At IU, what is MDSSWeb and how do I use it?

On this page:

• Introduction
  
• The directory listing
  
• Sorting the directory listing
  
• The MDSSWeb toolkit
  
• Navigating folders
  
• Downloading files to your computer
  
• Using the MDSSWeb toolkit
  
• Other methods of connecting
  

Note: The MDSSWeb interface is very similar to that of RFSWeb. Therefore, if you use RFSWeb, the MDSSWeb interface will be familiar to you.

Introduction

MDSSWeb is the web interface to the Massive Data Storage Service (MDSS) at Indiana University. If you don't yet have an MDSS account, see At IU, how can I apply for an account on the MDSS or RFS?

Note: For information about other methods of accessing the MDSS, see At IU, how do I access the MDSS?

To connect to your MDSS space via the web, you will need to have a current web browser that supports secure connections via the SSL protocol. In your browser, go to:

You will be prompted to log in; enter your Network ID username and passphrase. After you connect to your MDSS space, you will find yourself at the MDSSWeb home page, which shows the following:

• At the top left, your username after "User:" and the name of the folder you are currently in after "Folder:"
  
  
• Two rows of buttons (described below) including New Folder, Upload file, Logout, Delete, Move, Copy, Rename, and Change ACL
  
  
• A directory listing of files and folders you have placed in the MDSS

The directory listing

The directory listing consists of five columns:

• Select: Contains a checkbox for selecting a file or folder (described below)
  
  
• Column 2: Contains an icon denoting the kind of file stored
  
  
• Name: Lists the names of your files or folders
  
  
• Size: Lists the sizes of your files in kilobytes
  
  
• Modified: Lists the date and time each file or folder was last modified

Sorting the directory listing by name or size

If you click the column headings Name, Size, or Modified, the directory listing will redisplay sorted by that heading.

The MDSSWeb toolkit

At the top of the screen, you will find the MDSSWeb toolkit, a collection of buttons that allow you to perform various operations such as renaming a file and creating a new folder. If there are more than 15 items in the directory listing, a duplicate MDSSWeb toolkit is provided at the bottom as well. The toolkit buttons are described below.

Note: In this document, the terms "directory" and "folder" are used interchangeably.

Navigating folders

Click a directory or folder to enter the folder. Once inside a folder, click the Back button on your browser to return to the previous level. You can also go up one level by clicking Up one level at the top of the directory listing. Near the top of the screen, next to "Folder:", you will see the complete hierarchy for your current location, for example:

Each folder or file will be a link; click any of the links to go directly to that folder or file.

When you click a filename, the appropriate application for that file type may launch if your browser and operating system understand the file type. For example, if you are accessing MDSSWeb under Windows Internet Explorer, clicking files with the .doc extension (i.e., Microsoft Word files) may launch Word within the web browser itself.

Warning: Even though a file may open automatically with the appropriate application (e.g., Word), saving any changes you make to it will not communicate the changes back to the MDSS. The MDSSWeb interface is intended to be view-only for files; therefore, do not try to edit Microsoft Office or other types of files directly within the web interface. If you want to edit Microsoft Office files, or files created with other applications, download them to your local disk first (using the method described below), and then edit the version on your local disk, saving any changes you make to the version on the local disk. After you finish, upload the file back from your local disk to the MDSS using the Upload file button (described below).

Downloading files to your computer

Right-click the filename (in Mac OS and Mac OS X, Ctrl-click), and then select an option to save the file (the exact text of the options will depend upon your web browser). Choose a location to save the file, and then click the appropriate button to save the file to disk.

Using the MDSSWeb toolkit

The toolkit near the top allows you to perform a number of useful operations. For a majority of these, you will need to select a file in your MDSS space. To do so, identify the file or folder and click the checkbox to its left. The information below describes how to use the buttons in the toolkit.

New Folder (Creating folders)

The New Folder button in the toolkit allows you to create a new folder in the MDSS folder you are viewing currently. Click New Folder and, on the page that appears, enter the name of the folder you want to create. Then click New Folder.

Upload file (Uploading files from your computer to the MDSS)

MDSSWeb allows you to upload a single file at a time from your computer to the MDSS. The file will be uploaded into the current MDSS folder (i.e., the one displayed currently in the web browser). To upload, go to the desired MDSS folder, and then click the Upload file button in the toolkit. On the next page, click the Browse button, and you will see a window showing files on your computer. Choose the file to upload, and then click Upload file to upload. If a file with the same name exists already in MDSS and you want to replace it with the one you're uploading from your computer to MDSS, you must click Overwrite file if it already exists. This will destroy the old file in the MDSS and replace it with the file you are uploading.

Delete (Deleting files or folders)

Warning: Before using the Delete button, make sure that you don't have files or folders selected unintentionally, or else they will all be deleted. Unlike RFS, MDSS has no 1day-backup folder or other means of undoing a delete action.

To delete a file or folder, select it, and then click the Delete button in the toolkit.

Note: Folders are deleted recursively; in other words, all subfolders and files inside the folder you select to delete are also deleted.

Move (Moving files or folders)

The Move button in the toolkit allows you to move a file or folder (preserving its name) from the current folder to another folder in the MDSS space. To move a file or folder, select it, and then click Move. Supply a target folder to move to and click Continue. For example, if you have a file called myfile at the top level, and want to move it to the folder myfolder, also at the top level, you would type /myfolder as the target directory name.

Note: Folders are moved recursively; in other words, all subfolders and files inside the folder you select to be moved are also moved.

Copy (Copying files or folders)

The Copy button in the toolkit allows you to copy a file or folder (preserving its name) to another existing folder. To copy a file or folder, select it, and then click Copy. Supply a target directory to copy to and click Continue. For example, if you have a file called myfile at the top level, and want to copy it to the folder myfolder, also at the top level, you would type /myfolder as the target directory name.

Note: Folders are copied recursively; in other words, all subfolders and files inside the folder you select to be copied are also copied.

Rename (Renaming files or folders)

The Rename button in the toolkit allows you to rename a file or folder in the current directory or folder. Select a file or folder to rename, and then click Rename. On the next page, type the new filename and click Continue.

Change ACL (Changing Access Control Lists for files or folders)

The Change ACL button in the toolkit allows you to manipulate the permissions of files and directories, granting or denying access to other MDSS users or groups. To use it, click the checkbox next to the file or folder for which you wish to change the permissions and then click the Change ACL button.

This will take you to a screen that contains a table of existing ACLs for the file or folder. Your account, as the owner, will have full access. You can grant different permissions to other existing users by checking the checkbox in the appropriate column, or unchecking it to revoke permissions.

To add a new user or group to this list, use one of the drop-down menus in the column on the left and choose whether it is a user or group you wish to add. Next, type the name of the user or group in the box provided in the "name" column. Finally, check those boxes to the right that correspond to the permissions you would like to grant to this new user or group.

When you're done making changes, click Change ACL to enact the changes. You'll then be shown a list of the changes made in MDSS.

View Used Space

To see how much space your files are using in MDSS, click the View Used Space link. Your usage will be compared against the default user quota of 1TB.

Other methods of connecting

For information about other methods of connecting to the MDSS, see At IU, how do I access the MDSS?