How can I access archived research data?

Created by Mirjam Kamps
Last updated: Jun 10, 2021 by Maarten Coonen (Unlicensed)

 Several download tools are available for achieving this

When using a storage facility for your research data, you sometimes want to extract parts of that data or you simply want to access specific files. Several download tools are available for achieving this, all having their own functionalities and specifications. DataHub has performed a comparison of several methods to access the data archived at DataHub. By using one of these tools you can access files stored at DataHub as if it was stored on your own computer. 

Methods
Characteristics
Remarks

Compared tools:

  • Cyberduck
  • Mountainduck
  • YodaDrive
  • RaiDrive
  • davfs2
  • Windows Explorer

All applications:

  • can download single files;
  • can download recursively;
  • have simple installers or are included in the operating system;
  • can save username and password;
  • or ask for username and password each time;
  • show the default HTTP 401 error code when 24h-password has expired;
  • can save multiple connection profiles;
  • can mount from a specific path.


  • Differences in download speed.
  • Differences in prices.
  • RaiDrive can mount over an existing network drive. This is confusing.
  • RaiDrive comes with advertisements.
  • RaiDrive creates 3 inbound rules in the Windows Firewall. DataHub recommends to delete these rules after installation.
  • Windows Explorer requires a change in the registry. This comes with a risk.
  • Windows Explorer causes a download error with files above 4 GiB.
  • Windows Explorer progress bar not reflecting actual speed.


Recommendations for Windows users

Read the full report

User manual

If you want to look at the complete user manual for using of these tools, you can find it here:

 /wiki/spaces/IN/pages/15302786