Data Storage and Sharing
Data Storage and Backup
Data should be routinely backed up, preferably automatically, with multiple copies stored in separate physical locations. If you choose to back up your data on external hard drives, ensure that they are stored away from your office. Some campus departments offer free or low-cost storage on departmental servers; for more information, contact your department's IT office.
Options
- Merritt: The University of California Curation Center’s repository offers storage with the option to share data publically or maintain a private archive.
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Options through UCLA:
- CASS, a cloud-based competitively-priced archive, a service of the Institute for Digital Research and Education (IDRE)
- Box, a web-based cloud storage service for sharing and storing files and folders online.
- Social Sciences Archive, upon review and approval (social science-related data)
- Open Science Framework, cloud-based project management and storage system.
- Additional paid storage options are available through non-UC cloud storage vendors like Google and Amazon.
Repositories and Sharing
The California Digital Library and the University of California have developed tools to facilitate data sharing.
- EZID provides permanent unique identifiers that are a useful way to link to data in publications.
- Merritt repository service enables UC users to manage, archive, and share digital content.
Disciplinary repositories
Many fields of study have dedicated subject-specific repositories that accept submissions of datasets and offer publically available data for reuse. Disciplinary repositories are often the best places to share your data to facilitate discovery and reuse by specific research communities.
Find a repository:
- re3data (comprehensive, searchable catalog of over 500 subject-specific repositories)
