Re: course backup area and user private backup area, what's the difference?

"It would be far more intuitive if both areas were consolidated, maybe?"

Many moons ago, admin levels had too much 'power' over files and backups ... let's remember that many times the admin is also the true server admin and he/she/pronoun doesn't think like teachers ... more like a true techie in terms of 'free space'.  Teachers would find files were missing/gone! (admin did it - totally justified as some teachers were using their moodle course as extra storage space for files - not linked in their course).

When moodle was version 2 new file system introduced.  A professor posted a problem ... couldn't delete *any* of the files in his course!   Turns out, the prof had his teaching assistant (TA) do the course - all files belonged to the TA!  TA was no longer his TA and from what I heard not very cooperative with Prof!   Gave true server admin and moodle admin some headaches!

A K12 site - one course title "Digital Media" ... teacher in course would give some space using assignments ... check out digital camera.  Take 6 photos with 6 different exposures, turn those in.   Photo's about 1.5 Meg each ... no web ready step ... right off the camera.  You do that math!  24 students in the class.  Day assignment was due, the server slowed to a creepy crawl.   Hmmm .... wonder why? :|

Anyhoo .. teacher also had habit of making a course backup after students turned in their latest assignment but never went back to delete the older backups.

That one course reached 130+ Gig ... that's GIG!   Couldn't run autobackups any more ... that one course using about 25% of a large data device used for moodledata.

Don't think the teacher had the concept of moodle being a shared resource for all teachers/students/classes.

So we have a problem ... too little control or too much control!  And what's logical/good for some, not so logical/good for all! :|

Anyhoo ... my additional 2'sense' ... no, spelled it correctly!

'SoS', Ken