FILR retired as of 11am, March 25, 2024

As of Monday, March 25th, at 11:00am the Filr service has been retired, and https://filr.sph.harvard.edu is no longer accessible. 

Why have we retired Filr? 

When Filr (then called NetStorage) was first offered by SPH IT in the early 2000s, very few options existed for remote collaboration. NetStorage offered a way for SPH students, staff, and faculty to access their files from anywhere in the world with an Internet-connected computer. Since then, tools for file-sharing have proliferated, and the online world has become less safe. In 2023, multiple security issues were identified in the software which the vendor has been unable to address. Additionally, Filr no longer offered unique functionality to the SPH community. Its functionality is duplicated by VPN (virtual private network ) and VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure), as well as file sharing services such as OneDrive and SharePoint.  

Our team is happy to help you to use Filr alternatives.  If you need assistance, or if you have any questions, please contact SPH IT at helpdesk@hsph.harvard.edu or 617-432-4357.  

What can I use instead? 

Please use VDI or the VPN to access the S: drive remotely after 3/25/2024. See below for more details. 

VDI 

VDI Login: https://desktop.sph.harvard.edu 

Directions for using VDI 

General information about VDI 

VPN 

Getting started with the VPN 

General information about Harvard VPN 

Please contact the IT Helpdesk at (617) 432-4357 or email helpdesk@hsph.harvard.edu for any questions or concerns you may have regarding this information.