This article guides you on choosing the best location to store data using OneDrive, Teams, SharePoint, or Research Data. It also highlights the best application to use to share your data with colleagues, your working team or a wider audience.

Find more information and guidance about the benefits of using Microsoft 365 to store your file on the SharePoint page “Storing your files”.

Introduction

Main applications provided by the University of Southampton (UoS)

Students and staff can store data and files using different storage resources. The main locations available for you at the University are:

• OneDrive
• Teams
• SharePoint
• Research Data Filestore 

A note about the Shared Resource Filestore "J:Drive"

The Shared Resource Filestore (known also as "J: Drive'" is a legacy filestore used for storing all work-related files and data shared with Faculties, Academic Units or departments.

As the University is moving away from this technology, OneDrive and SharePoint are the new default location to save your files. If you joined the University on or after 7 June 2021, or have recently received a new 'University managed' device, then you should already be mapped to OneDrive by default (Desktop and Documents).

You should have access to relevant Resource filestore ("J:Drive") locations based on your role and department / team membership, if not you may need to request additional folder access within the Shared Resource Filestore ("J:Drive").

You may also wish to map the Resource filestore ("J:Drive") to your new UoS device should it not already be mapped.

Please find guidance in the Knowledge Base article "How to access the Shared Resource Filestore".

 

GDPR and compliance

We all process, store and transfer data via the secure University network however no system can guarantee any level of compliance. We, the individuals using the data, also have to ensure our processes and data handling is in keeping with the GDPR and any other legal compliance.

For example, a file can be stored in a secure application such as the University OneDrive but shared externally via email which can be insecure.

 

Space available

The University OneDrive is based on the cloud. To know more about how much space you have left in your OneDrive and how much space is used by every file stored in your OneDrive, read the article "How to check how much space you have left in your OneDrive storage". 

 

Accessing your files

You can access the Microsoft 365 (M365) applications by using your University login. 

Accessing OneDrive

If you are using a University supplied managed device, OneDrive and the other applications will already be installed. 

If you are using a personal device, you can both:
• Go to https://www.office.com and log in using your university email and password
• Download and install Office 365 on your computer. You will have access to every application from there. If you need guidance, please read the knowledge base article “How to download and install Office 365”.

Accessing SharePoint and Teams

You can quickly access files stored in SharePoint and Teams document libraries and/or folders using your University OneDrive. When a document library is viewed within the SharePoint app there is a 'Add shortcut to OneDrive' button on the Document library Header bar.

This also enables the folder to be seen in OneDrive, File Explorer (on Windows computers) and within the Office apps such as Word, Excel and PowerPoint. Read more about this topic in the article “Can I access my SharePoint / Teams files via OneDrive and File Explorer?”

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Choose the best location to store your files

Almost all files in Microsoft 365 are stored in SharePoint. Your University OneDrive (for your personal work files) is a special personal version of SharePoint and Teams uses a SharePoint team site for storing files.

Content in your University OneDrive is automatically deleted when you leave the University, so it is important you only store personal work documents there.

 

Differences between Microsoft 365 storage applications

Personal work file storage: OneDrive

OneDrive is your personal workstorage space in Office 365. 

You should use OneDrive for:

• belong to you personally
• are confidential to yourself, such as any personal copies of human resource records
• files or folders that you want to share temporarily with other colleagues. 

Know more about storing files in OneDrive.

 

Shared storage: Teams and SharePoint

Shared files are documents that need to be accessed by others. This can include files that are being worked on by more than one individual, and files that need to be reviewed by others or presented to a specific audience.

Sharing a file with a specific audience

If you are sharing a file with a specific group of individuals, the preferred storage application to use would be:

• a team in Microsoft Teams 
  or
  •  a SharePoint Team site

A SharePoint team site can:

• be for a well-defined group (team)
• optionally forms part of a team in Teams

Sharing a file with a wider audience

If you are sharing a file with a wider audience (e.g. a department or the University), the preferred storage application to use would be a SharePoint Communication site.  

A SharePoint communication site:

• can be for a broad group (not a team)
• cannot form part of a team in Teams

Best practice guide about creating Communication sites (with SharePoint) and Team sites.

An important note about SharePoint team sites

When you create a SharePoint team site you are asked whether the team is Private or Public (Private is the default). You will not be asked this question for communication SharePoint sites.

If a SharePoint team site is 'Private', the team owners must be individually added team members. If a university colleague receives a link to a 'Private' team, the team owners are sent an email requesting approval for access. All external colleagues will still have to be added manually.

You might feel that this is a bit of a chore and think to select 'Public' instead. A Public team SharePoint site will allow anyone who has a university login (including students and alumni) to view and edit files without any prior authorization. 

 

Research data

How to store, manage, and share your data during a project

Research data will typically be stored, managed, and shared during a project.

While you may store research data with collaborators or on specialist platforms during your work, it is recommended that you store copies of your data on the Universities Research Filestore to ensure against data loss.

To request new or additional Research Filestore storage, or to request access to an existing Research Filestore, please use the “Research Filestore Request Form”.

 

How to retain your research data for longer

Research data will typically be stored, managed, and shared during a project, but may also need to be retained longer for a variety of reasons.

While you may store research data with collaborators or on specialist platforms (called Research Filestores) during your work, it is recommended that you store copies of your data on the Universities Research File Store to ensure against data loss.

If your research includes personal data or private information, then you must complete an Initial Data Protection Review (IDPR) which will indicate if a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) is needed, and store your data securely on:

• Research Filestore (a necessity if it is required to be accessed from HPC Iridis clusters)
• A platform which has been approved by the University's Information Security and Information Governance Group (ISIG)

Useful links:

• Know more about research data storage.
• Regulations, policies and guidelines – Research and enterprise policies (link “Research data management policy”).

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Use the right tool to store your data

Before storing your files, think about how you will use them in the future:

• Use OneDrive or Teams if you are thinking about keeping and editing your files in a private space or sharing them with a small team. It’s mostly for you.
• Use Sharepoint if you are thinking about creating private collaborative spaces or public sites able to engage thousands of users
• Research Data: staff, researchers, and students must follow the Research data Management procedure while:
  • Storing research data during the research
  • Depositing your data after publication

 

	OneDrive	Team in Teams	SharePoint team site	SharePoint communication site	Research Filestore
Personal work files storage	Yes	–	–	–	–
Data sharable with a small team	–	Yes	Yes	–	–
Data sharable with a big team or a department	–	–	Yes	Yes	–
Data to be shared within the University or with external users	–	–	–	Yes	–
Research data	–	–	Yes	–	Yes

 

A note about personal data

Whenever you ‘process’ personal data you must do so in accordance with the relevant Data legislation. Processing essentially covers anything you do with personal data from collection/receipt through to destruction/deletion. It is important to note that processing also covers storing data, even if you are not actively using it.

If you are working with personal data, you are responsible for ensuring it is processed in line with the University’s Data Protection Policy and relevant privacy notices. If unsure, contact the Information Governance team.

 

Editing and collaboration

OneDrive

Use OneDrive if you are thinking about:

• Storing your work-related files and documents in a working space that remains private until you share
• Edit your file and access them from everywhere
• Share your file with a colleague or a small team to edit it easily (for example, you can share the draft of a report to allow the rest of the team to make comments or suggest changes). In this case, you can individually change colleagues’ permissions letting them comment on or edit your file.

 

SharePoint team site

Use a SharePoint team site if you want or need to create a private space to collaborate with a small team, editing permissions for all.

SharePoint team sites allow you to:

• Track and stay updated on project status
• Share team resources and co-author content
• Be sure that all site owners and members can publish site content

Team sites are characterised by:

• Navigation menu on the left-hand side of the screen
• New members added via Members link in the top right-hand corner of the page
• New members cannot be added via a mailing/distribution group
• Colleagues external to University can be given access
• Requires at least 2 site owners on set up

 

Publishing

Chose SharePoint if you are looking to share and publish your files with a large group of people or with the whole University. In this case, you will set your files’ permissions to be read-only for most people.

Use SharePoint communication sites to share information that engages and informs viewers.

SharePoint communication sites allow you to:

• Create portals or subject-specific sites
• Engage dozens or thousands of viewers
• Have few content authors and many site visitors

Communication sites are characterised by:

• Navigation menu at the top of the screen
• New members added via Share link in top right-hand corner of the page
• Distribution groups can be used to add new members, therefore easy to add the complete sections of the University community as visitors to the site
• Colleagues external to University cannot be given access
• Can be set up with only one site owner

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Related content

Storing your files

Creating a Microsoft Team - a best practice guide

Filestore-Migration

Accessing SharePoint files from within your University OneDrive / File Explorer

How to check how much space you have left in your OneDrive storage