CC* Data Storage: Flexible Affordable Scalable Technology for Research Storage (FAST-Research Storage)

The Flexible Affordable Scalable Technology for Research Storage (FAST) is a shared research storage system based on commodity data center hardware and open source CEPH software that provides a flexible, high-performance, cost-effective, tiered data storage system in support of research data storage requirements. The FAST system provides both Network Attached Storage (NAS) and Object Store storage models, along with guidance for choosing wisely between them.

Object storage services support efficient packaging of data sets, including the complete set of metadata, for both operational use and long-term data storage. FAST also includes scripts to package, migrate data between storage tiers, and facilitate the use of appropriate storage to meet researcher’s requirements. Cloud-based long-term cold storage environments are part of the data lifecycle to support data retention requirements cost-effectively.

By using commodity hardware FAST is easily expanded and capable of incorporating researcher purchased hardware into the environment.

The system (20%) will be shared with the community via the Open Science Data Federation (OSDF) as well as with minority service institutions in North Carolina through a community storage grant program. Both sharing models allow researchers to publish data for public consumption, stage data to facilitate local analysis and provide robust storage service to schools which may not otherwise have access to these services.

The expected impact of FAST is to reduce the amount of time, effort, and money that researchers spend managing their data, ensuring long-term access to data, with the data stored in the right place at the right time and cost.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.