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Advantages and disadvantages of the different solutions

Benefits of a Central Storage Solution

  • Centralized management of data and hardware
  • Enhanced supervision and protection
  • Facilitates data sharing within and between research groups
  • High-availability supports scalable virtual infrastructure
  • Improved control over hardware configuration, capacity, and performance
  • Reduces overall costs and risk
  • Streamlined data organization and backup processes
  • Compatible with multiple platforms and operating systems (Linux, Windows, MacOS)

Advantages of OneDrive Storage at McGill

  • Unlimited access to files from any location with internet connectivity
  • Simplifies collaboration through easy data sharing
  • Frees local resources via remote storage
  • Enables secure, team-wide content sharing
  • Robust security for files and information
  • Supports multimedia and integrates with Microsoft products

Disadvantages of OneDrive Storage at McGill

  • Limited support for some platforms (e.g., Linux, BSD)
  • Lacks integration with third-party applications
  • Storage is user-based
  • Vulnerable to human error, deletion, sync issues, insider threats, malware, and ransomware
  • Document management between users can be inefficient
  • Privacy concerns for certain research data
  • Performance depends on internet connectivity; read/write speeds may be slower than central storage
  • Access limited to active McGill community members