6  Remote data access via remote desktop

If you have selected the remote desktop for your data access, this can be used as an alternative or in addition to the on-site visit to prepare your analyses for JoSuA. The use of the remote desktop from your own office is analogous to access during the on-site visit in many ways, so this section is limited to differences compared to Chapter 5 and points that need to be considered in addition.

6.1 Preparations for the remote desktop

  • A technical user manual for the remote desktop can be found in Chapter 11.

  • Please note that you will receive your own user name for using the remote desktop, which is different from the one for JoSuA and on-site use (see Section 4.1 and Section 5.1). The corresponding password is identical to the initial password for on-site use.

  • To log in to remote desktop for the first time, please use your initial password, which you received in split form by letter and e-mail.

  • Please change your password after logging in for the first time. The instructions for changing your password can be found as a shortcut on the desktop and in the Working Tools (under Vorgaben_Guidelines "Shortguide Password").

  • If the remote desktop is available, your project directory not only contains the folders prog, orig, ..., but also the twin folders prog_remote, orig_remote, ..., respectively.

  • While you are using the remote desktop, you only have access to the _remote folders; when using JoSuA or during an on-site visit, you only have access to the folders without _remote in the name.

  • This makes no difference when programming your scripts, please continue to use the globals specified in the templates and instructions. The assignment is automatic.

  • The twin folders are not synchronised by us.

  • If you want to use scripts that you have developed outside the FDZ guest network in the remote desktop, you must upload them to JoSuA ("Transfers"), download them again in the remote desktop environment after they have been checked by the FDZ and save them in the prog_remote folder of your project directory.

  • The provision of Ado-Files is carried out according to section Section 2.2.1

  • External data sets are provided in parallel in orig and orig_remote by default.

6.2 Working with the remote desktop

  • For data protection reasons, sensitive variables are further anonymised in the FDZ data products provided for working in remote desktop. A list of the affected variables can be found in the respective data reports.

  • Further anonymisation only takes place at the most disaggregated level. For example, the district of residence is altered, while the federal state of residence remains unchanged.

  • Results generated in remote desktop that are based on sensitive variables should therefore be regarded as provisional. We recommend regularly validating important programme steps and results using JoSuA's Internal Use mode.

  • If you have not requested any sensitive characteristics, orig and orig_remote are identical.

  • Data protection rules apply analogue to the on-site visit: Data and results may not be copied (photographed, printed or extracted otherwise). It is also prohibited to grant access to third parties who are not named in the project's data use agreement. Any use of these results other than for the further development of your programme files constitutes a breach of contract.

  • Please log off correctly from the FDZ guest network server when you have finished working with the remote desktop and avoid open sessions that you will not be working on for a longer period of time. Other researchers will thank you for the performance gain!

6.3 Validation and export of results

  • Results generated in remote desktop are not released and may need to be validated.

  • Please use the Internal Use mode in JoSuA for validation. To do this, upload all relevant scripts from the remote desktop under "Submission" and check the results when the job is finished.

  • Intermediate data sets must be created again the first time they are used via JoSuA, as JoSuA cannot access data_remote. Please plan for this in good time if the creation of this interim data is very time-consuming.

  • Ado-files that you have installed in the remote desktop via "fdzinstall" must be installed once again in JoSuA.

  • If you want to transfer scripts between the on-site use and the remote desktop interface, upload them in JoSuA using the "Transfers" function. They will be available for download once they have been checked.

  • The export of results is carried out as usual via the Presentation / Publication mode of JoSuA (see section 4.2). Even when working in remote desktop, please always check first whether your programmes are fully executable by running them in Internal Use mode.