Managing data in your institution James A J Wilson [email protected] [email protected] Friday 24 June 2011.

Managing data in your institution

James A J [email protected]

Friday 24 June 2011

Research Data Management

• Rather neglected until recently

– Little recognition of importance

– Little training

“It feels as though it should be common sense, but I wonder how far common sense

gets you” – postdoctoral researcher in linguistics

“It’s easy to waste a lot of time, so it’s good to get things organized right from the

start” – postgraduate researcher in linguistics

• Now attracting investment and interest

– JISC Managing Research Data programme

– Increasing institutional recognition of importance of data assets

– Drivers include: funding councils; reputation management; FOI requests;

REF impact; publishers; researchers themselves

Research data infrastructure at Oxford

• Programme begun in 2008 with an internal scoping study

• Eidcsr (JISC funded, 2009-2010)– Scoping and piloting institutional data repository (software, metadata, etc.)

– Development of data management policy

• Sudamih (JISC funded, 2010-2011)– Researcher training (organising materials, software and tools to help, etc.)

– Pilot ‘Database as a Service’ (DaaS)

• VIDaaS (JISC & HEFCE funded, 2011-2012)– Full production-level DaaS, ready to use, hosted on cloud infrastructure

A research data lifecycle

Training

• No real concept of ‘best practice’“I’ve just sort of picked it up, and probably not learnt lots of little tricks that might save time. I’ve

picked things up by talking to other people … but on the whole the people I tend to talk to about

research often aren’t particularly technically minded.” - early-career researcher in Classics

• Common problems that can compromise re-usability include:

– Lack of documentation

– Inappropriate choice of technology

– Poor organisation / structuring

– Idiosyncratic data selection or manipulation

“People need to think about their data not just in terms of what they want to do now (which is often

just to make a list), but in terms of what they might want to do with it in the future.” – senior

lecturer in Music Faculty

How to share data

• Database practices vary greatly between researchers

• But the process often looks like this...

Looks like there is some interesting data behind this

But it doesn’t makes much sense to me

How to share data

Nice data –I can use this!Oh.

• Database practices vary greatly between researchers

• or this...

Problems identified

• Lack of technological awareness

• Poor backing-up practices

• Collaboration difficult

• Difficult to re-discover and re-use data

• Risk of technical obsolescence

• Servers and Websites costs money

• Funding only lasts as long as the project, but servers and websites

require maintenance

• Technical expertise required

What is the DaaS?

• A web-based system that will enable researchers to quickly and intuitively

– build a relational database from scratch, or

– Import an existing database in common formats (such as Access)

• Generic data addition, editing, and querying interfaces

– Research groups may, if desired, develop their own Web front-end interfaces

to databases hosted by DaaS

• Databases centrally hosted, maintained, and routinely backed up

• Access controls to determine who can view or edit each database

• Metadata capture to improve data rediscovery

• Economies of scale

Using the DaaSI can access and cite good research data

I can find what data other people have

been gathering

We can quickly & easily add & edit data and open it to the public

DaaS Components

1. ‘Core’ DaaS database management system – database admin and

user interface for browsing and editing databases

2. Conversion utility - converts existing databases in Access or CSV

formats into PostgreSQL

3. Graphical SQL-designer utility - create or modify database structures

via a simple Web interface

4. Graphical form-builder utility - drag and drop buttons, text fields,

multiple choice menus, and other standard form components

5. Advanced SQL query-builder - construct sophisticated search queries

without needing to be an SQL expert [In development]

Core DaaS System

• Simple interfaces for

– Registering projects, users, and databases

– Editing and browsing data

PostgreSQL Converter

• Import and export

databases in various

common formats,

including Access

SQL Designer

• All possible types of

relationship between tables

are available

• Not limited to use in the

DaaS

• Will be able to import and

re-structure existing

databases

Form Builder

• Enables the user to drag and

drop buttons, text fields,

multiple choice menus, and

other standard form

components via a

straightforward Web interface

• Potentially has uses beyond

the DaaS

Virtual Infrastructure with Database as a Service (VIDaaS)

• Follow-on project to Sudamih – just started!

• Extended functionality beyond the humanities

• Incorporation of data storage models other than relational

databases (e.g. document-based and native XML)

• Deployment as a cloud-based software service

– Identity and access management issues

– Involves advance monitoring and management tools

– Capable of running on other institutions’ virtual infrastructures

• Improved user interface, documentation, and support

Join us!

• Now in process of testing and improving DaaS

• Test users get service for free (for one project & within reason!)

• System to go live to early adopters in November

• Full launch in January 2012

http://vidaas.oucs.ox.ac.uk/

[email protected]://sudamih.oucs.ox.ac.uk/