Guidance on data storage options

This article outlines the options that are available for storing data within Hull York Medical School systems.

For the majority of cases the recommended locations for storing your data are Microsoft OneDrive/Teams. However, if you need to store data that may be considered “sensitive”, please see the advice below. 

Hull York Medical School data storage

Personal data storage

University network storage (‘J Drive’)

Every user in the Medical School has a small amount of personal storage (1Gb) on the university network which is known as a ‘J Drive’. This drive is directly accessible only when logged on to a University Managed computer whilst on the university network. Due to the small amount of storage available and also the difficulty accessing and editing files remotely (from off campus) we would discourage staff and students from using this storage (unless absolutely necessary) and instead would recommend cloud storage of files using Microsoft OneDrive.

Microsoft OneDrive – Cloud storage of files

The preferred method of storing personal files and folders is using the Hull York Medical School provided Microsoft OneDrive. This cloud based service allows you store to and backup your files, share them with others, and get to them from anywhere on all your devices. Your Hull York Medical School Office 365 account gives you 1TB of space in the Microsoft cloud. For more information please see: Storing your files in the cloud with OneDrive

Shared data storage

Shared data storage is useful as the ownership of files works slightly differently to personal data storage (‘J Drive’ or OneDrive). With personal data storage every file and folder belongs to an individual owner, so any files belonging to that person will be removed if they leave the University. However with shared data storage all files belong to the Team itself and not one individual owner. This means that users can be added or removed, and it will not affect ownership of files.

Microsoft Teams – Cloud storage of files

The only available option within the Medical School for shared data storage is Microsoft Teams. Teams allows you to store, collaborate and share files with users both within the Medical School and also with external partners. For more information about storing files in Teams please see: File sharing and collaboration in Microsoft Teams

Governance and policies for data storage

All of the data storage that Hull York Medical School provide is managed by the University of York, so it is vitally important that any data stored in Medical School systems complies with the University of York Information Governance policies. For further information please see:

https://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/information-services/information-policy/

Location of stored data

Hull York Medical School OneDrive and Teams data is stored in the UK, but may be moved without notice (e.g. if a datacentre or network link fails). If data is considered “sensitive”, data controllers (a GDPR term) usually ask to know what controls/mitigations you have in place to manage risks (see https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/key-definitions/controllers-and-processors/).

Storage of sensitive data

The following University of York guide outlines the different classifications of information, and the levels of security they require:

https://www.york.ac.uk/about/departments/support-and-admin/information-services/information-policy/info-policy-and-you/classification/