An effective way to make your data accessible is to store it in a repository. A repository can refer to any storage service that offers a mechanism for managing and storing digital content, where users can upload and download their data, and make it accessible and discoverable. 

To make your data/supplements available, first make sure that they are properly organized and labeled, and then simply upload your data/supplements to a data repository. You can:

• Upload your data/supplements to the UVA data repository LibraData. And/or,
• Choose an alternative data repository. See below for a list of available repositories. 

General considerations when deciding where to deposit your data

• What are your data sharing goals?
• Cost
• Is the repository appropriate for the type of data molecular structure, genomic data,etc.)?
• Is it a general or discipline-specific repository?
• Is the depository recommended by the publisher or funder?  If you are submitting your supplemental data in a journal article, you should check for the journal's data policy and data repositories specified therein
• Is the repository recognized within the research field?
• Who is the repository’s audience?
• Does the repository provide a Digitial Object Identifier (DOI)?
• Can the data be cited?
• Will it be easy to find? Does it use metadata?
• Does the repository permit download and re-use of data?

If you would like to make your data available, in addition to LibraData (UVA’s data repository), there are many data repositories to choose from:

UVA Data Repositories

• LibraData (UVA’s data repository)

You can deposit your data in UVA's data repository, LibraData, and also in a generalist or discipline-based repository (see below). 

General Data Repositories 

• Figshare - upload any file format and accepts scholarly output including figures, datasets, media, papers, posters, presentations and filesets. 
• Mendeley Data - a free cloud-based service run by Elsevier. 
• Zenodo - a free cloud-based service based on the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN's) data repository platform.
• Dryad - well-established repository led by a nonprofit organization that (note there are Data Publishing Charges)

For instance, there are a growing number of NIH-supported data repositories that make data accessible for reuse. NIH-funded researchers can deposit data into these repositories, however, some restrict data submission to only those researchers involved in a specific research network. See: NIH Data Sharing Repositories