Service Policy
Scope and purpose
The University of Reading Research Data Archive is an institutional repository for the preservation and sharing of research datasets produced at the University of Reading. Datasets deposited in the Archive are validated and managed in accordance with the FAIR Principles for Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Re-usable research data.
The Archive can be used by University of Reading research staff and research students to preserve and publish data supporting research undertaken at the University in accordance with the University's Research Data Management Policy and any other applicable data sharing policies.
Data of any type and in any discipline are accepted. Datasets may be open, subject to embargo, or restricted and accessible under controlled conditions to authorised users only.
Management and administration
The Archive is managed by the Research Data Service. Its staff will review, approve, publish and maintain metadata records and datasets deposited in the Archive in accordance with the Archive’s policies.
Enquiries and support requests should be directed to researchdata@reading.ac.uk.
Registered Users
Registered users are eligible to deposit datasets in the Archive. They may be:
- Members of University staff;
- University-registered postgraduate students.
Registered users can log in to the Archive using their University username and password. By logging in to the service users agree to the Terms and conditions for registered users.
Public users
The Archive is a publicly accessible service. Public users may access and use metadata records and datasets held in the Archive, subject to the terms and conditions of the Archive and any terms of use specific to individual datasets and the data files they contain.
Charges
Datasets may be deposited by registered users free of charge.
Size limits
There is a size limit of 20 GB per deposit. Users who wish to deposit datasets larger than 20 GB should contact the Research Data Service for advice.
Service levels
Availability
The Archive will be accessible twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, with 99% target uptime during any calendar month.
Weekly service maintenance takes place every Tuesday between 07.00 and 09.00. During this time the Archive may for brief periods be partially or wholly unavailable.
Wherever possible at least five days’ notice of any planned downtime outside of the weekly maintenance window will be provided on the Archive interface.
Any unscheduled service outages will be managed to minimise impact on the service and to bring the Archive back to full operation as soon as possible. In the event of an unscheduled loss of service please contact researchdata@reading.ac.uk.
Support
User support is provided from 09:00 to 17:00 during University working days.
Notifications of deposits made by registered users will be received by the Research Data Service on the next working day. We aim to respond to depositors within two working days from that time.
Support requests and enquiries should be sent to researchdata@reading.ac.uk.
Preservation and security of data
The Archive is a preservation service and is managed to Information Security standard ISO27001. The Archive holds two copies of deposited data in separate data centres, and places a third copy in escrow with an independent third party.
Disclaimer
The University makes no undertakings as to the accuracy of any dataset or metadata record or their conformity with any relevant laws, and accepts no liability for mistakes, omissions, or legal infringements within any dataset or metadata record.
Use of any information supplied by the Archive is at the user's own risk. Users should read carefully any information supplied with a dataset which qualifies the accuracy or viability of the data supplied.
The University accepts no liability for any errors or losses caused by any inaccuracies in information supplied by the Archive, or for the consequences of any person acting on or otherwise relying on such information.
While every care will be taken to preserve all datasets, the University is not liable for loss of or damage to any datasets stored in the Archive.