Welcome to the Yale Earth Observation Lab (EOL) User Guide!

We are excited to have you onboard! EOL is a specialized lab space designed to support geospatial research and analysis. As you explore the lab, you will find a range of high-performance hardware and software resources available to support your work.

To learn more about what the lab offers—including the full list of installed software, hardware specs, and computer configurations—Explore the Lab.

Additionally, we have created a brief guide outlining the available storage drives and how to access them. Please refer to the EOL Drive Mapping Instructions  for more information.

You will have access to several data storage drives, the N, O, and U drives.

Drive Mapping

The following disk drives are mapped to each PC in the lab from the Yale cloud storage service (Storage@Yale):

Drive Description
U:\ This is where to put YOUR data. Only you can access data on this drive.
N:\ Groups may share data here. See a member of the YCGS staff if you need a group created for your use.
O:\ Global and other large datasets can be found here.

Computer and Data Storage Policy

Data Storage & Retention

  • Do not save files locally (C:) on this computer, including Documents or Downloads directories. User profiles may be wiped at any time without notice—anything stored locally will be lost.
  • Save your work to Yale network drive (U:) instead. If you do not have a folder, then please complete the EOL Access Request Form , or if you have already completed the form then email us.
  • Your personal U drive directories are erased annually on June 1, unless you request an exemption by completing the Account Deletion Exemption Request .

Storage Limits

  • Network drive storage (U:) is for temporary, active work only — not a long-term storage solution.
  • Do not exceed 1 TB for more than 1 month (U:). Need more storage? Request more storage by completing the Request Additional Data Storage  form.
  • Directories over the limit may be deleted without further notice.

Important Reminders

  • Do not log out another user. If you connect to a workstation and someone is already logged in (locally or remotely), assume they may be running long-running computations or analyses. Please leave their session intact and use a different available computer.

Report a Computer Issue

If you experience a problem with an EOL computer or need specialized software installed, we are here to help. Please complete the Report EOL Computer Issues  form so we can resolve the issue and keep the lab running smoothly.

Contact Us

Forms

Form Description
Account Deletion Exemption Request Your personal U drive directory will be erased annually on June 1, unless you request an exemption by completing the Account Deletion Exemption Request form.
EOL Access Request Request access to the Earth Observation Lab , a dedicated research and teaching facility that supports the processing, visualization, and analysis of satellite data for Yale students, faculty, and staff.
Report EOL Computer Issues If you are having hardware, software, access, or other issues, then please complete the Report EOL Computer Issues form, so that we can fix the issue.
Request Additional Data Storage You should not exceed 1 TB for more than 1 month on your personal network storage drive (U:). If you need to, then you must request more storage by completing the Request Additional Data Storage form.
Explore the Earth Observation Lab