FAQ

• Defining a tonic research project?
• How can I get a DOI for my data?
• How can I access the data?
• Is there a list of all GIN client commands?
• Can I invite other collaborators who are not registered with GIN?
• Can I share a repository with a collaborator or journal using a private link or access token?
• I found a bug, something is not working, or "I don't know what to do"
• Why do I see files with some strange text like "annex" or "WORM" instead of file content?
• Do I have to use git-annex?
• Can I use GIN as a data provider for my research consortium/institute/department/working group with many collaborators and potentially a lot of terabytes of data?
• How can I create an organization?
• How do I create a team in an organization?
• How do I add members to a team?
• How do I add repositories to an organization?
• How do I add repositories to a team?
• How do I make a member of a team an owner?

Defining a tonic research project

Tonic project can have several experiments, it is not that straightforward to decide whether to create a new project or to add some new elements to an existing project. While there is no technical reason to do one or the other, one needs to think a bit long term. A project may be defined in its readme file: a combination of the vision of the project and the collaborators could change your decision.

If the same people are involved and the vision is similar (continuation of a project, slightly different objective with the same people) then it would make most sense to expand the existing project. In case different people and different visions are involved, it is also clear that creating a new project makes most sense.

In practice, the situtation is often between these two extremes. The question is then: (1) who will have access to what data, (2) Can using the same project leads to confusion (project management files will be mixed)? Note that people will have access to files you delete (because of the version control system), so cleaning a repo of certain files before sharing is not a good option.

In doubts, my advice is to create a new project. Merging them later is easier than separate a project in two.

How can I get a DOI for my data?

Ask the data manager, we will fork the repo on the LMU GIN and get a doi there via:

See details here.

Short overview:

• Create a repository
• Upload data (using the Website, our client, or git{annex})
• Create a DOI request file (datacite.yml)
• Set repository to public
• Hit doi button

How can I access the data?

At GIN we believe that there should ideally be several ways to achieve the same thing. So to access the data you can:

• Download the data file by file using the web interface
• Download the data using git and git-annex
• Download the data using the GIN client
• Download the data using WebDAV
• Download the Data as zip, tar or gin archive (big files are not included and can be fetched later using one of the methods above)

Is there a list of all GIN client commands?

Of course there is! Here!

Can I invite other collaborators who are not registered with GIN?

Yes, you can! Here is how:

1. Navigate to the main page of your repository. Your url should look like this gin.g-node.org/<your_username>/<your_repository> and you should see all the files contained within your repository.
2. Click on the Settings button in the top right-hand corner, which will lead you to your repository settings.
3. Within your repository settings, you need to click on the Collaboration tab on the left side.
4. This will leave you with two options:
   • Add a new collaborator: This is for users who are registered with GIN
   • Invite a collaborator: This is for non-registered users. This is what you are looking for! But be aware that sharing your repository and hence your data via email is much less safe than sharing it only with already registered users. This is why we recommend sharing your repository only via the first option.

Can I share a repository with a collaborator or journal using a private link or access token?

At the moment, it is not possible to share a private repository with someone who does not have a GIN account. There are, however, several options you can use to grant access without requesting that others sign up themselves.

• Create a new GIN account for the purpose of sharing your repository. You can add that account as a collaborator of your repository and provide the password to your collaborator or along with your submission to a journal. The account may be deleted afterwards if needed.
• Using the collaboration page of your repository settings, you can automatically set up such a sharing account and send an invitation E-mail.
• If the visibility of a repository is set to public and it is not listed, only those who happen to somehow know to the repository link will be able to view its contents. Please be aware that this option may leave your data vulnerable, as it can not be excluded that others may gain access to the link without your knowledge.

I found a bug, something is not working, or "I don't know what to do"

You can ask questions, report problems or ask for general help by opening an issue here.

Why do I see files with some strange text like "annex" or "WORM" instead of file content?

GIN is using git-annex to manage large files. Read more here. The fact that the content of these files is not shown, but instead a link to the location where it is supposed to be is shown, might mean either that

• the real content of these files has not been uploaded by the original authors or that
• the repo is a fork and the "real" file can be found in the "mother-repository" accessible below the repository name.

Do I have to use git-annex?

Strictly speaking No. A better answer, however, would probably be: It depends on the size of your data!

• If you have only small files, just use gin as a normal git hosting provider.
• If you have big files, download our local GIN client for your operating system. Then, you can access and upload your data (unlimited file size) using the GIN command line client. Alternatively to the GIN client, you can use git and git annex directly to upload and manage large files! Be sure to check the usage notes.

Can I use GIN as a data provider for my research consortium/institute/department/working group with many collaborators and potentially a lot of terabytes of data?

Sure! However, if you need guaranteed access to a lot of free storage we expect that you cover the additional costs associated with it. Please get in touch with us about the details. Also, consider that data transfer takes its time. You can of course also set up your own gin server in-house. We are happy to be of assistance, if necessary.

How can I create an organization?

Here is how:

1. Sign in to your GIN account, you will be taken to the main page. Click on the "+" (create) button at the top right of the main page and click on the "New Organization" at the dropdown menu.
2. You will be taken to a page asking for the name of your organization, enter your organization name and proceed with "Create Organization" button. Here is your new organization! Alternatively, you could create a new organization by clicking on your user name on top left of the main page. A dropdown menu including "+ New Organization" will show up and you will be taken to the same "Create Organization" page.

How do I create a team in an organization?

1. Sign in to GIN, you will be taken to the main page. Click on your username at the top left of the main page, a dropdown menu will pop up. Select your organization from the dropdown menu and you will be taken to your organization page.
2. Click on "View 'your organization name'" at the top right corner of the page and you will be taken to a new page. At the bottom right corner of the new page, you will see "Create a new team" button, click on that and you will be taken to a new page.
3. Enter your team name and a short description if necessary. Choose a level of permission for your team (read permission, write permission, administrator) and click on "Create a new team". These attributes can be changed anytime by clicking on the "Settings" button at the team webpage.

How do I add members to a team?

1. Sign in to GIN, you will be taken to the main page. Click on your username at the top left of the main page, a dropdown menu will pop up. Select your organization from the dropdown menu and you will be taken to a new page. Click on "View 'your organization name'" at the top right corner and you will be taken to your organization page. Alternatively, you can click on "Organizations" button on the top right of the main page (next to Repositories button) and click on your organization name to go to your organization page directly.
2. At the bottom right corner of your organization page, you will see a list of teams, click on the team that you want to add new members.
3. You will see a slot to enter the username of the new team member and "Add team member" button next to it. Enter the username and hit "Add team member".

How do I add repositories to an organization?

To add a repository to an organization, you should be an owner of that organization. You can see a list of organization owners by clicking on "Owners" on the team list at organization page.

1. Sign in to GIN, you will be taken to the main page. Click on your username at the top left of the main page, a dropdown menu will pop up. Select your organization from the dropdown menu and you will be taken to a new page. Click on "View 'your organization name'" at the top right corner and you will be taken to your organization page! Alternatively, you can click on "Organizations" button on the top right of the main page (next to Repositories button) and click on your organization name to navigate to your organization page directly.
2. Click on "New Repository" button on top of the page and you will be navigated to a new page. Enter a repository name and description, click on "Create repository" button at the bottom of the page.

How do I add repositories to a team?

1. Sign in to GIN and go to organization page including the team that you want to add a new repository.
2. Click on the team name from the “Teams” list which is at the right bottom of the page and you will be taken to your team page.
3. Click on “repositories” button on the left side of the page, next to the “members” button.
4. Enter your repository name and click on “Add Team Repository”.

How do I make a member of a team an owner?

To give owner permissions to a member in an organization, an owner should add the user to the owners team, which is a default team in all organizations. To do that follow the steps below:

1. Sign in to GIN and go to the webpage of the organization that you want to add a new owner.
2. Click on "Owners" from the “Teams” list which is at the right bottom of the page and you will be taken to owners team page.
3. Enter a username and click on “Add team member”.