Choosing the Best Contract Option

Contract Features

SRW Contract

  • Free to use
  • Wide range of available software (SAS, Stata, MPlus, MatLab, R, Python)
  • Users get a Windows 11 virtual desktop with 4 CPUs and 16 GB of RAM
  • SRW can host 175 concurrent sessions
  • Special Request data sets are available
  • Users can request installation of publicly available Python libraries, R packages, and Stata library packages
  • Cannot install additional licensed software packages for users

Home Institution Contract

  • Takes longer to get started if the researcher’s institution does not have a Data Hosting Agreement in place
  • Software availability is based on the institution’s licensing agreements
  • Potential to install additional licensed software based on the institution’s IT policies
  • Possibility to arrange for more CPUs and RAM than are available on the SRW
  • dbGaP Linkage File is the only Special Request data set available for request

Selecting Based on Current Data Access Method

  1. UNC Secure Research Workspace (SRW):
    • If you have an active SRW Contract and would like to stay on the SRW, no action is needed. 
    • If you have SRW access and would like to switch to a Home Institution Contract,
      • If your institution is listed here, simply renew your contract and choose the Home Institution option, making sure to select your institution in the dropdown menu. 
      • If your institution is not listed here, you will need to talk to your IT unit and determine if they can host a server that conforms to the requirements detailed on the Restricted-Use Data Hosting Agreements page. 
  2. Remote Institutional Compute Server:
    • If you would like to continue to access data at your institution and your institution is listed here, renew your contract and choose the Home Institution option, making sure to select your institution in the dropdown menu. 
    • If you would like to continue to access data at your institution and your institution is not listed here, your server must conforms to the requirements detailed on the Restricted-Use Data Hosting Agreements page.
      • If the server is compliant with the listed requirements, your IT unit must sign a Restricted-Use Data Hosting Agreement. 
      • If the server is not compliant with the listed requirements, Add Health will coordinate with your IT unit to discuss requirements. Have someone in the IT unit contact Add Health IT Security (addhealth_it_security@cpc.unc.edu). 
      • Once approved, your institution will be listed as an eligible host for Home Institution Contracts. 
      • If you prefer to switch to an SRW Contract, renew your contract and choose the SRW option. Documentation verifying the destruction of any Add Health restricted-use data on your current server must be submitted prior to the completion of the SRW renewal process.
  3. File Server or Hard Drive:
    • You must renew your contract and choose either SRW or Home Institution access. 
    • Documentation verifying the destruction of any Add Health restricted-use data in your possession must be submitted prior to the completion of the renewal process.
  4. Expired or No Prior Contract:
    • Submit a new application for a Restricted-Use Data contract. 

If you have questions about accessing Add Health restricted-use data that are not addressed on this page, please contact us at addhealth_contracts@unc.edu. We’re happy to assist you in identifying the most appropriate access pathway for your research needs.

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