Handout on the handling of attachments
On this page you will find information about alternatives to sending e-mails with attachments, or to provide larger amounts of data for which the medium e-mail is unsuitable.
Why use alternatives?
In everyday working life, it often happens that larger files have to be made available to a group of several people. Often e-mails with corresponding file attachments to numerous addresses, or distribution lists, are used for this purpose. This can quickly lead to problems:
- Depending on the number of addressees (distribution lists typically contain thousands of e-mail recipients), the data traffic is very high.
- Well-known email providers usually allow a total email size of 20MB to 40MB to keep the load correspondingly low. This applies to sending and receiving e-mails.
- At RWTH Aachen University the maximum mail size is 25MB (mail text + attachment). This is to ensure that e-mails can be delivered inside and outside RWTH Aachen University.
- Mailboxes usually offer limited storage space. They are therefore considered unsuitable for storing files.
It is therefore a good idea to make files available in alternative ways. For example: you can make files available via a download link to a data storage device. In addition to the above-mentioned hints, this can also lead to more security in communication.
Using a GigaMove link
GigaMove offers you the possibility to make larger files accessible via a download link. The application is very easy to use. Your recipients do not need their own GigaMove access for the download.
To make several files available at the same time, it is recommended to offer them as one archive (e.g. zip). Files on GigaMove are scanned for viruses and the connection is encrypted. In addition, a password for the download can also be optionally stored.
Please note: Files on GigaMove can be downloaded for a maximum of 2 weeks.
GigaMove can be found at: https://gigamove.rwth-aachen.de/
Manuals here: GigaMove
Using a sciebo link
Students and employees can use the NRW University Cloud sciebo. Registration is required to use the service. In addition to “sharing” folders and files with other sciebo users, sciebo also offers the possibility to generate “public links”.Your recipients do not need their own sciebo account to access these links.
These links can be generated to single files, or even whole folder structures. “Public links” can have an expiration date and can be secured with a password. Both options are optional.
The RWTH sciebo login can be ound at: https://rwth-aachen.sciebo.de/
Manuals are here on IT Center Help or at: https://hochschulcloud.nrw/de/hilfe/index.html
Other use cases
If you use services for data storage when working on projects, for example, they often offer integrated solutions for sharing data. The use of a corresponding service is particularly recommended when dealing with documents, as this ensures that all recipients always have access to the latest version of a document and that there are no multiple versions circulating as, for example, an e-mail attachment.
Other services from our range that support such scenarios contextually are:
For questions or advice on alternatives to sending mail, please contact the IT-ServiceDesk.
