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--- rdms:metadata:start [2023/05/04 15:01]
marguerite [More background information about metadata:]
+++ rdms:metadata:start [2023/09/13 09:12] (current)
pascal
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-====== Metadata ======
+====== Metadata in the RDMS ======
-With the RDMS you have the option to enrich your files and folders with metadata. It will be easier to retrieve that specific file from about a year ago that was collected by Pietje Puk with camera number A. Or those measurements done by student assistant Marian who has left the UG.
+One powerful feature of the RDMS is that it gives you the option to enrich your files and folders with metadata. The term **Metadata** refers to "data that provides information about other data". In other words, it is "data about data". In layman's terms, think of the information attached to a song that tells you who the singer is and which album it is from. In terms of research, this information could contain the instrument that generated the data, as well as the project or experiment that data is generated for.
-It is even possible to use metadata to set automation in motion. You can use metadata to move data to a specific spot; copy files to the HPC cluster and start computing on these files.
-Metadata is "data that provides information about other data" In other words, it is "data about data."
+The RDMS is based on iRODS; short for "integrated Rule-Oriented Data System". This system treats all files and folders as data with metadata directly attached to them. The minimum level of metadata that is attached to data (file/folder) is the one generated by the system itself, so called **system metadata**. This metadata contains for example the date when the data first entered the system, the size of the data and its owner.
-The RDMS is based on iRODS; an Integrated Rule-Oriented Data System. All files and folders are data objects with metadata directly attached to the data objects. This allows for many extra possibilities of data handling.
+The second type of metadata is metadata that is added by a user, so called **user-defined metadata**. As a user, you can freely decide which metadata tags to use and how many of them to attach to the data as long as you have the required [[rdms:data:permissions|permissions]].
-It allows you **to retrieve data** on the basis of metadata. This metadata will at least contain the date when it was produced, the size of the file and the owner of it. But then the possible metadata tags lie with the owner of the file or folder. The owner can decide on using metadata tags like the name of the machine that produced the data, the angle of that machine, the experiment number for which it was produced. The possibilities are endless.
+For example, you might want to record the name of the machine that produced the data, the internal settings of that machine used to record the data, the experiment number for which the data was produced, the tools and software used, or any tag that you find relevant to locate that particular dataset later in time. This freedom to decide on what metadata to record allows for many extra possibilities of data handling. For example, it allows you to [[rdms:webapp:search|search]] much more accurately for data on the basis of metadata.
-Metadata also allows the **automatic ingest** of data to the folder structure of the RDMS and certain metadata fields can me made can be obligatory and must be filled in before uploading. Metadata can also be used **to trigger actions**. For instance; it can be used to copy and compute data to the High Performance Cluster.
+Before we jump into the metadata functionality of the RDMS, one important note to give is that there is **no limit** to how much metadata you can attach to a file. The System is set up in such a way that does not limit entries or number of tags in the metadata templates. Finally, metadata attached to a collection is not directly inherited by the objects contained in the collection. The objects, however, will be displayed in the search results if the collection that contains them has metadata attached that fits the parameters of the search query.
+===== Metadata Management in the RDMS =====
+How you will manage the metadata attached to your data depends on how you connect to the RDMS. The following sections of our Wiki will explain how you can manage metadata:
+  * Using [[rdms:metadata:cli|The command-line interface to manage metadata]] using ''iCommands''
+  * Or using the GUI of the [[https://research.web.rug.nl/rdmswebapp/rdms.login.page?next=/rdmswebapp/|web portal]] to [[rdms:metadata:metadatawebportal|add/remove/change metadata]]
+Furthermore, you will be able to use the [[rdms:webapp:search|search]] function to find data using the metadata you attached to it. And finally, the portal allows to define [[rdms:metadata:metadatatemplates|metadata templates and new metadata types]] which allows for the standardization of your and your group's metadata.
-===== MetaData in the WebApp =====
-In the WebApp of the RDMS we build an easy interface to [[rdms:webapp:metadata|add metadata to files]] and folders. It is also possible to build a template for metadata you want to add. With a  template adding metadata is simplified and unified for the data in that folder.
 ===== More background information about metadata: =====