Large Research Data Storage (LaRDS)

The Monash Large Research Data Store (LaRDS) is Monash’s central petascale research data store.  LaRDS provides hundreds of terabytes (TB) of capacity for storage of Monash research data.

You can use LaRDS to store all types of research data:  from raw experimental data; data downloaded directly from scientific instruments; backup of research data held on your c: drive; databases; simulations; collaborative works; cultural archives; audio, video and multimedia digital content; long-term preservation of archival material; through to published research results via the ARROW repository.  A number of case studies are illustrated here.

LaRDS is available for use by all Monash researchers, including HDR students.  LaRDS can be accessed via a number of different connectors suitable for different applications and modes of usage.

You can access LaRDS remotely (from other research institutions, home or worldwide) via the MSG high performance computing facility, the my.monash portal, the Monash e-Research Sakai VRE collaboration environment and a variety of other purpose-built systems and web applications. 

Data held in LaRDS is reliably backed-up and secure.  You can control access to your LaRDS data to individuals, workgroups or more broadly as appropriate.  Data held in LaRDS is only made public to the extent that you want it to be.

LaRDS is available to Monash researchers in a variety of formats, including:

• LaRDS Network Drive (LaND) services
  • Novell Netware R:\ drive
  • NFS mount
  • NFS mount  from the Monash Campus Grid
  • SSH-FS
  • MS CIFS/Samba
• LaRDS data management services
  • Mediaflux Desktop digital asset management system
  • Subversion (SVN) version management system
  • Oracle SQL Database
  • MySQL database
  • PostgreSQL database
  • MS SQL database
• LaRDS data mover services
  • FTP
  • GridFTP
  • S-FTP
  • rsync
  • scp
  • SRB/iRODS
• LaRDS collaboration services
  • Confluence wiki
  • Sakai all-in-one collaboration environment

On-line and archival modes of use

LaRDS provides ‘on-line’ disk storage for instantaneous retrieval of works in progress or frequently accessed reference materials, and low‑cost ‘near-line’ tape archive storage for less frequently accessed materials (Figure 1). All data is backed up to tape. All tape is held on-site in robot controlled tape libraries for rapid retrieval. All modes ‘look like’ disk to the end‑user/application, even where the data is held on tape.

Figure 1: On-line and archive modes

LaRDS provides the following grades of service (Figure 1):

1. On-line: All data guaranteed to be held on disk, and backed up to tape.

2. Automatic: Reasonable probability that recently accessed data will still be on disk. System automatically moves less used data to tape only.

3. Archive: Low probability that data will still be in disk cache. All data held on tape. Retrieval typically takes less than a couple of minutes.

4. Streaming: First couple of minutes of media content held on disk, remainder held on tape only. Tape is retrieved in parallel with playing from disk.

Generally a user elects for either:

• manual control: user has explicit access to modes 1 and 3; or
• automatic: all data is held in an appropriately optimised mode for the intended use (e.g. modes 2 or 4).

There are no usage based (e.g. per TB) charges for accessing the LaRDS Common Pool.
When applying for grants for research activities that will require additional capacity, please use the marginal cost tariffs set out at Funding Model.

Access to LaRDS is currently provided on a case-by-case basis.  For access to LaRDS, or to discuss which access methods are most suitable to meet your specific needs, please contact Nicholas McPhee, Stephen Dart, Russell Keil or Earle Lawrence, or email: merc@adm.monash.edu.au. For further information please also refer to:

• Service Summary
• Service Statement
• Service Definition
• Acceptable Use Policy
• Sustainable Funding Model
• LaRDS Infrastructure

Current capacity and allocation to faculties

Notes:

1. Standard ISO SI abbreviations used here, i.e. 1 TB = 10¹² byte
2. Media capacity quantities shown here
3. These figures increase over time to reflect actual capacity available