CISE Help & Resources
Other Sources of Disk Space
Other than home space, there are several other sources of disk space available at CISE which may be appropriate to use under certain circumstances. Be sure to read the policy for each.
/tmp
Every machine has a directory /tmp . Any file stored here should be small and temporary. Placing files in /tmp can seriously degrade the performance of a machine or even cause it to crash. As such, any file placed here may be deleted by the sysadmins at any time and with no notice.
/var/tmp
A /var/tmp directory is available on every machine as well. It is not shared between machines (i.e. you cannot see files in /var/tmp from machine A on machine B). /var/tmp is designed to be used by running processes that need somewhere they can reliably store transient files. /var/tmp may be used by programs and scripts for this purpose, but care must be taken to store only small files here. If /var/tmp fills up, it can be impossible to compile programs, edit files, print, or run other programs which rely on being able to store temporary files there. /var/tmp should never be used for long term storage. Be sure to use the 'df' command to see if there is space there for your files.
/var/tmp should be regarded as very short term space. Files more than 14
days old, or large files that are filling up the disk are subject to deletion
without notification. Newer files may also be deleted if they are responsible
for filling up /var/tmp.
/cise/tmp
The /cise/tmp directory is mounted on every machine. It is available for storing temporary large files and directory trees. Like /var/tmp , it must be regarded as short term (though for larger files). Files more than 14 days old are subject to deletion without notification. Users who constantly use /cise/tmp to store files that they don't have room for in their home directory may lose the priviledge of using it at all.
/cise/tmp is never backed up, so important files should never be stored there.
Before storing files in /cise/tmp , be sure to use the 'df' command to check the amount of disk space free. /cise/tmp is used by some of the programs at CISE and if it fills up, they no longer work on any machine.
Project Space
Occasionally, students need space beyond what is available in their home directory quota. Project space is not intended to replace research space or class space. If all of the students in a class will require excess space, the professor should request space for the students. If a student is doing research for a professor, they should store materials used in that research on the professor's research disks. This material will be stored permanantly, and be available to the professor after the student has graduated.
Frequently though, students do special projects which require additional disk space. Class projects (where the student designs the project and disk space requirements vary from student to student) and senior projects come under this category. Requests for project space for from non-students or for projects not related to a CISE class work will not be granted as a rule.
Also, students often need extra space for collaboration with other students. Home directories are not generally suited for collaborative space due to default group membership and filesystem quotas. Project space can be owned by a group and shared amongst members of that group. To request a group be created, please see
Once the space is created, users can then share files between the members. Group-owned project space is ideal for repositories for verion control software like CVS and subversion.
To request Project space, please click here. You will need the following information:
- The name of the project.
The name should be a short (8-12 character) name involving letters and numbers (no spaces or punctuation). Also, the name must be unique. To check to see if a name is in use, type the following at a Unix command line prompt:
ypmatch class/PROJECT amd_cise_class
where PROJECT is the name of the project. If that name is in use, the command will return output similar to:
type:=link;sublink:=${/key};fs:=/cise/class01If the project name is NOT in use (i.e. it is free for you to use), the command output will be:
Can't match key class/PROJECT in map amd_cise_class.Reason: no such key in map.
- The amount of disk space requested. Requests for excessive disk space will likely be denied, so your request should be reasonable and justifiable.
- The approximate amount of time the space will be needed. Although long-term requests may be accepted, the length of time should be justified. This space is oriented primarily to class projects, so requests should typically be one semester.
- A brief description of the project (basically, a justification for the amount of space requested, and the time it will be used for). If it is a class project, or senior project, include the name of the professor in charge of the class, or overseeing the project.
If the request is approved, the space will be available as:
/cise/class/PROJECT
A project web page can be created in the directory:
/cise/class/PROJECT/public_html
and will be accessible with the URL:
http://www.cise.ufl.edu/class/PROJECT/
Note: hosting a web site not related to a CISE project may be considered abuse, as will using this space for doing work for a non-CISE employer. This space should not be used for such a purpose.
Research Space
Faculty members may purchase disks for use on the CISE computers. Usage on these disks is determined entirely by that professor. Members of their research group may be given access to that disk at the professor's discretion.
This should be the primary recourse for professors who need additional disk space. Research space should also be made available by the professor to members of their research group who have been assigned tasks that will require large amounts of disk space.
For more details, refer to the Research Disk Space Page.
FTP Space
The use of FTP space is available, but will only be granted when the need cannot be met using a public_html directory.
Requests for FTP space will be evaluated and granted on a case by case basis. Under most cases, such requests will be treated as temporary duration depending on the nature of the request.
FTP Incoming Space
CISE has an incoming directory in the anonymous FTP site. Use of this directory is allowed for temporary file transfers, but other methods should be used whenever possible. Files older than 14 days old may be deleted without notice.