Skip to content

Make your first commit

A commit is how you record the state of a biological asset in CellRepo.

If you think in lab terms, a commit is similar to: - writing down the current state of a strain in your lab notebook - saving a snapshot of what exists right now - marking an experimental milestone

Commits are the core of how CellRepo creates traceability.

What a commit actually does

When you make a commit, you are:

  • capturing what the asset looks like at this point in time
  • recording who made the update
  • optionally explaining why this state matters

A commit does not mean the work is finished.
It simply means: this is a meaningful state worth recording.

(If you want a short definition of the term “commit”, you can also check the
CellRepo vocabulary.)

When should you make a commit?

Make a commit whenever something about the asset changes in a meaningful way.

For example: - the strain was created or transformed - a sequence was finalised or updated - a genotype was confirmed - a construct design changed - an important experimental decision was made

You do not need to commit every small action.
Think in terms of checkpoints, not keystrokes.

Steps: make your first commit

  1. Open the repository for your biological asset
    (see Create your first repository if needed).
  2. Click New commit or Create commit.
  3. Add the information you want to record:
  4. description of the current state
  5. files, sequences, or notes (if available)
  6. Save the commit.

That’s it. You’ve now created a traceable history.

What to write in a commit message

A good commit message answers one simple question:

What changed, and why does it matter?

Good examples: - “Initial construction of CRISPR knockout strain” - “Confirmed genotype after sequencing” - “Updated plasmid design following optimisation”

Avoid: - “Final version” - “Fix” - “Update”

Clear messages make history useful months or years later.

(If your team uses structured commit messages, see
Commit templates.)

What information can be added later

You don’t need to include everything in the first commit.

It’s fine if: - data is incomplete - files are added in later commits - descriptions evolve over time

CellRepo is designed for incremental recording, not perfect snapshots.

Viewing commit history

Once you have more than one commit, CellRepo shows a timeline of changes.

This allows you to: - see how an asset evolved - understand who made which changes - trace decisions over time

This history is what enables collaboration, ownership clarity, and auditability.

If something feels wrong

If you realise you made a mistake: - you can create a new commit to correct it - earlier commits are not erased - the history remains transparent

This is intentional. Traceability is more important than hiding errors.

Getting help

If you’re unsure what should count as a commit, or how detailed it should be, you don’t need to guess.

You can contact us at
support@cellrepo.com

We’re happy to help with real examples from your workflow.

Once you are comfortable making commits, you may want to: