LSS is useful for: backups, archives, storing large files (e.g. videos and images), and HPC workloads that demand high bandwidth and storage

• 1TB-100TB+ shared space in 1 TB increments 
• Designed to provide low-cost fault-tolerant storage space
• Auditing
  • Shares can be mounted to Windows/Mac/Linux computers via CIFS/SMB, NFS, or both
• Snapshots
  • Recover a deleted file (or a different version of a file) within 30 days
  • Shares can be configured with a backup copy for fault tolerance and snapshots (optional) for previous version recovery
    • Please note that the number of snapshots taken can be up to the requester to some degree
• Replication 
  • Copies files to a remote site every four hours for disaster recovery
• Access Management: 
  • Allows users to manage groups and access to resources from one central location using a familiar interface
• Access from off-campus is available through VPN (UI Anywhere),  Virtual Desktop, Research Data Collaboration Service (RDCS), and Research Remote Desktop Service (RRDS)
• Easily share data with internal and external collaborators using Research Data Collaboration Service (RDCS)

LSS does not support complex nested permissions inside a single file share

LSS is approved for the following data classification levels:

• Public
• Internal
• Restricted *
• HIPAA * (SMB/CIFS only)
• Export-Controlled (Please contact research-computing@uiowa.edu before putting Export-Controlled data on LSS)

* If you intend to store protected health information (PHI) from UIHC on LSS, you are responsible for obtaining approval from the UIHC Data Governance group.  Please submit a request by navigating to the UIHC Data Governance Request Form

No cost storage for faculty

For faculty, a single 5TB share with backups is available upon request at no cost on either LSS or the Research Data Storage Service (RDSS). Additional space may be purchased at the standard rate

Storage space can be rented on a monthly basis (“shared storage”, the most common LSS usage) or for a fee ITS - Research Services can maintain & support storage nodes purchased by you (“dedicated storage”)

If you are interested in dedicated storage, please contact research-computing@uiowa.edu before purchasing storage nodes as some conditions and considerations apply

Shared storage (standard LSS usage)

Storage space is available at a cost of $35 per terabyte per year (billed monthly at $2.92/TB) per copy of data. A share with backup (a second copy) would cost $70/TB/year

For researchers with a faculty appointment, a single 5TB share with backups is available upon request at no cost on either LSS or the Research Data Storage Service (RDSS). To request this free storage make sure to select "Yes" under "I am a researcher with a faculty appointment and want to use my free 5TB of storage for this LSS share" in the Request an LSS Share Form. 

Additional space may be purchased at the standard rate

Dedicated storage nodes

​Researchers needing to make a capital purchase can fund the hardware cost of an entire server which Research Services administrates similarly to Shared LSS

Dedicated storage nodes incur an up-front cost of $2500 per node to secure 5 years of maintenance & support from ITS-Research Services staff

Dedicated storage nodes which are more than 5 years old may continue to be used at a cost of $2500 per year under some conditions

For more information, please contact the ITS-Research Services team at research-computing@uiowa.edu