the content of the resource is presented. The element may be repeated if the resource contains multiple languages. A coded value or text string may be used. The values used for this element must conform to ISO 6393 which offers two and three letter tags: “en” or “eng” for English and “en-GB” for English used in the UK
dc element dc:source
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments The source label describes a resource from which the current resource is derived (in whole or in part). This may be a working paper, a collection of works or a book for example. It is recommended that the source is referenced using a unique identifier from a recognised system e.g. the unique 8 digit International Standard Serial Numbers (ISSN) assigned to print and electronic periodicals or the International Standard Book Number(ISBN).
dc element bham:pureid
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments Within the PURE system, each deposited publication received a unique identification number. This element is specific to UoB and is referred to by the PURE reference id. The following URL is a link to the PURE system. http://pure.bham.ac.uk"
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dc element bham:numberoffiles
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments The number of files in this dataset, This element is specific to UoB.
dc element bham:filename
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments This is the name of the file and the element is specific to UoB. The researcher is asked to try and name the file as descriptive as possible. Use separate instances of the bham:filename element
dc element bham:decscription
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments What does the file contain, such as binary data from apparatus A etc. We need this to be as descriptive as possible. This element is specific to UoB.
dc element dc:format
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments This refers to the form of the resource being described in the RIOXX record, physical or digital, and can refer to the media type or dimensions of the resource. Where the resource being described is digital, the MIME type of the object pointed to be this RIOXX record’s dc:identifier element must be entered here. If more than one category is needed to describe a single resource, use separate instances of the dc:format element.
dc element bham:sizeoffileinKB
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments For each element bham:filename there has to be a size in KB associated with it.
dc element bham:md5hash
Inclusion status Mandatory
Format and comments For each element bham:filename there has to be an md5hash associated with it.
Sources http://docs.rioxx.net/guidelines/UK_Metadata_Guidelines_v_1.0.pdf
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APPENDIX C: An example metadata file. <?xml version="2.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1" standalone="yes"?>
<rioxxterms:creator id=”Name”>
Hemida, Hassan
</rioxxterms:creator>
<dc:title>
Flow around Freight Trains Subjected to Side Winds: Large Eddy Simulation
</dc:title>
<dc:identifier id=" A unique identifier for the location of this dataset resides">
\\buarchive.bham.ac.uk\ghumraak-2014-002\PD
</dc:identifier>
<dc:language>
en_GB
</dc:language>
<dc:source id="This dataset is associated with this publications" >
"Hemida, H., and Baker, C., Flow around Freight Trains Subjected to Side Winds:Large Eddy
Simulation “9th UK Conference on Wind Engineering, Bristol, UK, 20-22 September, 2010."
</dc:source>
<bham:pureid id="The PURE reference id" URL="http://pure.bham.ac.uk">
65f3b14d-08be-44d4-8af9-280beeb21aa0
</bham:pureid id>
<bham:numberoffiles id="The number of files in this dataset">
"Number of files"
</bham:numberoffiles>
<bham:filename id="Name of the file">
"cyclotron001-13-09-2013.gzip"
</bham:filename>
<bham:decscription id="What does the file contain. e.g. Numerical data from the cyclotron">
"The data from the cyclotron 23X, which was collected at 9.42pm 12 Dec 2012 at Room 21,
Physics East, lab temp 18 degrees Celsius"
</bham:description>
<dc:format id="Type of file, such as application" URL=http://www.iana.org/assignments/media-
types/
"archive" "gzip"
</dc:format>
<bham:sizeoffileinKB id="The size of this archive file in KB">
1073741824
</bham:sizeoffileinKB>
<bham:md5hash>
"The MD5 Hash of the file"
</bham:md5hash>
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