LabArchives allows you to attach documents of any file type and format to a page of your notebook. Files can be uploaded manually or automatically using integrated applications like Folder Monitor, the Microsoft Office Plugin, GraphPad Prism, and SnapGene. Attached files can be downloaded, and some formats can be directly viewed and edited in LabArchives.
How to Upload a File to a LabArchives Page
From a page in your notebook, click +New and select Attachment, or click Attachment on the Add Entry toolbar if it’s a frequently used entry type. You can upload your file—up to 50 files at a time—by using Drag and drop to add a file to the browser window or Browse files to select a file from your computer. Prior to saving the file, an additional description can be added to the Describe this attachment field such as a experiment or project ID. The file description field is indexed and included in a notebook keyword search.
Clicking Save to Page will generate a unique Attachment entry for each file loaded. A thumbnail preview or specific file-type icon will appear on the page.
Download, View, and Edit Attachments
When hovering over an attachment in a notebook, a toolbar appears that may include options to download, view, or edit the file, depending on the file type.
To download a file to your device, hover your mouse over the entry and click the Download icon. Any changes made to the file after download do not automatically update in LabArchives.
If changes are made to the file and they should be visible in LabArchives, the updated attachment should be brought back into the notebook. Click the pencil icon on the entry toolbar, and upload the new file by using the Drag and drop or Browse files option. This process maintains the file’s revision history and also allows you to rename the file if needed. Updating a file this way keeps your notebook organized while preserving previous versions for reference.
Many file types can be viewed directly within LabArchives by clicking the View (eye) icon , including text files, PDF files, Microsoft Office documents, and common image formats such as .png, .jpg , and .gif . Office documents include view access supported by Microsoft Office for the Web.
Most image formats—such as .png, .jpg, and .gif—are supported by the Image Annotator. Office Documents include edit access supported by Microsoft Office for the Web.
Feature Availability Based on Attachment Size
Files under 250 MB support the full range of features including indexing and in-platform editing, while larger files maintain essential functionality such as version control and secure upload.
| Feature | Files ≤ 250 MB | Files > 250 MB |
|---|---|---|
| Downloadable, versioned, and supports tags, comments, and descriptions | ✅ | ✅ |
| Revision history maintained | ✅ | ✅ |
| Scanned and monitored during upload | ✅ | ✅ |
| File name, description, and tags are indexed | ✅ | ✅ |
| Contents indexed (if supported file type) | ✅ | ❌ |
| Thumbnail display (if supported file type) | ✅ | ❌ |
| Editable/annotatable within LabArchives (if supported file type) | ✅ | ❌ |
| Accessible via API, Folder Monitor, Microsoft Office Plugin, or other integrations | ✅ | ❌ |