Secure Space Service to be discontinued
The Secure Space service will be discontinued shortly, and will be replaced by Penn+Box, Penn's recently launched collaboration service.* In preparation, Secure Space users should be transitioning their data to Penn+Box now.
Penn+Box is a cloud-based, online storage service. Penn+Box allows you to access, edit, and share stored files on your workstation and a variety of mobile devices. In addition to applications and tools that facilitate collaboration and data sharing with colleagues at Penn and other institutions, all Penn+Box faculty, students, and staff start with 20GB of free space. Extra storage can also be purchased at rates less than Secure Space. We believe that the Penn+Box large and rich feature set will meet, enhance, and grow with your data and collaboration needs. Please note that the Secure Share service, which is used to exchange sensitive or confidential information electronically, is not affected by this announcement and will continue operation.
How to migrate your data from Secure Space to Penn+Box
1. Create a Penn+Box account. To use the migration tool you must already have a Penn+Box account. To learn how to set up your account as well as frequently asked questions about the service, please visit http://www.upenn.edu/computing/box.
2. Use the tool and plan accordingly. A migration tool is available to assist you in moving your content to Penn+Box. When you log in to Secure Space, you can access and use the migration tool labeled "Copy to Penn+Box" for all spaces in which you are the admin. The person who creates a space, the "space owner" is the admin of that space. The tool allows you to move your data at the folder level. Remember that you are moving data from one application to another and moving large amounts of data may take some time to complete so plan accordingly.
3. Watch this short video for instructions. The video, "Secure Space to Penn+Box Migration" at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jawRZjOZdw will walk you through moving your data using the "Copy to Penn+Box" tool.
Questions?
If you have questions or concerns about the discontinuation of the Secure Space service, please contact: securespace-help@lists.upenn.edu.
* Please note: The retirement of Secure Space is contingent on a forthcoming Business Associates Agreement (BAA) with Box, a contract that will permit the secure storage of electronic Protected Health Information (e.g., HIPAA data) on Penn+Box.
Secure Space
Welcome to Secure Space, a web-based service that enables faculty and staff engaged in collaborative activities to securely share files with colleagues at Penn and other institutions. Secure Space is flexible and scalable, offering quick setup of shared file storage space; user access controls; a free space option that will meet the needs of many teams or projects; and a more robust paid option, with fees based on actual usage. Files are encrypted in transit and at rest, and all data are held at Penn, reducing some of the risks associated with commercial, cloud-based services.
Secure Space offers a secure, local alternative to "cloud"-based commercial options such as DropBox and BaseCamp. Secure Space is functionally different from Secure Share, which is used to exchange sensitive or confidential information electronically.
How Secure Space works
A faculty or staff member ("space owner") can define a virtual storage space for documents, authorize internal and external users ("members"), and customize what they see in the space (e.g., banner message, email link). Four access options are available: download/upload, download-only, upload-only, or administrative access. A project milestone chart can be maintained and prominently displayed in the space. Users can view, create, and remove folders; upload and download files; "lock" files to ensure that others don't work on them simultaneously; and "watch" file activity. They can also view logs and access old file versions. Certain of these functions are not available to "download-only" or "upload-only" users.
Free and paid space options compared
| Free spaces | Paid spaces |
|---|
| Amount of space | 50 MB space limit | Unlimited, pay for space used (no per user charges) |
| Number of spaces per owner | 5 | Unlimited |
| File lifetime | Files purged after 1 year of inactivity | Unlimited |
| Required credentials | PennKey only | PennKey, or external credentials. |
| Number of spaces per owner | 5 | Unlimited |
| Types of owners | Faculty and staff only | Faculty and staff only |
| Types of members | No restrictions | No restrictions |
Paid option costs
The cost of storage space for any given month is based on the amount and duration of usage that month. The current rate is $3.00 per gigabyte per month, with a minimum charge of $3.00 (per month).
Access
Log on at https://securespace.apps.upenn.edu
Benefits of Secure Space
- Is secure and easy to use
- Reduces the University's exposure to data compromise issues
- Supports collaboration with colleagues outside of Penn
- Mitigates many of the risks associated with commercial "cloud" services:
