NetStorage

What is NetStorage?

NetStorage is a secure service which allows community members access to their network drives from personally owned computers. To use NetStorage, you must have an active Bryn Mawr College Novell account, a connection to the Internet, and a Web browser. NetStorage provides users with the ability to download, upload, and delete files from their network drives, including home directories and any other shared drives.

NetStorage is available on Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux through a number of different Web browsers.

Using NetStorage

Logging in (and out) of NetStorage

1.  Open your Web browser (Firefox is recommended, though Internet Explorer and Safari will work as well) and type https://netstorage.brynmawr.edu/ in the Location (or Address) bar and press <Enter>.

2.  You will be prompted to log in. This login will use your Novell username and password (which you may also use to log in from public labs or from a college office.  It is not recommended that you choose to save this password.

3. After logging in you will see the main NetStorage window.  It will list all of the drives that are automatically mapped when you log into Novell via the Novell client on a college lab or office computer.

4. To access the contents of a drive or folder, click on the plus sign next to the name of the desired folder icon in the lefthand pane under the "Folders" heading,or double-click on the drive or folder name in the righthand pane, under the "Name" heading.  A list of the contents will be displayed in the righthand pane.

5. Once you are done, click on the logout button at the top of the screen.

Downloading a file:

In order to use or change any files you have stored in NetStorage (or on your Novell drives), you need to download them to the computer where you will be working.

1. Navigate through the folders until the file  or files you want aappear in the righthand pane. 

2. Right-click (ctrl-click for Mac users) on a single file or folder, or click the checkboxes next to one or more then click on the File link at the top of the righthand pane.

3. A list of options will appear. Select “Download…”  You will see a download dialog.  If you select “Open with:”, Windows will save and open a temporary file. If downloading a folder, it will open with “CompressedFolder (the Windows .zip file viewer) as seen here.  You can view and edit files, but must use SaveAs to save to another location or you may lose your changes.  It is suggested instead to choose “Save to Disk” and open the file(s) from the saved location.. After editing the files, you will have to upload them in order for the changes to be reflected on the stored files. 

Uploading a File:

Uploading is the way to get new and changed files up to the server.

1. In your NetStorage window, navigate to the folder in which you want to store the file.

2. Click on the File link and choose "Upload…" from the menu.

Note:  You may receive a message that you need to disable your popup blocker in order to upload.  If you on a computer where you have the ability to do so, it is advisable to add netstorage.brynmawr.edu to your pop-up exceptions list.  In Firefox, this can be found in Tools>Option, on the Content tab; click “Allowed Sites” to add this site.

 

3. Click on the Browse button to locate the file you wish to upload.  Select the file and click “Open”.  The name of your file will be displayed in the "File:" field.

4. Checking "Overwrite existing files" will replace any file with the same name as the one you are uploading with your new file.  If you have downloaded and edited a file, you will want to leave it checked.  If you are adding a new file, un-checking it is safer.

5. Click the Upload button. Depending on the speed of your internet connection and the size of the file, this may take only seconds, or several minutes.

Deleting a file or folder:

1. Locate the file in NetStorage.

2. Right-click (ctrl-click for Mac users) the file and choose “Delete”.  Have caution when deleting folders, deleting a folder will delete its contents without further warning.

Note:If you delete something by accident, there is an undelete option. Click on the File link once and click on undelete. This option is only available if the file has been very recently deleted.

Renaming a file or folder:

1. Right-click (ctrl-click for Mac users) the file and choose “Rename”

2. Type in the change to the file name. A small window may briefly appear and then close.

Creating a folder:

1. Browse to where you want the new folder to be created.

2. Click the “File” link and choose “New Folder”.

3. A window will pop up asking you to name the folder. Type in a name and click “OK”.