Managing Storage Of Samples
Allocate storage positions to samples
If we want to track the storage position of samples, openBIS provides a graphical overview of lab storages.
Lab storages need to be configured by a lab manager or group admin, as explained here: Configure Lab Storage
This can be done in two ways:
add storage information on the sample form during (or after) sample registration
batch register storage positions for several samples
Register storage position for a single sample
1. Navigate to the Storage section, at the bottom of the sample form. Click the + New Storage Positions above the table, as shown below:
In the widget that opens, select the appropriate Storage from the dropdown menu. Storage must be configured by a lab manager or group admin as explained in Configure Lab Storages
3. Select the position in the storage (shelf and rack).
4. If the sample is in a box, provide a Box Name.
5. Select the Box Size form the list of configured sizes (the list can be configured by an Instance Admin).
6. Select the Position in the box.
7. Click Accept.
Add additional metadata to storage positions
By default, the storage only keeps track of locations. If the Storage Position has been configured by an Instance admin to have additional metadata (e.g. freezing date), these can be added by clicking on the link in the storage table, as shown below. The link becomes available after saving the sample.
The additional information can be entered in the Storage Position Object form.
Batch register storage positions
XLS Batch Registration
With the new XLS batch registration, samples and their storage positions can be registered in one transaction using the XLS template file, as explained in Batch register entries in a Collection.
Batch Registration with TSV file
Storage positions are modelled in openBIS as children of other entries. To register the positions for several samples with the Batch Registration using the .tsv template, first the parent samples need to be registered in openBIS. In a second step, the positions are assigned.
To assign storage positions in batch mode follow the steps below:
Select Storage positions from the Batch Registration drop down menu.
Download the template file.
Remove the identifier column from the file (identifiers need to be automatically generated by openBIS).
Fill in the parents column. These are the identifiers of the samples for which we want to register the storage positions(/MATERIALS/PROJECT/OBJECT_CODE).
Fill the remaining information about the storage positions.
Save the file and upload with the Batch Registration.
An example file can be found here: SAMPLE-STORAGE_POSITION-template
Updated on April 26, 2023
Batch update storage positions
To update several storage positions, we can use the batch update option from the Object Browser:
Go to the Object Browser under Utilities in the main menu
Select the object type Storage Position from the dropdown menu (see picture)
Use the table Filter to select the storage positions you want to update (see Tables)
Export the table (see Tables)
Edit the file to make the changes needed (e.g. change the name of a box, change the storage, change a box position, change box size etc)
Select XLS Batch Update Objects from the More.. dropdown.
7. Import the file you modified before and update the storage positions.
Updated on April 25, 2023
Delete storage positions
Delete single storage positions
To delete a single storage position from a sample:
Edit the sample for which you want to deleted the storage position
Navigate to the Storage section at the end of the page
Use the “–” button in the Storage Position table, as shown in the picture
Save the sample
Please note that the storage position deleted in this way is moved to the trashcan. To delete the position permanently, this has to be deleted from the trashcan (see Trashcan).
Remove one of multiple positions in the same box
If one sample has been assigned to multiple positions in the same box and you need to remove only one or some of them, you can follow these steps:
Edit the sample for which you need to remove the storage position in the box
Navigate to the Storage section at the end of the page
Click on the table row (see picture below)
Unselect the position you want to remove (eg. A5 in the example below)
Click Accept
Save the sample
Delete multiple storage positions
To delete multiple storage positions from multiple samples we can use the Object Browser.
Go to the Object Browser under Utilities in the main menu
Select Storage Position from the Object Type dropdown
3. Filter the table to find the storage positions you want to delete (see Tables)
4. Select the positions you want to delete from the table and click the Delete button (see picture below)
5. You will be asked to provide a reason for deletion
6. The deleted storage positions will be moved to the trashcan and should be removed from there to be permanently deleted (see Trashcan)
Updated on May 2, 2023
Overview of lab storages
The Storage Manager, under Utilities, provides an overview of each single storage configured for the lab, by the lab admin.
Select the storage containing the samples to visualise from the Storage drop down menu.
Click on a box to view its content.
When hovering with the mouse over a sample inside a box, the info about the sample is shown.
Overview of lab Storages
Change storage position of samples
The Storage Manager can also be used to move samples from one storage position to another, if the location of the sample is changed:
Click on Toggle Storage B (see figure above).
Select the destination storage, from the Storage drop down menu.
Drag and drop the box or sample to move from Storage A to the desired position in Storage B. Please note that the move operation for samples with multiple positions in the same box or in different boxes is not supported.
Changes are visualised at the bottom of the page. To save them, click Save Changes on top of the Storage Manager form.
Updated on April 25, 2023