Skip to content

Publish data with a DOI

The CANFAR Data Publication Service (DPS) packages research data with a landing page and a persistent Digital Object Identifier (DOI). Use the Science Portal or open the DPS directly.

The service workflow is web-led. A CADC account and access to the data service are required; if the portal does not show the publication tools, ask CANFAR support about account or project access.

Workflow

  1. Open Data Publication and choose New.
  2. Enter the required title and first-author details. Add authors and journal information when available.
  3. Upload or copy the package into the data directory shown by DPS. For a command-line transfer, use the configured Storage Identifier and the CANFAR data commands:
canfar data ls vault:/path/to/doi/data
canfar data cp local:/scratch/catalog.csv vault:/path/to/doi/data/catalog.csv

vault: is an example; use the identifier and path supplied by the publication service on your deployment. 4. Add a top-level README that describes the layout, provenance, software, units, and any restrictions. Include the data, code, figures, or tables needed to interpret the research, while excluding credentials and unnecessary temporary files. 5. Share the unpublished record or its data directory with referees using the access workflow provided by DPS. Referees can read the package before the DOI is minted, so the data can be reviewed alongside the paper. 6. Select Publish when the package and metadata are final. Publishing mints the DOI and locks the published data directory. Published files are never changed afterwards: a correction is made by adding files, such as an erratum or a corrected table. Contact CANFAR support to add them.

Build a useful package

Keep the package self-describing and reproducible:

  • record the source observations, processing steps, and software versions;
  • use stable, descriptive filenames and a short directory structure;
  • include machine-readable metadata alongside tables and images;
  • document missing values, coordinate systems, units, and selection criteria;
  • include a license and citation guidance for reuse;
  • include checksums for the data files, so readers can verify their copies;
  • verify that the package can be read from the published data directory before selecting Publish; and
  • re-check the file list, authors, and title at the same time, because what you publish stays as it is.

Save the package and checkpoints in /arc or the data directory shown by DPS. Use /scratch only for temporary staging. The storage guide explains the distinction between mounted storage, staged files, and persistent remote data.

After publication

Use the DOI landing page in the paper and cite the dataset as a research output. If the journal DOI or bibliographic details become available later, update the unpublished metadata or contact support for the published record.

The DPS landing page and data-directory URLs are the source of truth for the individual package. Do not hard-code a sample DOI or assume that a particular Vault path is available to another user or deployment.