✅ Files Tab

Access and structure

In a previous article we have introduced the DAS interface 🔗 and shown how the ‘Files’ tab appears once you sign in as administrator. Once you land on the ‘Files’ tab, you will see the data that are stored locally in the SD card of the DAS as seen in the example below. 

In this article we will explore the folders and files that are included in this tab and explain how to safely navigate and extract data from your DAS device. There is no option to upload data via this page, but when applicable we will reference you to the correct article for uploading data.  

❗Remember that the SD card contains important files for the functionality of your DAS device. Do not remove, delete or add files in the SD card, unless clearly instructed by a Delvotest® representative. 

• System files 
   On the bottom of the screen, you will see important System files, i.e. ‘inhibitorsMethods.csv’, ‘logging.txt’ and ‘software files.tar.br2’ that are crucial for the correct operation of the device and should not be altered nor deleted. Here are more details about these files: 
    
1. ‘inhibitorsMethods.csv’
    It contains a summary of the methods included in this DAS device as defined on the settings tab 🔗. Your DAS cannot operate if this file is renamed or removed from your device. However, you can safely download and view this file by using the Select button on the top left corner. This .csv extracted file can be shared as explained in troubleshooting 🔗.
     
2. ‘logging.txt’
    It contains a detailed record of the operations performed in the DAS, including potential errors that might occur. It can be downloaded and shared via the select button as explained in troubleshooting 🔗.
     
3. ‘operators.txt’
    Includes the given operator names that can be selected when preparing an incubation. To adjust this file, refer to the article managing operators 🔗. If this file is ever deleted, when you next restart the DAS, it will automatically generate a new default operator file. 
    
4. software files ‘Version_X.X.XX.tar.br2‘
   Includes that software files that are currently in use together with previous versions that had been successful installed. Do not delete current or previous versions via this page. To upgrade your software, follow the instructions in this article managing software 🔗.

The folders that appear on this page are the locations where you can view and download data related to executed tests and their layouts as well as previous calibrations reports. Never remove nor rename these folders as they are critical for the DAS operation. 

• ‘Calibrations’ folder 
   Here is where all the calibration data are stored once you have completed a position, uniformity or color calibration.   Read more about the contents in this detailed article🔗
    
• ‘Images’ folder 
   This location includes images that are captured by the camera that are not related to test incubations. 
   
  
• ‘Layout Definition’ folder 
   this location includes the layout csv files that can be uploaded via the preparation incubation page. To learn more about the structure of the files refer to the layout subsection of this detailed article🔗.
   
• ‘Tests’ folder 
   As we have seen in the article introducing results \\test folders \\‘history’ file 🔗 the DAS will save here the test results automatically as soon as the incubation has been completed. Aborted measurements will also be saved into this location.  Once you have clicked into the ‘Tests’ folder, you are able to view subfolders and the history file. The select button on the top left corner can be used to download one or multiple test subfolders as a compressed .zip file. 

💡 By the way, did you know the DAS can automatically send the generated result and calibration reports to a shared location in your network? The Setup// backup article 🔗 can guide you through on the steps to enable this functionality in your system.

Memory capacity, warnings and manual file removal 

As previously seen the DAS stores its data into an internal, encrypted SD card. Important files for the operation of the device, should never be removed. However, to prevent the SD card memory from becoming full, the device has an in-built feature to automatically remove tests files after a fixed time. This period is by default set at 365 days but can be adjusted via the setup page under the feature ‘Tests deleted after Nr days’ 🔗.

The disk of the DAS is large enough to store the several hundred incubation results. In rare case, the disk usage can become too high before the automatic deletion period. In this case the DAS cannot store any new incubation runs. To prevent this from happening, a warning will be shown when the disk usage is higher than 90% as below. 

In this case, when a warning appears, you will need to carefully remove test files manually, following the steps below: 

❗Remember that the SD card contains important files for the functionality of your DAS device. Only remove individual ‘Test subfiles’ by following the steps below. Do not remove any other folder or file unless clearly instructed by a member of our team. 

1. Unlock files via the setup page ‘Unlock files’ button 🔗.
2. ‘Tests’ sub-folders
    Click ‘Select’ on the upper left corner, choose the old test sub-files that you want to delete and then click ‘Remove’. 

Files via the Windows File Explorer with advice from the Delvotest® team

In a previous paragraph we described how to reach files that are stored in the internal storage space of the DAS via the browser. In case you want to retrieve data from your DAS device, it is recommended use the ‘Files’ page as previously explained under ’Access and Structure’.

In rare occasions and only under the advice of Delvotest® representative, the files can also be reached by opening the Windows File Explorer in your device. To achieve that, turn on your DAS device, open the windows File explorer and type,  \\ and the IP-address of the DAS in the address bar. To find the IP of your device, refer to ‘Display and IP Address’ 🔗.

The image below gives an example for a DAS with IP \\10.141.0.82 .

❗Remember that the SD card contains important files for the functionality of your DAS device. Do not remove, delete or add files in the SD card, unless clearly instructed by a Delvotest® representative. Special attention is required when accessing information via this page, as any deletions, folder renaming or moving can make your DAS device not functional. 

The files above can be viewed and copied by default. Only when you are instructed to modify any files via the windows explorer, you will need to follow the steps below:

1. Unlock files via the setup page. Unlock Files button  🔗.
2. Make sure the DAS is in Idle mode, not incubating
3. Close the browser DAS window. 

💡 By the way, did you know that it is not required to login to reach the files? if the windows file explorer requests to login, any username and password will be accepted, you can use for example username: “das” and password: “das”. 

💡 It is possible that the Windows version installed, and the local computer settings don’t allow direct access to the DAS. In this case the Windows File Explorer cannot be used to access files on the DAS. Contact your local IT for support. 

💡Do you want to integrate DAS with your LIMS for automation control in your laboratory? You can instruct your system to automatically upload your plate Layout files 🔗 in the LayoutDefinition folder in the DAS memory. Load each layout plate via the incubation page and later match the sample names to the generated results 🔗. Read more about the files in the respective articles to understand their structure and effectively integrate them to your LIMS.