Macquarie University's Institutional Research Data Repository (RDR) allows researchers to upload, publish, search and download research data. The RDR promotes collaboration, data sharing and discovery amongst researchers globally according to FAIR data principles.
The RDR is based on Figshare for Institutions, which has been specifically tailored to suit the needs of the Macquarie University research community.
Key benefits for researchers include the ability to:
Features
The RDR takes the easy-access, data archiving and publishing capabilities inherent in the Figshare platform and complements them with integrations and automations and additional security features that are all relevant to the research context at Macquarie. Highlights include:
To request assistance on RDR features, refer to Contact & Support.
Two-Factor Authentication or 2FA uses a double-step login process and is mandatory when accessing the repository. This extra level of security helps prevent unauthorized access to your dataset items, even if your primary login credentials become compromised. 2FA is particularly important when working with sensitive and highly sensitive data.
On initial login, Macquarie users will be provided with several 2FA options. Please contact the Macquarie IT Service Desk if you need assistance when setting up 2FA.
The University has integrated the RDR with the University's Research Management System (Pure RMS). This allows public RMS project information on which you are the principal investigator to be automatically synchronized into your own project area within the RDR. This integration provides a number of benefits, including:
The integration between Pure RMS and Figshare RDR is described in the following diagram.
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The RDR has been set up to automatically invite your Macquarie-based RMS project partners to collaborate on uploading and publishing your project’s data. Collaboration with external researchers is also achievable and is just a few clicks away using standard Figshare features. As project owner you will always maintain full control over who you collaborate with and any data you upload to the RDR.
You can self-assess datasets you upload to the repository for 'FAIRness' using the ARDC Fair Assessment Tool, and record your self-assessment as part of your dataset’s metadata prior to publication. For more information, see enhanced metadata ARDC Fair Self-Assessment Summary field. FAIR self-assessment is optional.
You can keep track and publish the quality reviews that have been conducted on your data. Listing the reviews that have been undertaken provides assurance to potential downloaders that your data is high quality. Once you have created the metadata record for your data, you can use the Q/A Review multiple selection field to nominate that one or more reviews have taken place. Supported reviews include: peer review; departmental review; and institutional review. For more information, see enhanced metadata Q/A Log field.
Published datasets you have uploaded or on which you are nominated as an author or co-author are automatically listed on your Researcher Profile on the Macquarie University research portal, alongside your other research outputs. The listing will include a link to your dataset’s DOI so that anyone viewing your profile will be able to quickly navigate to the repository, access the description of your dataset, and download the data (if it is published openly), or request download. Listing your published datasets enhances your research profile as well as that of your research project.
Metadata enhancements have been made to the RDR above and beyond what is available in the basic institutional Figshare platform. These enhancements make it easy for data uploaders to provide provenance for their datasets and to assess and manage the quality of the data being uploaded. The enhancements will be visible to guest users who view the RDR’s published datasets, allowing them to make informed decisions about the usefulness of the data for further research. For more information, see enhanced metadata.
As an extension of the Linked Research Context feature, you can also use the Research Project Reference field to link your data to your Macquarie OSF project, general OSF project or other external project. This means that anybody browsing your dataset on the RDR website / DOI landing page can quickly navigate to all your projects that relate to the published data, both internal and external to the University.
When you decide to upload your data to an RDR project that has been synchronised from Pure RMS, you will be automatically allocated storage to house and share the data. Should the data’s storage requirements go beyond the initial allocation, you will be able to easily request additional storage within the RDR. The uploaded data will be managed and supported by a team of Macquarie data stewards for its lifespan and according to its sensitivity.
What is the difference between figshare.com and figshare.mq.edu.au?
Accessing the Research Data Repository (RDR)
What is Two Factor Authentication (2FA), and how can I authenticate myself?
How can I switch my choice of 2FA authenticator app?
What is a ‘Project’ in the data repository?
Which Pure RMS Projects are synchronized to the RDR?
How often is Pure RMS Project metadata synchronized to the RDR?
What is the best way to create a new RDR project?
How should my data be structured before I upload it?
How do I upload and publish a dataset?
What item types can I upload to the Research Data Repository?
Can I upload other item types or documents, e.g. software, to the repository?
What are the publishing review criteria?
figshare.com is an online, general-purpose repository platform that allows any user to upload, manage, and share their research outputs. figshare.mq.edu.au is Macquarie University’s research data repository (RDR). It is a specialised implementation of figshare.com, dedicated and tailored to the needs of Macquarie University-based researchers. For more information, refer to RDR Features.
The RDR is specifically tailored to research at Macquarie University and implemented with additional features that help you as a Macquarie-based researcher generate high-quality, discoverable data outputs. Benefits of this include:
For more information, refer to RDR Features.
The Research Data Repository is located at https://figshare.mq.edu.au.
There are two main elements to the data repository: the public data discovery portal, and the private researcher pages.
Anyone can access the public discovery portal and use it to browse and download datasets published by researchers from Macquarie University.
To log into the private researcher pages as a member of Macquarie University, click on the 'Log in' link in the top right corner of the screen and then provide your Macquarie University credentials. You will be asked to complete 2FA authentication at this point, after which you should now be logged into the repository.
All Macquarie-based research staff and students (HDRs only) should automatically have an account on the RDR and need only log in with their normal Macquarie credentials to gain access to the repository.
Two Factor Authentication, or 2FA, is a double-step login process used to access the data repository. This additional login step helps protect your account and prevents malicious access to your uploaded dataset items. 2FA authentication is mandatory for accessing the RDR.
To set up 2FA for your account, you are required to install a 2FA authenticator app, such as Okta Verify or Google Authenticator, on your mobile phone (e.g. through the Android Play Store or Apple App Store). If you do not access to a mobile phone, contact OneHelp support.
After you install the authenticator app, open it and follow the instructions to add the data repository to your list of accounts. Authenticator apps typically follow a similar setup procedure:
There are multiple 2FA authentication options that you can use in order to log into the data repository. If you have already set up a specific authenticator service, but would now like to switch to a different authenticator, for example to switch from Okta Verify to Google Authenticator, you will need to raise a OneHelp ticket.
The figshare platform natively supports collaboration projects; these are a key feature of Macquarie University’s RDR implementation. RDR projects let you put your uploaded datasets into context with the actual research that produced them. Research project information is synchronised from Macquarie University’s Research Management System (Pure RMS) into the RDR. In addition, any contributors on a Pure RMS project will be invited to collaborate with you within the RDR on uploading and publishing datasets.
Every active, public research project which is in Pure RMS will have a collaboration project created for it in the RDR and regularly synchronized. If you are the Primary Chief Investigator for an active, public project in RMS, you will also be the owner of a collaboration project in the RDR.
Pure RMS project metadata is auto-synchronized to the RDR in the early afternoon of each business day. Only Pure RMS projects whose metadata is has changed since the previous business day will receive new data. If you want to utilize changes to Pure RMS project metadata in the RDR, you should therefore make metadata changes to your Pure RMS project record in the morning so that they are available in the RDR in the afternoon.
To best make use of Macquarie’s repository features, new RDR projects should be firstly created in Pure RMS and synchronized to the RDR. There are two ways a Pure RMS project is created:
Not all Pure RMS projects are synchronized to the RDR – refer to the FAQ Which Pure RMS Projects are synchronized to the RDR?
The Title and Description metadata fields of your RDR project is being synchronized from its master Pure RMS project. You can make changes to both the Title and Description fields of your RDR project, but there are implications. The synchronization process treats the Title and Description fields slightly differently:
Coming soon.
After logging in to the RDR, refer to the Publishing a dataset RDR how-to guide.
The RDR is predominantly focused on the upload and publishing of research datasets, but will also accept presentations, figures/images, media files, as well as information describing physical objects. If you want to upload
If you would like to upload other types of research output, please make a request through OneHelp.
Figshare advises that problems with large file uploads in the interface are usually a combination of browser / internet capacity. They recommend that users make use of the ftp uploader or API for large file uploads, or when experiencing slow uploads in the interface: https://help.figshare.com/article/upload-large-datasets-and-bulk-upload-using-the-ftp-uploader-desktop-uploader-or-api
If upload issues persist, please raise a ticket with Macquarie OneHelp.
When you press the Publish button on a dataset or collection item, your item will be submitted to an institutional review team who will review it prior to a DOI is generated. Review guidelines include:
FAIR is best described by the following references:
FAIR self assessment is an initiative of the ARDC. ARDC have provided researchers and organisations with a web-based tool to self-assess the ‘FAIRness’ of their research data.
The RDR is a managed platform as a service which operates in UTC time; this time zone applies to embargo periods. As AEST is UTC+10:00, your dataset may not complete its embargo period until the following day.
Macquarie University’s privacy policy applies and can be viewed via the following link:
Macquarie University Privacy Policy
The figshare platform general privacy policy is also relevant:
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Please see additional details, including the option to report a copyright infringement at:
Copyright and Disclaimer page.
Please also see Macquarie University’s INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY - CONDITIONS AND RULES OF USE that can be viewed at: Macquarie University Information Technology Terms of Use
Online: Log a ticket 24x7 using OneHelp - Research Data Repository (requires an MQ OneID login)
Email: rdr.support@mq.edu.au
Phone:
IT Service Desk +61 2 9850-HELP (4357)
Australian Toll-free: 1800-MQHELP (1800 67 4357)
For information about Macquarie University’s particular implementation of Figshare, please see:
Macquarie University Research Data Repository About
Macquarie University Research Data Repository Features
Macquarie University Research Data Repository FAQs
Macquarie University Research Data Repository How-To Guide (Coming Soon)
For general platform information, please see: