# Where is user data stored?
**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/where-is-user-data-stored/176188
**Category:** Self-hosting
**Created:** [January 15, 2021, 10:49am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/where-is-user-data-stored/176188 "2021-01-15T10:49:09Z")
**Posts on this page:** 3
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@RhysGoodwin](https://meta.discourse.org/u/RhysGoodwin)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2021, 10:49am UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/where-is-user-data-stored/176188/1 "2021-01-15T10:49:10Z")
Kia ora. I’ve installed Discourse on a digital ocean VM using the INSTALL-cloud.md guide. I’m new to Docker but just wanted to confirm - is all user data stored in the /var/discourse install directory?
When I say user data I mean any content within the forum, e.g. posts, user accounts, hashed passwords, uploads etc.
I’m mainly asking from a privacy/security point of view.
And I presume that anything under the /var/lib/docker root is application (i.e. docker image) related and nothing persists in there as far as Discourse is concerned?
Ngā mihi
Rhys
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### Author:  [@pfaffman](https://meta.discourse.org/u/pfaffman)
#### Post date: [January 15, 2021, 2:57pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/where-is-user-data-stored/176188/2 "2021-01-15T14:57:25Z")
Right. Persistent data is in `/var/discourse/shared`.
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### Author:  [@system](https://meta.discourse.org/u/system)
#### Post date: [February 14, 2021, 2:57pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/where-is-user-data-stored/176188/3 "2021-02-14T14:57:34Z")
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