Data Mover

Owned by Andy Tseng
Last updated: Apr 09, 2024 by Robert Hutton
3 min read

Introduction

Mediaflux Data Mover is a native tool for moving data to and from Mediaflux projects via shareable links.  Data transfer is secure, robust, done in parallel and can be paused/resumed.  Data Mover can be used by all users, not just those who have a Mediaflux account (see below).

Data Mover is supported for macOS, Windows 10 (Windows 7 also works) and Linux.

Additional features:

  • Generic Data Transfer allows transfer of large datasets between users.  A Mediaflux account is not required.
  • Instrument uploads allow data upload from instruments with central storage and data dispatch to end users.

More details can be found in the Data Mover Reference.

Using the Data Mover

In general, you will use Data Mover when you get sent a link (upload or download) by email.  When you click on that link, the Data Mover client will start up if it's already installed, otherwise your web browser will download the installer. Once started, the Data Mover will present you with a simple GUI  to either download or upload data, depending on the type of link you were sent.

You can also start Data Mover manually, click the Add new button and paste in the shareable link to proceed.

More details can be found on:

Data Mover shareable links can be made in two different ways:

  1. As part of the instrument upload workflow: a download link is automatically created and emailed to the end user to access their data.  
  2. With Mediaflux Explorer
    • You can create a shareable link that you can send to another user to invite them to either download or upload data
      • Start the Mediaflux Explorer tool and log in as usual
      • Select a folder from the navigator pane on the left, right click, and select Create Download Share or Create Upload Share
      • Fill in the details including the email address of a recipient
    • For more information, see the video on this topic (Sharing and Receiving data)
    • Details of Explorer/Data Mover process can be found in the Data Mover Reference

Note:

  • If you create a download link, only the data that exists at the time you made the link will be downloadable. Anything you add after will not be delivered by a pre-existing link.
  • Mediaflux Explorer also has a menu item (Shares->Manage Shares) with which you can manage your shareable links (e.g. destroy old shareables).
  • The Mediaflux Explorer also has a Create Download link option in the right-click menu. This creates an older style URL (link) which when clicked, downloads the data as a zip file through your web browser. This is slower, uses more storage and is not as robust as using Data Mover. However, it is simpler (the recipient doesn't need to install extra software). This method is suitable for small datasets.


Data Mover configuration file

Data Mover has a configuration file (settings.xml) which controls some behaviours e.g. default download location. For instrument uploads, it holds the shareable token that tells the Data Mover where to upload the data in Mediaflux so that this doesn't have to be entered each time.  You can read about the details of the configuration file on this page.