VRE as a solution

At its core, a VRE is a secure virtualized research environment consisting of a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) and, where necessary, additional desired functionality. Additional functionality is added based on specific research requirements to suit researcher’s needs.

Researchers have their own Home drive, a shared Group drive and a read-only Global drive with read-only data.

The VRE can be accessed from an existing (own institution) federated account using multi-factor authentication. To ensure that there is no pollution or misuse of data, the internet cannot be accessed directly from the VRE. The federated account allows you to work safely on several studies at once. Each study has its own closed system, making any direct exchange of data between the studies impossible.

Access to the data in the VRE is acquired via a VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure). All of the virtual environment components are scalable in capacity if the basic or premium versions do not fulfill your needs. The default application landscape is extensive, but specific applications can be incorporated if desired. The integrity of the data and results is carefully monitored within the study. For this purpose, various roles are available for each study.

In brief the VRE is a highly secured, role-based, collaborative environment specifically targeted at researchers who work with sensitive data.