Learn about elabfolder
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Electronic Lab Notebooks (ELNs) like Labfolder help structure and streamline your scientific documentation. This guide gives you practical steps, integration tips, and best practices for using ELNs effectively as part of Würzburg University’s Forschung Digital services.

1. Getting Started with Labfolder

Labfolder is the recommended Electronic Lab Notebook (ELN) for researchers at the University of Würzburg (JMU) and the University Hospital Würzburg (UKW). It is fully browser-based and hosted on secure university infrastructure.

A. Registration & Access

For UKW Employees

Follow the official UKW registration guide:
📄 Step-by-Step UKW Labfolder Guide (PDF) (accessible from UKW intranet only)

For JMU Employees

Follow the instructions on the official Forschung Digital site:
🌐 JMU ELN Registration Instructions

Note:
JMU employees working on UKW-associated projects may request access to the UKW Labfolder instance by contacting:
📧 labfolder@ukw.de

After registration, your group administrator will invite you to the appropriate group workspace. Please follow the guides carefully to avoid technical issues.

Use the appropriate login portal depending on your affiliation:

C. Need Help?

2. Connect to Your Project Folder (Nextcloud)

You can store raw data in your group’s Nextcloud research folder and reference it from your ELN.

Example Workflow:

  1. Upload your experimental files to your Nextcloud RDM project folder.
  2. In Labforward:
    • Add a File Reference block in your experiment.
    • Paste the Nextcloud public link (with read or edit permissions).
    • Alternatively, include a mount point path if synced locally.

💡 Pro tip: Organize your Nextcloud folder like projectname/data/EXP001_raw/.

To track analysis pipelines and code:

  1. Create a GitHub repo (e.g., exp-xyz-analysis).
  2. In your ELN:
    • Paste the GitHub repo link in the experiment record.
    • Add commit hashes for reproducibility.
  3. Consider using GitHub-Zenodo integration to archive final versions with DOIs.

4. Use Metadata Templates and SOPs

Well-structured metadata and clear Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are essential for reproducible, high-quality science. They ensure your experiments are understandable, traceable, and usable by others — or by you months later.

Why Use Them?

  • Metadata links your experiment to samples, data, and analysis.
  • SOPs standardize protocols across users and time.
  • Together, they make your work FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), improve collaboration, and simplify publication and data reuse.

Example Metadata Block

Use a structured block like this at the start of each experiment. You can paste it directly or include it in your ELN template:

```yaml Project: P23_ImmuneCellFlow Experiment: EXP001 Date: 2025-07-10 Researcher: Jane Doe Sample Type: Human PBMCs Protocol Version: 1.2 Raw Data Path: https://nextcloud.uni-wuerzburg.de/s/abc123 Analysis Repo: https://github.com/labgroup/exp001-analysis

5. Best Practices for ELNs

  1. Document Regularly:
    • Update your ELN in real-time to avoid forgetting important details.
  2. Organize Experiments:
    • Use consistent naming conventions for projects and experiments.
  3. Include Metadata:
    • Provide as much detail as possible for better data interpretation later.
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