eLabFTW Template Repository

This deposit archives the eLabFTW Template Repository: a community-maintained collection of eLabFTW templates and reference entries, organised according to the DFG Classification of Scientific Disciplines (2024–2028), with a GitHub-based contribution workflow. The repository structure spans all four DFG research divisions; initial contributions from the CRC 1638 INF team are primarily relevant to Biology/Medicine, and contributions from any discipline are welcome. The GitHub repository is available at https://github.com/sfb1638/elabftw-templates.

Setting up a structured electronic lab notebook from scratch is time-consuming, and every research group tends to solve the same documentation problems independently — for some groups, that blank-canvas starting point is enough to delay or discourage adoption of an ELN altogether, rather than just costing extra effort once they're in. This repository makes that work shareable: a structured, version-controlled distribution point for .eln files (ELN file format, a ZIP-based open standard), which import directly into any eLabFTW instance, together with a GitHub pull-request workflow so any lab can adapt templates and feed changes back.
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Reviewing a proposed change is not straightforward for .eln files, since they are ZIP archives and GitHub cannot show a readable diff of what changed inside one. The ELN Metadata Diff Viewer, developed and published separately by Achim Winandi (DOI: 10.35097/2rmp99h5nxg29yj1; tool: achimw.codeberg.page/eln-metadata-diff), addresses this: given a pull request, it extracts and compares the template metadata directly, without requiring the reviewer to import the file into eLabFTW first. It is a complementary, independently maintained and cited resource, not part of this deposit. This repository exists in parallel with, not in competition with, Deltablot's eln.community template hub.

Note on authorship: the `_SFB1638.eln` templates distributed through this repository were designed and authored by Neele Drobnitzky as the SFB 1638 Template package, described in the accompanying user guide (DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.20605340). This repository provides their distribution, version control, and review infrastructure.

Developed within the SFB 1638 / CRC 1638 INF project (DFG GEPRIS 511488495) at the Biochemistry Centre (BZH), University of Heidelberg.

This publication was prepared as part of the final project for the Certificate of Advanced Studies Forschungsdatenmanagement (CAS FDM) offered as part of the Baden-Württemberg Research Data Management Initiative (Landesinitiative bwFDM).

Repository structure and documentation were developed with AI assistance (Claude, Anthropic), reviewed and validated by the authors.