Tier 3 Research Storage#

Tier 3 is a low-cost tape-based storage environment for static, rarely accessed research data. It is operated through the NESE (Northeast Storage Exchange) Tape service, maintained by Harvard at MGHPCC. Tier 3 is connected to Tier 2 via high-speed network links for straightforward data migration.

Important

Tier 3 has no free base allocation — all storage is charged at $12/TB/year, effective July 1, 2026. See RT Announcements for full details.

Important

Tier 3 is available for HPC storage only and is intended for long-term retention of data that does not require regular access.

Storage Details#

Detail

Value

Technology

Tape (NESE, hosted at MGHPCC)

Minimum allocation

5 TB (in 5 TB increments)

Base allocation

None — all storage is charged

Cost

$12/TB/year (effective July 1, 2026)

Prerequisites#

  • Active Tufts account and a Tier 2 or Tier 1 HPC storage allocation

  • A Globus account linked to your Tufts credentials

Requesting Storage#

Submit a Research Storage Request to request a Tier 3 allocation. Allocations are provisioned in 5 TB increments. Use the Data Storage Finder to confirm Tier 3 is appropriate for your data.

For questions, contact tts-research@tufts.edu.

Access Method — Globus#

Tier 3 tape storage is accessed exclusively through Globus.

  1. Log in to Globus with your Tufts credentials

  2. In the File Manager, click the Collection field and search for “Tufts”

  3. Select the Tufts Tier 3 Storage collection

  4. Authenticate with your Tufts credentials when prompted

  5. Transfer files to or from your Tier 3 allocation

See the full Globus guide for setup, transferring files, and monitoring transfers.

Note

Tape storage has higher latency than disk-based tiers. Retrieval of data may take longer than transfers between Tier 1 and Tier 2.

Moving Data to Tier 3#

Tier 3 is best suited for data that has already been moved to Tier 2 and is no longer accessed regularly. Archiving data to Tier 3 is not a self service operation. If you have data in Tier 2 you would like to move, please open a support ticket with Research Technology and they will assist you.