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Data Storage Guidelines

Data Storage Systems 

$HOME

Every user is limited to 75GB of storage for their home directory. This area is backed up off-site, and the quota cannot be increased. The home directory is also referred to as the login directory and is the entry point when a user logs into the CRC ecosystem.

Persistent Research Data Storage

Two storage arrays, aggregating to 3 PB usable capacity, service the storage needs of the research community. These are the TrueNAS M50-HA system from iX Systems and are architected to support various computational workloads. 

Our policy for data storage charges on the system is as follows:

  • There is no charge for data storage up to 5 TB per PI.
    • This should be provisioned to you when you request an allocation. 
    • If you have an allocation, but were not provisioned space on iX, submit this form. 
  • Storage beyond the free 5 TB is available for purchase.
    • The charge is $65 per TB per year, this is a subsidized rate. 
    • Extra storage is available in 5TB increments.
    • To purchase extra storage, please submit this form specifying how much extra storage you need. 

Legacy Storage Systems

The CRC's BGFS (BeeGFS) and ZFS storage systems have been fully allocated and we cannot accept new users. If you have an existing allocation on these systems, you can continue to use it.

Shared Folders

iX storage locations are only accessible to allocation owners and the users they sponsor (their "user group").

If you are working with collaborators that also have CRC user accounts, but are not in your user group, a shared folder under your iX location can be used to facillitate sharing data between your groups. These should be requested by submitting a ticket and providing details about the users that need access. This should include Pitt Usernames and specifics about the permssions they will require (read, write, execute, etc). 

Restoring Accidentally Deleted Files

Both ixSystems and ZFS keep snapshots for up to 7 days. Submit a help ticket to restore data from snapshots. Snapshots are not available for BGFS.

HIPAA, Protected Health Information, and Personally Identifiable Information 

PIs and users of Center for Research Computing (CRC) computational resources are not allowed to install or use any software or data that are under protected control, such as Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) or Personally Identifiable Information (PII) without explicit approval. If you have any questions, or think you may be loading protected data, please contact the CRC at crchelp@pitt.edu.