Staff Network File and Folder Management

Shared Drive (W:) Access Standard

As part of the migration away from legacy shares and infrastructure, IT Services has made several important changes to network drive access standards and procedures.

1. IT Services does not recommend granting access to any subfolder or other folder not at the root level (W:\). Folder owners should consider doing this only if there is a security or privacy need, in consultation with IT Services.

2. Different types of permissions (e.g. read-only) are no longer available on network folders. If someone if granted access, they have full access.

3. All requests must be approved by the owner of the folder or a designate before IT Services grants access.

4. Any new root (W:\) folders must be approved by the IT Services or IT Infrastructure Manager.

5. Information on current access will be provided to folder owners only.

 Access & Permissions Tips

1. Limit access to sensitive information to those who need it.

2. For non-sensitive information, give the greatest access possible (e.g. access to a whole folder instead of a sub folder 2 levels down). This saves time managing and auditing access at multiple levels.

3. Folder owners should regularly audit folder access; a list of everyone who has access to your folders can be requested via an IT ticket.

4. Be careful when moving folders and subfolders; subfolders inherit permissions from parent folders and moving them will change access. Please create an IT ticket for assistance.

If you want to manage permissions in detail or without IT’s help, this can be done by moving to MS Teams/SharePoint. Reach out to the IT Services team to learn more.

Organization & Naming Tips

1. Name folders and files based on content (e.g., Budget Files, 2024_Budget.xlsx), not role or personal name (e.g., Assistant Files, SarahSpreadsheet.xlsx), as people change roles often, and multiple people work on the same files.

2. Keep folder and file names short, especially if multiple levels of subfolders exist. Windows is configured to limit file names to 260 characters, but this includes the full path (all the folders and subfolders), e.g. W:\AuroraERP\Change Management\Training\Manager resources\Key Messages Outline.pdf (that’s 83 characters!)

3. Decide what information is helpful in a folder or file name; is it a date, a description, a version number, maybe someone’s initials?

4. Don’t use special characters (e.g., /, ?, * etc.) in names; stick to letters, numbers, underscores (_), and hyphens (-).

5. Be consistent; whatever naming convention you use, keep it going through all your files and folders.