LibGuides: Managing Your Work Habits: File Systems

Research Data Service

This page was put together with the help of Research Data Service (RDS). For more help or questions surrounding data, visit the RDS website:

Research Data Service
The Research Data Service (RDS) is a campus-wide program that provides the Illinois research community with the expertise, tools, and infrastructure necessary to manage and steward research data.

Visit for help with Data Management Plans, sharing and storing your data, and personalized consultations.

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File Systems

Organization of files is essential for retrieving files. It may be helpful to separate files for personal and collaborative purposes. There are two key factors for organizing files: consistent naming and subfolders.

Citation managers can be helpful for organizing articles for research (including their PDFs). They can also be used to save a lot of time during the writing, editing, and publishing process. Check out our Citation Managers guide!

Below are some suggested applications for file storage that are supported by the University of Illinois.

Google Apps @ Illinois
Google Drive is another cloud storage provider for all students, faculty, and staff. Google Drive can be useful for real-time collaboration allowing several team members to edit a document simultaneously via a web browser. Google offers unlimited storage, with a maximum single file size of 5 TB. Google is not FERPA compliant, Google cannot guarantee documents stored on their systems will remain on servers in the USA, and Google has not signed an agreement with the University of Illinois to prohibit the harvesting of data on their service.
Microsoft One Drive for Business
Microsoft One Drive for Business offers 1 TB of storage to all students, faculty, and staff. The individual file size limit is 10 GB, and it integrates tightly with Microsoft Office. Microsoft One Drive is not FERPA compliant.
U of I Box
All students, faculty, and staff, can get up to 50 GB of storage and that can be increased if needed. You can share Box folders with anyone with an email address -- on campus or beyond. Box has a 15 GB individual file size limit. Box is the only cloud stage option on campus that is currently cleared for FERPA data. Box has an agreement with Illinois to prohibit the harvesting of data on Box folders and files, and all University of Illinois data stored on Box is stored on servers located in the USA.

Personal File Storage

Dropbox
Dropbox is a cloud storage site that allows you to save file to a folder on your desktop, which then syncs automatically and allows access via the web and mobile apps. You can get 2 GB of space a limited sharing free.
Flickr
Upload, access, organize, edit, and share your photos from any device, from anywhere in the world. Can use in-browser or from a mobile app.
Google Photos
Google Photos allows you to auto-upload all the photos from your devices, organize, search, share, and edit.
iCloud Drive
Offers 5 GB free and syncs between computer, web, and mobile devices.