SITS-Cloud storage – FAQ

Frequently asked questions

SITS-Cloud storage is a service that provides business customers with needs-based storage space that they can access over the internet at any time. SITS- Cloud storage is based on object storage and can be used over an Amazon S3-compatible interface. The storage service is supported by products from numerous manufacturers and can be seamlessly integrated into the business network as scalable cloud storage. 

Go to the order form page and fill out the contact form there. We will send you the access credentials for your account. This usually takes one working day.

Once your SITS-Cloud storage account has been set up, we will send you the following access credentials:
  • Access key ID (a 20-digit alphanumerical string)
  • Secret access key (a 40-digit string)
  • Base domain, the URL for accessing the SITS-Cloud storage system
Every time you access your SITS-Cloud storage account, you have to authenticate yourself using your access keys. This is usually done by entering the keys into your client software, which then logs you in automatically. The access keys must be treated as confidential and protected from third-party access.
You can save all kinds of data in SITS-Cloud storage. The service is especially suitable for storing large and growing volumes of data that don’t have to be available for permanent access. This includes backups in the form of off-site data backups and data archives. In cloud storage, documents and multimedia data can also be saved and, for example, made accessible to users over a web application. In conjunction with the cloud storage gateway, SITS-Cloud storage can also be used as a centralised data storage system for businesses with multiple sites. 
Cloud storage is a pure storage service and can only be used in conjunction with a suitable application. It includes numerous client solutions (see further below) that can be used to address object storage like a drive. In addition, backup programs from many manufacturers and multiple cloud storage gateways support the (S3-compatible) interface, allowing data to be stored directly in the cloud and retrieved again using these applications. The interface enables cloud storage to also be used by web applications and self-programmed applications. 
SITS-Cloud storage offers all the essential functions of an object storage system. You can: 
  • Create buckets for storing your data 
  • Transmit data to cloud storage and save it there 
  • Add, replace and delete data 
  • Download data or release it for download (via HTTP or HTTPS) 
  • Manage access privileges 
  • Use the S3-compatible interface (REST-API) 
Object storage involves storing data as objects without a hierarchical structure as opposed to saving it in file format. Along with the data, an object also contains metadata describing the object. Objects are saved under an identifier or key that is similar to a file name, which can be used together with the bucket name to clearly identify and retrieve each object without the user or the software having to know its physical storage location. 
In cloud storage, objects are not stored in folders, but rather in what are known as ‘buckets’. Buckets play an important role in identifying the objects and assigning rights. This is why, during the creation process, each bucket is given a name that must be unique like a domain name and must not exist yet.
  • A bucket’s name may only consist of lower-case letters, numbers and the characters full stop (‘.’) and hyphen (‘-’).
  • The name must be at least three characters long. The maximum length is 63 characters.
  • The name can start with a number or a letter.
  • Full stops and hyphens must not follow one another (e.g. company.-bucketname-.de).
  • The name must not have the format of an IP address.
  • Bucket names may be identical to domain names.
  • In principle, only bucket names not yet used by other customers in the SITS-Cloud storage system can be assigned, since bucket names have to be unique. If the desired name has already been taken, we recommend using a combination of your business name or customer number, for example.
Bucket and object names can no longer be changed at a later point in time. If you want to use a new bucket name, you will have to create a new bucket, download the data from the old bucket and upload it again to the new bucket. Some clients also allow data to be directly copied to a new bucket in the storage system and then deleted in the old one. If objects need to be stored with a new name, they must also be uploaded again to cloud storage. Some clients also allow a copy of the object to be created directly in the storage system with a new name and the old version deleted without it having to transfer the data to the client.
A maximum of 100 buckets can be created for each SITS-Cloud storage account. 
There are currently no restrictions on the number of objects. 
We currently have no size restrictions. 
This is possible if this function is supported by the client you are using. 
If SSL is activated in the client software, the data is transmitted to the cloud using an encrypted connection. However, the data is not stored in the cloud storage system in encrypted form. Data encryption only provides sufficient security if you are the sole holder of the keys. Many clients, most backup solutions with cloud backup options and even cloud storage gateways can automatically encrypt data even before transfer to the cloud. These solutions offer maximum security without additional effort. 
Your data is stored in Germany in high-availability data centres with ISO 27001 certification. 
In SITS-Cloud storage, all data is automatically stored in triple-redundant form on different hardware units. Even in the unlikely event that all the hard drives of one storage unit become defective at the same time, your data remains available. This enables us to achieve an object reliability of 99.99999999999% per year. This means that a maximum object loss of 0.00000000001% can be expected per year. If, for example, you store 10,000 objects in SITS-Cloud storage, a single object is lost on average every 1,000,000,000 years. In addition, your data’s integrity is regularly checked using checksums. 
Not only do we store your data in German data centres; we also have our head office in Germany, which means that we are obligated to comply with German and European data protection laws without restriction.  We use ISO-certified data centres in Germany with very high availability standards (TIER 3+) that are monitored around the clock. We also use our more than 25 years of experience in internet security to ensure that our cloud storage infrastructure is well protected.  Regardless of this, we recommend that all customers only store data protection-relevant or other sensitive business data in the cloud storage system in encrypted form. For this purpose, client solutions or applications should be used to automatically encrypt the data according to current standards. 
The storage space occupied is automatically recorded on an hourly basis. Based on this, we calculate the average storage space occupied (data and metadata) for the month in question (invoicing period). In addition, the outgoing transmission volume is recorded and calculated. 
No. We can currently only assign one access key and one secret access key per contract. 
Please contact us and we will send you a one-time link to a new access key. 
If you no longer wish to use your SITS-Cloud storage account, please let us know. We will delete your access and all data that you still have stored. 
As our interface is extensively compatible with the Amazon S3 API, most products that also support Amazon S3 storage can be used. This includes:
  • CloudBerry Explorer: file manager for Windows, Pro version with data encryption and compression
  • CyberDuck: file manager for Windows and Mac. Data can be edited in an external editor. The number of simultaneous transfers can be limited and interrupted uploads and downloads can be continued.
  • WebDAV: file manager for Windows and Mac
  • S3cmd: command lines tool for Linux; encryption can be integrated using GPG
  • S3Express: command lines tool for Windows
 

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