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Export records

Not everyone you work with will use CellRepo.

Sometimes you need to:

  • send results to a collaborator
  • attach records to a paper or thesis
  • submit documentation to a supervisor
  • share evidence for compliance or audits
  • archive work offline

CellRepo lets you export structured, traceable records without losing history.

The core idea

Inside CellRepo:

  • everything is version controlled
  • every change is tracked
  • every commit has context

When exporting, you are creating a:

snapshot of the current state + its history

This is much safer than manually copying files from different folders.

What you can export

Depending on your workflow, you may export:

  • commit reports (PDF)
  • repository files
  • structured records
  • experimental history

Most users start with commit reports.

A commit report captures:

  • the state of the repository at that commit
  • metadata (who, when, message)
  • associated files
  • commit history tree

This is ideal for:

  • documentation
  • reviews
  • sharing externally
  • long-term archiving

Steps: export a commit report

1. Open your repository

Navigate to the repository you want to export.

2. Open the commit

Click the specific commit you want.

(Usually the latest or a milestone commit.)

3. Download report

Click:

Download report or Export report

CellRepo generates a PDF automatically.

What the report includes

A typical report contains:

  • commit details
  • description/message
  • attached data or files
  • history tree (how this state evolved)
  • timestamps
  • author information

This makes it:

  • readable
  • shareable
  • reproducible

Someone else can understand the full context without logging in.

Why reports are better than screenshots

Avoid:

  • screenshots of pages
  • manually copying notes
  • exporting random files

These lose traceability.

Reports preserve:

  • structure
  • history
  • authorship

Which is critical in science.

Example scenario

Imagine:

You finished engineering a strain and need to send results to your supervisor.

Instead of:

❌ sending 5 separate files
❌ writing long emails explaining changes
❌ wondering which version is correct

You:

✅ open latest commit
✅ download report
✅ send one PDF

Done.

Everything is documented automatically.

Exporting raw files

If you only need the data:

You can also:

  • download specific files
  • copy sequences
  • export repository contents

This is useful for:

  • analysis tools
  • simulations
  • external software

But remember:

Files alone do not include history.

If traceability matters → prefer reports.

Choosing what to export

Use this quick guide:

Use commit report when:

  • sharing results
  • documentation
  • audits
  • publications
  • external collaborators

Use raw files when:

  • computational analysis
  • importing into another tool
  • temporary processing

Best practices

Good habits:

  • export milestone commits, not unfinished work
  • write clear commit messages before exporting
  • use reports for anything official
  • keep CellRepo as the primary source of truth

Avoid:

  • maintaining separate “manual copies”
  • editing exported files and treating them as new truth

CellRepo should always remain the master record.

Archiving projects

For long-term storage:

You can:

  • export final reports
  • keep PDFs alongside publications
  • store structured data backups

This gives you:

  • reproducibility
  • evidence
  • compliance support

Even years later.

Result

After exporting:

  • collaborators understand your work clearly
  • history is preserved
  • ownership is obvious
  • sharing is simple

No confusion about “which version is correct”.

If you haven’t already: