Cost Analysis v2.5 – Diskover Data

Cost Analysis Overview

The Cost Analysis Report provides an at-a-glance view of how your storage budget is being used. It delivers repeatable, customizable reports that can be grouped by storage tier, client, project, data age, or any business-specific criteria your organization tracks.

⚙️ Customizable? This report is customizable.
🌍 Scope: Global (all volumes) unless a specific path is selected in the filters.

How to Access the Cost Analysis Report

From the Analytics menu	From the results pane → path column
Loads the Cost Analysis report across all volumes (unless filters are active).	Loads the Cost Analysis report starting directly at that path.

How to Use the Cost Analysis Report

✏️ Hover over charts to see more details.

CALLOUT	DESCRIPTION
A	Results by number of items: Click any link to open the matching results in the search page.
B	Results by size: Click any link to open the matching results in the search page.
C	Filters: Refine your results using: Show files only: Excludes directories. Show directories only: Excludes files. Show all: Show both files and directories. Dir size no recurs: Limits directory size reporting to non-recursive calculations. Current top path only: Limits the results to the selected volume. Current dir only: Limits the results to the exact path you locked in on the search page using Current Dir before opening the report.
D	Size: Quick cheat sheet for users: Just need the file size? Use `size` Capacity planning? Use `size_du` Learn more about all size options →
E	Edit Cost Analysis: Editing the Cost Analysis queries requires an admin account. If you need changes and don’t have the permissions, contact your System Administrator.
F	Reload: Refreshes the cached data.

How to View Storage Costs in the Search Page

Once the Cost Analysis tool is enabled by your System Administrator, cost information appears directly in the Search page. This allows you to view the cost associated with any file or directory as you browse.

How to Customize/Edit Cost Analysis

Cost Analysis comes with sample queries to help you get started, but they’re fully customizable by admins:

You can review the query logic behind each report.
To modify or add new queries, you’ll need an admin account.
If you don’t have admin rights, your System Administrator can make updates on your behalf.

CALLOUT	DESCRIPTION
A	DiskoverAdmin: Clicking the Edit Cost Analysis button in the report automatically opens the admin panel in a new tab where names and queries are managed.
B	Query name: This is the shortcut query name, it should be short, memorable, and clearly describe what the query returns.
C	Query string: The logic that powers the Cost Analysis. Accepts standard Diskover/Elasticsearch search syntax. This is the part that determines the criteria for which files or directories appear in the report.
D	Add query: Click Add Item to create a new Cost Analysis entry. A blank query form appears where you can define the name and the query string behind it.
E	Delete query: Removes the selected name/query from your configuration. This action cannot be undone, so only delete entries that are no longer needed or are incorrect.
F	Save: When you finish editing or adding queries, click Save to apply your changes. All modifications become immediately available to users who access Cost Analysis or launch them from the search bar. To return to the report: Click A DiskoverAdmin to return to the Smart Searches report. Go back to the original Cost Analysis tab and refresh the page to see your changes.

How Storage Costs Are Calculated

Storage costs can be configured globally, per storage volume, or at a more granular directory level. These estimates are managed outside Diskover and entered by your System Administrator. Cost calculations typically include:

Storage hardware or cloud costs
Electricity
Support and service contracts
Administrator labor
Subscription fees
Any other operational overhead

All values must be provided as cost per gigabyte so Diskover can compute and display accurate totals.