Keeping records
Inventory
Where the physical material is: freezers, racks, boxes, positions and the samples in them.
How it is organised
Locations nest, in the way a freezer actually nests. Each level can carry a temperature label.
| Level | Typically |
|---|---|
| Freezer | The unit itself — −20 °C, −80 °C, liquid nitrogen. |
| Shelf | A shelf or drawer within it. |
| Rack | A rack or tower on that shelf. |
| Box | A box in the rack. Rendered as a grid you can read like the real thing. |
| Position | A single well or slot in the box. |
The panel opens on All Items with the location tree beside it. Selecting a location narrows the sample list to what is in it. A box-type location can be shown as a grid, which maps onto the physical box in front of you.
Sample statuses
- Available
- In its position and ready to use.
- Checked Out
- Someone has it on the bench. This is what stops two people looking for the same tube.
- Depleted
- Used up. The record stays for the history.
- Discarded
- Deliberately thrown away.
- Expired
- Past its useful date.
The header shows how many samples are currently available, and search matches across sample names.
The audit trail
Every movement of every sample is recorded and readable from View Audit Log. Recorded events are creation, moves, check-out, check-in, depletion and discard.
This is the part worth knowing about even while the write controls are unfinished. When a sample is not where the system says it is, the log tells you who moved it and when — which is usually enough to find it. It is also the record you want when a reviewer asks about provenance.
In the meantime
Until sample management is wired up, the practical approach is to keep the identity of things in the Registry — which does work, and does let you add entries — and record physical location in the registry entry or in the linked experiment alongside your existing freezer spreadsheet.
That keeps the identifiers stable, which is the part that is expensive to fix later. Locations move around anyway.