East Carolina University
 
Computing@ECU
Piratedrive Frequently Asked Questions


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ITCS Title
Pirate Drive



Piratedrive

Frequently Asked Questions

 

  1. Why do we need Piratedrive?

     ITCS saw a need for faculty and staff to have a central location to save important files. Also, as part of a server consolidation effort, and to reduce costs, Piratedrive will allow departments to use Piratedrive as a departmental file server instead of investing thousands of dollars in an expensive server. ITCS will work with departments who have a need for centralized departmental file storage or who own servers and would like to migrate data to Piratedrive.

  2. Do I have space on Piratedrive and how much?

     Yes. Every faculty, staff, and student has space on Piratedrive. Your Piratedrive folder is created at the same time your e-mail account is established. Student folders and faculty/staff folders are housed in separate locations and are both identified by your PirateID.

    • Students have 1 GB of disk space
    • Faculty/staff have 1 GB of disk space
    • Departments have a default 5 GB limit.

  3. What if I need more space?

     For faculty, staff, and students, requests should be made to the ECU Help Desk for additional storage space. A representative from ITCS will contact the user to discuss options. For space to be increased, approval from the dean or department chair may be required. For departments, additional space can be purchased.

  4. What is the cost of additional space for my department?

    Additional space on Piratedrive can be purchased for under $5/GB.  However, prices are subject to change based on current storage costs.

  5. How do I access my folder on campus and off campus?

    Access on Campus    . Faculty, staff, and student personal folders are accessible directly from any PC that logs into the INTRA domain. Upon login to the INTRA domain, a "U" drive will automatically be mapped to your folder. Your "U" drive will follow you from PC to PC as long as you are logging into INTRA.

    Departmental drives can be accessed by mapping a drive to your computer.

    Macintosh users may refer to the Macintosh compatibility matrix for accessibility options.

    Access off Campus - Faculty, staff and students have access to their Piratedrive personal folders through OneStop (http://onestop.ecu.edu). Piratedrive files opened from OneStop are editable.

  6. Could I store my Outlook personal folders on Piratedrive and access them through Piratemail?  

    No, personal folders must be kept on your computer. However, a copy can be saved to Piratedrive as a back up.

  7. How do I give access to my departmental Piratedrive (Only for the Departmental Administrator)?

    1. Browse to your Department's Piratedrive via My Computer.
    2. Next right click on the folder and go down to Properties and choose the Security Tab.
    3. Now click on add and add the PirateID of the new user.
    4. You can also add groups, if you have one set up. (To get a group added contact the Help Desk). In the Permission box just choose the Modify checkbox and Apply.
    5. Please do not remove Administrators or Domain Admins from the list. See below for Modifying Permissions.

    FOLDER PERMISSIONS
    NTFS File Permission     Allowed Access
    Read This allows the user or group to view the files, folders, and subfolders of the parent folder. It also allows the viewing of folder ownership, permissions, and attributes of that folder.
    Write This allows the user or group to create new files and folders within the parent folder as well as view folder ownership and permissions and change the folder attributes.
    List Folder Contents This allows the user or group to view the files and subfolders contained within the folder.
    Read & Execute This allows the user or group to navigate through all files and subfolders including perform all actions allowed by the Read and List Folder Contents permissions.
    Modify This allows the user to delete the folder and perform all activities included in the Write and Read & Execute NTFS folder permissions.
    Full Control This allows the user or group to change permissions on the folder, take ownership of it, and perform all activities included in all other permissions.

  8. How is access removed for users who no longer require access to my departmental Piratedrive?

    It is the responsibility of the department's Piratedrive administrator to remove a user when access is no longer required. 

  9. How do I know how much space my data is taking up?

     On a PC, select all the files/folders on your U drive from within Windows Explorer by clicking on the U drive, select edit, then select all from the drop down menu. This will highlight all your files/folders. Then select file and properties from the drop down menu. This will display your total disk usage.

  10. How will I know when my folder is full?

     If you do not proactively monitor your disk usage, it is possible to reach your quota limit. When copying or saving a file to the U drive, a message will be displayed that says the disk is full. This means you have hit the quota and must delete some files in order to save additional files.

  11. I work in a department, and we would like space for our departmental files. What should I do?

     Departments submit an IT Help Desk service request. One person should be selected to be the departmental administrator for the folder, but there should also be a person designated as a back-up admin. The administrator will be responsible for maintaining security on the folder as well as adding access for other departmental staff.

  12. Help! I can't access my folder. What should I do?

     First, be sure you are logging into the INTRA domain. Macintosh users should refer to the compatibility matrix to ensure a supported access method is being used. If you are trying to access the "U" drive, contact the Help Desk at 328-9866 to report the problem. If you are trying to access your departmental folder, contact your departmental administrator for assistance.

  13. Can I install an application to run on Piratedrive?

     No. Piratedrive is strictly a file server and applications cannot be installed on it. You can, however, copy .exe files on Piratedrive which will then launch on your workstation once they are double-clicked.

  14. Can I use Piratedrive for my Web pages?

     Piratedrive is not a Web server nor does it have a URL for accessing via Internet Explorer or any other Web browser. You can save Web page files on Piratedrive, but others cannot view these files through a Web browser.

  15. What happens to Piratedrive if ITCS experiences hardware problems? Is my data still going to be available?

     Piratedrive is 100% redundant with automatic fail over. There is no single point of failure. As with all computer hardware, unexpected problems do occur, but access interruptions should be significantly less than with typical servers.

  16. With so many people accessing Piratedrive, will there be any performance issues? How will file transfer time compare to a regular server?

     You should not notice any performance issues even with so many users on Piratedrive. Piratedrive has ample network bandwidth to handle lots of traffic. File transfer times to/from Piratedrive may be faster than a typical Windows server. Remember, Piratedrive is designed and optimized for quick file transfer.

  17. Why can't I use Piratedrive if I am logging into another domain?

     Piratedrive is a member of the INTRA domain. In an effort to offer the best possible service and security, it is only available to users who log into INTRA.

  18. What is my "U" drive and why does it show up every time I log into my PC?

     Your "U" drive is a permanent drive mapped to your individual Piratedrive personal folder whether you are a student, faculty, or staff member. ITCS has selected the letter "U" to be mapped on any PC that logs into the INTRA domain. By doing this, your "U" drive will follow you to any PC on campus where you log into the INTRA domain.

  19. What happens if I don't have a "U" drive?

     First, make sure you are logging into the INTRA domain. Next, you must be using a PC with Windows 2000 or later. Older versions of Windows such as NT, 98, or 95 are not compatible with automatic drive mappings. If you log into INTRA with your domain username and do not have a "U" drive, contact the Help Desk at 328-9866.

  20. Can I change my "U" drive to a different letter?

     No, you cannot change it to a different letter. It will always map as U upon login to the INTRA domain.

  21. Will my Macintosh have a "U" drive?

     Since Macintosh computers do not map drives the same as a PC, there won't be a "U" drive for Mac users. Mac users are able to connect to Piratedrive through an SMB connection to access their data for both the "U" drive and departmental folders. Refer to the Macintosh compatibility matrix to be sure a supported connection is being used. Generally speaking, newer Mac's with OS 10.x are supported and work well. OS9 and older operating systems are more limited in abilities to communicate with non Macintosh hardware.

  22. How safe is my data on Piratedrive?

     Piratedrive security is set up so that the "U" drive is only accessible by the owner of that folder. Nobody else can access the "U" drive data. For departmental data, the local departmental administrator will maintain security through NTFS file and folder permissions. This means that security will be setup in such a way that no one can access data without being given specific access privileges.

  23. Is data stored on Piratedrive safe from hackers?

    No computer system can prevent every hacker attack, but Piratedrive is firewall-protected, and access is only allowed to those physically or virtually connected to ECU's network. However, a compromise of your PirateID or local computer can lead to a compromise of the data on Piratedrive. The entire ECU community should follow safe computing practices both on and off campus.

  24. What if I delete some files and realize I still need them?

     ITCS maintains disk images of Piratedrive for 7 days, and users only need map a drive to those disk images. If it has been longer than 7 days, ITCS can pull from backups to tape. This process takes a little longer than restoring from a disk image. Please contact the Help Desk as soon as you realize important data has been deleted if you are unable to find the files.

  25. Can I access my "U" drive through FTP?

    Yes, you can access the "U" drive via FTP at piratedrive.ecu.edu. Use your PirateID and passphrase for access. Once authenticated, you will be automatically routed into your personal folder and will see any files that are present.

  26. Can I access my departmental folder through FTP?

    Yes, departmental folders are accessible via FTP. Contact the Helpdesk at 328-9866 and open a help desk request for assistance with Piratedrive. Tell the technician you need assistance using FTP to access your Piratedrive departmental folder. Someone from ITCS will then contact you to provide assistance in setting up FTP to access the departmental folder.