Preparing for Use
R&S
®
FSW
32Getting Started 1338.4102.02 ─ 08
4.15 Protecting Data Using the Secure User Mode
During normal operation, the R&S FSW uses a solid-state drive to store its oper-
ating system, instrument firmware, instrument self-alignment data, and any user
data created during operation.
If necessary, the solid-state drive can be removed from the R&S FSW and locked
in a secure place to protect any classified data it may contain.
Redirecting storage to volatile memory
Alternatively, to avoid storing any sensitive data on the R&S FSW permanently,
the secure user mode was introduced (option R&S FSW-K33). In secure user
mode the instrument’s solid-state drive is write-protected so that no information
can be written to memory permanently. Data that the R&S FSW normally stores
on the solid-state drive is redirected to volatile memory instead, which remains
available only until the instrument is switched off. This data includes:
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Windows operating system files
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Firmware shutdown files containing information on last instrument state
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Self-alignment data
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General instrument settings such as the IP address
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Measurement settings
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User data created during operation
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Any data created by other applications installed on the R&S FSW, for example
text editors (Notepad), the Clipboard, drawing tools, etc.
Users can access data that is stored in volatile memory just as in normal opera-
tion. However, when the instrument’s power is switched off, all data in this mem-
ory is cleared. Thus, in secure user mode, the instrument always starts in a
defined, fixed state when switched on.
To store data such as measurement results permanently, it must be stored to an
external storage device, such as a memory stick.
Limited storage space
The volatile memory used to store data in secure user mode is restricted to
256 MB. Thus, a "Memory full" error can occur although the hard disk indi-
cates that storage space is still available.
Protecting Data Using the Secure User Mode