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Overview
This article explains the differences of the common document storage options for the MSU Community. It discusses Network storage, OneDrive storage, SharePoint, and Teams storage. It also has a link to a document that provides guidance on what types of data can be stored in different types of storage.
A good video to watch that compares OneDrive vs SharePoint vs Teams is available at Which tool when for files: SharePoint, OneDrive, or Microsoft Teams - YouTube (link).
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Guidance on Data Storage Usage by Type of Data
MSU has information about the storage types available on tech.msu.edu (link). Linked from that page is a tool set up to help guide the decision making process - Finder | MSU Data Storage Finder (link, login required).
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Mapped Network Drive (Elastic Storage)
Network storage or file share is a mapped network drive that is located on redundant storage in the MSU Data Center.
This storage solution can be used for:
- Teams related Standard Office Documents
- Video storage
- Image storage
- Small Access Database
- Specialized access to Volumes and Folders to specific individuals or security groups
This storage solutions should not be used for:
- High transaction – No SQL databases
Storage Limits:
Access:
- Specialized access to Volumes and Folders to specific individuals or security groups
Cost:
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OneDrive Storage (Spartan Drive)
Your personal OneDrive is the place to store the documents that you create and control.
This storage solution can be used for:
- All MS Office documents
- Videos
- Pictures
Storage Limits:
Access:
- You can share Spartan Drive folders or files with anyone including guest users via an email address.
Cost
- Centrally subsidized so no charge to individuals or departments
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SharePoint Storage (Spartan Storage)
SharePoint Communication sites can be synchronized with your OneDrive software. This storage should be used for Departmental wide documents such as:
- MS Office Documents
- Long term storage of your Team or Department related documents
This storage should not be used for:
Storage Limits:
- 1 TB per site. Up to 25TB
Cost
- Centrally subsidized so no charge to individuals or departments
Access
- Access to documents in site is managed by the owners of SharePoint site and is generally provided using Active Directory groups to both members and visitors.
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Teams Storage
Teams are the working hub for collaborating and co-authoring with team members. These are the types of documents to store in Teams:
- Short term working MS Office documents
- Documents with multiple authors and editors
Storage Limits:
- 1 TB per Team. Up to 25TB
Cost
- Centrally subsidized so no charge to individuals or departments
Access:
- Access to all documents in team is available to both team owners and all team members. Generally no segmentation of permissions for separate folders for individual team members.
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