Data Management

Overview

This service outlines data management solutions pertaining to the storage and backup of active data, i.e., the storage you need to access and use for day-to-day research and teaching tasks, on College-issued computers for faculty and staff. 

All work we do on our College devices involves the management of data. As stewards of this data, we must consider:

• Doing your work: Do you have the space? 
• Backing up your work: Is it protected from accidents? 
• Sharing your work: Can you share your data as needed?

Eligibility

This page is intended for College faculty and staff using College-issued computers. These other guides may be relevant:

• If you are a student, please consult the Student Guide to Technology at Williams.
• If you work in an administrative office that pertains to protected data, please also consult the Data Classification Policy and Usage Guidelines.
• If your data is no longer active and may qualify as College Archives, visit the Special Collections Archives website.

Instructions

College Solutions available for your work.

While the Office of Information Technology manages most of the storage and protection without additional action needed, it is important to be aware of how your data is stored and maintained. All faculty and staff at Williams College are issued computers for work purposes that have local disk space, otherwise known as your “hard drive.” By definition, the files on your computer’s hard drive are self-contained (local). See our KB article for more information on local backups: https://service.williams.edu/TDClient/174/Portal/KB/ArticleDet?ID=1647

If you would like to share files and media, you will likely move the files to Google Drive Storage, Shared Network drives, or through a third-party software that has a file-sharing option. You will also want to back up the files you keep on your computer’s local hard drive. See our KB article on sharing data for detailed instructions: https://service.williams.edu/TDClient/174/Portal/KB/ArticleDet?ID=1649

Data Management for Research

We are committed to supporting you in finding the most suitable solution for large data sets. What the best solution is for you will vary depending on your research needs. 

First, determine if your data might be considered for Special Collections. Williams Archives staff are available to advise on all matters related to College Records. Examples of potential college records include: 

• Data sets associated with former students’ theses
• Data sets pertaining to Williams College

Depending on the total size of your research data, you might be able to store everything on the Williams Google Drive (details above). If you Google Drive is full or close to our storage limits, see if there are large files that you can discard to accommodate your new data.

When Google Drive does not meet your needs, Williams Academic Technology Consultants are available to assess your needs and advise on best-fit solutions. Some reasons to contact your ATC include:

• You may have large volumes of records or files beyond the limits of our Google Drive
• You are working with sensitive data and/or have specific collaborative needs
• You may wish to publish the work to audiences outside of Williams.

If any of these applie please submit a ticket using the request help button in the top right and your ATC will be in contact.