Best practices, limitations, and data transfer performance considerations

The following are some good practices, limitations, and performance factors to consider when using Staging Explorer.

Best practices

The following are some best practices to consider when using Staging Explorer:

  • Depending on your system and network connection, it may be beneficial to separate substantially large data sets into smaller batches for transmission in order to improve speed and processing workflow.

  • When downloading huge data sets, be sure to use a local drive as the destination. External drives are not recommended.

  • When transferring huge data sets, we recommend using a local drive where the Staging Explorer is installed as the transfer source and destination to avoid additional transfer steps. Transferring to and from a mapped network drive is not recommended as it introduces an extra connection between it, Staging Explorer, and RelativityOne, which may cause slowness and connection issues.

  • Relativity does not store any information about file paths due to privacy concerns.

Limitations

The following are some limitations to consider when using Staging Explorer:

  • Only one Windows user can run an instance of Staging Explorer on a machine at a time.
  • The maximum number of active transfers for one instance of the Staging Explorer is 3. See Updating Transfer Settings.
  • The Client Domain Admin group does not have Staging Explorer access by default. A System Admin needs to add the correct permissions.
  • Both the Local and Staging panes display only 1000 items. When a directory consists of more than 1000 items, the Top 1000 items displayed message appears in the bottom right corner of the Local or Staging panes. To select all the items within the folder, select the main folder instead of sub-folders or using CTRL+A for files within the main folder. Using CTRL+A will only select the first 1000 items displayed instead of all items available.
  • Enforced FIPS Policy may block some encryption algorithms which may cause errors in applications. We recommend using validated cryptographic algorithms approved by Windows Platform FIPS.
  • Transfers from mounted disk images are not supported.

Data transfer performance considerations

There are many variables that can degrade or improve the performance of data transfers for desktop applications, such as Staging Explorer. Transfer rates when using desktop applications are influenced by several variables and results may vary based on factors such as RAM, CPU, local drive specifications, network drive specifications, and available bandwidth at the time of the transfer.

If you experience issues despite following the information below, please contact Support for assistance. For additional information, refer to the Community article Performance considerations for data transfers.

  • Run on local machine: Staging Explorer should not be run on a RelativityOne Utility VM. See Utility Server for more information. It has been designed and tested as a desktop application being run on a user’s local machine.
  • Read access: Ensure that Staging Explorer has read access to all files/folders (remove system / hidden attributes).
  • Port 443: Ensure that port 443 is open to the public internet and is not blocked or traffic is restricted to it. See the Community article Performance considerations for data transfers for more information.
  • Internet connection: Use a strong and stable internet connection for data transmission. Wi-Fi is not recommended.
  • Internet speed: Transfer speeds are dependent on your internet speeds. Check your internet connection using Speedtest or any other bandwidth testing website. Make note of the upload speed in megabits per second. Also refer to Updating Transfer Settings for the Limit bandwidth setting.
  • Local storage speed: Transfers to and from network drives or external disks (such as thumb drives/USB drives) will degrade performance and/or cause issues maintaining a connection. It is most effective to copy data to and from a fast local storage.
  • Local machine specs: Ensure your local machine and browser adheres to the Staging Explorer minimum system requirements and is operating the latest version of the software.
  • Level of data fragmentation: Due to bandwidth sharing, avoid performing large and highly fragmented transfers in parallel. The more fragmented the dataset, the lower the transfer performance.
  • Concurrent transfers: Number of concurrent transfers that are happening at the same time within the network by various tools, services, and users.
  • Concurrent utilization: Level of concurrent utilization of the user's computer resources (CPU, RAM, I/Os) by other processes on that computer.
  • Compressed datasets: Avoid compressing datasets (with ZIP, 7z, etc.). The faster transfer time due to fewer multi-part files is negated by the time and effort to compress and decompress data. However, compressing datasets without decompressing in the destination folder (staging directory) can be considered when all the following are true:
    • Dataset consist of fragmented data
    • Destination folder is a Processing source location
    • The dataset uploaded is going to be processed by Relativity Processing
  • VPN usage: Using a VPN can potentially slow down internet traffic. When workstations use a VPN session, it can interfere with transfers from that workstation. RelativityOne is hosted in a public cloud and does not require VPN to use. See the Community article Performance considerations for data transfers for more information.
  • Firewall: Firewall configuration may require special tuning to use the Staging Explorer.
  • Antivirus software: Antivirus software may disrupt the transfer protocol in Staging Explorer.
  • Anti-malware software: An exception should be created for Staging Explorer in Windows Defender or in other anti-malware software installed on the user's machine.