## Storage considerations

###### ChatGPT said:There are various storage options available to VU researchers, each with its own set of benefits and limitations. When deciding where to store your research data, it's important to first assess your specific requirements and use this evaluation to make an informed decision. This section will highlight the key factors that influence storage selection, while the following section will align these factors with the available options, helping you choose the most suitable solution for your research needs.

###### ChatGPT said:

There are various storage options available to VU researchers, each with its own set of benefits and limitations. When deciding where to store your research data, it's important to first assess your specific requirements and use this evaluation to make an informed decision. This section will highlight the key factors that influence storage selection, while the following section will align these factors with the available options, helping you choose the most suitable solution for your research needs.

#### Data Quantity

- Depending on the kind of data you work with, storage capacity can be an influencing factor on your decision. This refers to the file size and number of files you will produce throughout your research. This is particularly applicable if you work with data such as EEG, MRI, FMRI, video files or high resolution imaging. Over 500GB of data can be classified as a large quantity of data.

#### Data Sensitivity

- Regulation and policies for handling sensitive (personal) data require specific conditions for data storage. If working with personal data, it is useful to consider the vulnerability of the population and the identifiability of the information which is collected, the higher these are, the higher sensitivity your data is. Features such as restricted access, two factor authentication, and encryption increase the suitability of the storage location.

#### Data Sharing

- If you are working with organizations outside of the VU, not all options will be suitable. It is important to consider who you will be working with and whether they need access to the data. Collaboration does not always require that all parties have to access to all of the data, so considering the level of access will also help determine where to store your data (e.g. at the folder and sub-folder level).

If you are working with students, limited data access should be implemented so they can only view data files which are necessary for their work.

#### Physical or Digital Data

- Data comes in a variety of formats. As we move towards digitisation, we see an increased focus on the digital data we produce during research, however when working with data which is physical such as paper questionnaires, informed consent, physical samples, etc. you should also plan a storage location which is suitable for physical data.

The above factors are discussed with requirements in mind, but it is also important to consider what requirements are not necessary. For example, if your data is non-sensitive & non-personal, you should not add security measurements which are not necessary.