Piratedrive is a server folder used for data file storage. A Piratedrive folder can be either personal or departmental. Each folder is password-protected, secure and backed up nightly. All disk activities using Piratedrive must conform to the ECU Academic Computer Use Policy and the University Student and Employee Computer Use Policy. These policies apply to all faculty, staff and students utilizing Piratedrive, unless otherwise noted.
Commercial use prohibited
Piratedrive users may not use disk storage for personal gain, for non-university, for-profit business or to advertise events or items for sale that result in a revenue gain for non-university departments, programs or organizations.
Illegal use prohibited
Illegal uses include, but are not limited to, unauthorized distribution or copying of copyrighted software, fraud and harassment. Files such as illegal MP3s are protected by copyright laws and are strictly forbidden.
Data retention and recovery
Piratedrive data is backed up and protected should data be accidentally deleted. Nightly backups are retained for 14 days while mid-day daily backups are retained for 7 days. A monthly backup is also retained for 3 months. These backups allow users to restore files by using the “Previous Versions” tab on their PC. If assistance is required, please submit a service request for data recovery.
If data, such as PII or research information, has specific retention requirements, the department is responsible for retaining the data on Piratedrive or making other arrangements.
Please note that it is the responsibility of the individual user to maintain any HIPAA data for a period of 7 years to conform to HIPAA regulations.
Reporting complaints
Complaints relating to the abuse of Piratedrive space should be directed to the IT Service Desk at 252-328-9866.
Personal Piratedrive
A personal Piratedrive folder is created for each student, staff and faculty, at the same time the email account is established. While not intended to back up an entire workstation, it is recommended that users store critical files in their personal Piratedrive folder. Personal Piratedrive folders are named the same as the user’s PirateID.
Users are reminded that Piratedrive folders are not a place to store music, games or executable files (software). Users may be asked to remove non-academic files. If not removed, pending an investigation by IT Security, ITCS reserves the right to remove files that do not conform to official university policies.
Personal Piratedrive folders can be accessed through PiratePort while on or off campus, or through “My Computer” from a Windows PC logged into the Intra domain on campus(The “U” drive).
Faculty and staff who require additional space should enter a Piratedrive service request. Student quotas may be increased if the need is demonstrated and approved.
Students requiring space for research projects and other academic functions will be given special consideration.
Department Piratedrive
Departments can also request a Piratedrive folder for office files. This is convenient when several department members must access the same files. More space can be requested through a Piratedrive service request.
Administrator Responsibilities
All department Piratedrive folders are required to have an administrator and backup administrator to manage the folder and subfolders.
Piratedrive administrators:
- Plan the folder structure
- Maintain documentation of folder administration
- Grant and remove user access
- Choose the access level for each user
- Review and modify user access on an as-needed basis
- Obtain ITPC (Identity Theft Protection Committee (ITPC) approval to store Social Security Numbers
- Obtain IT security approval of HIPAA data storage measures
- Protect sensitive data