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Managing Submissions

This guide covers the full lifecycle of a submission: creating it, filling in metadata, uploading data, and all the actions available to you along the way.

For a quick reference of which actions are available in each state, see Submission States. For a summary of who can do what, see Roles.

Overview

A submission is the primary unit of work in DSS. It collects:

  • Basic info — the submitting institution, project, local custodians, and contacts
  • Studies — one or more studies describing the research
  • Datasets — one or more datasets linked to studies, with GDPR and scientific metadata
  • Attachments — supporting files (PDF, TXT, PNG)
  • Messages — an internal message thread between submitters and Data Stewards

Viewing Submissions

All submissions (Data Steward)

Data Stewards can see every submission in the system via Submissions in the navigation menu (/submissions).

My submissions (Submitter / Recipient)

Regular users see only the submissions they are assigned to, via My Submissions (/my_submissions).

Creating a Submission

Only Data Stewards can create new submissions from scratch.

  1. Navigate to Submissions → New Submission.
  2. Fill in the form:
  3. Institution — the data provider's institution
  4. Local project name — the internal project this submission belongs to
  5. Local custodians — the internal staff responsible for this data
  6. Contacts — at least one contact (the submitter). Additional contacts can be added.
  7. Click Save. The submission is created in Initiation state and a notification is sent to the submitter.

Any internal user (including submitters) can create a copy of an existing submission — see Duplicating a Submission.

Editing Basic Info

While in Initiation or Metadata Entry state, the submission's basic info (institution, project, custodians, contacts) can be edited by the Data Steward via the Edit button on the submission page.

Adding Studies

Studies are required before the submission can move to Metadata Review. A submission must have at least one study.

  1. Open the submission and click Add Study.
  2. Fill in the study form:
  3. Name, acronym, description
  4. Study type(s), species, diseases, sample sources
  5. Ethics approval details
  6. Number of subjects, age range, cohort descriptions
  7. Study contacts
  8. Save. Repeat to add more studies.

Studies can be edited or deleted while the submission is in Metadata Entry state.

Adding Datasets

Each dataset is linked to one of the submission's studies. At least one dataset is required.

  1. On the submission page, click Add Dataset.
  2. Fill in the dataset form:
  3. Title and description
  4. Scientific data types (e.g. genomics, clinical)
  5. GDPR data types (e.g. health, genetic) and whether the data contains personal data
  6. Legal basis for collection and sharing
  7. Consent status and notes
  8. Use restrictions (research scope, geographic, user-specific, publication, etc.)
  9. Technical metadata: number of records, file types, data standards, byte size, version
  10. Save. Repeat to add more datasets.

Datasets can be edited or deleted while in Metadata Entry state. Once the submission moves beyond Metadata Review, datasets become read-only.

Adding Attachments

Supporting documents (PDF, TXT, PNG) can be attached at any point while the submission is in an editable state.

  1. On the submission page, click Add Attachment.
  2. Enter a note describing the attachment.
  3. Select one or more files (PDF, TXT, or PNG — other types are rejected).
  4. Save.

Attachments can be downloaded by any user with access to the submission, and deleted by the Data Steward or Submitter.

Messaging

Any user with access to a submission can add messages to its internal thread. This is the primary communication channel between submitters and Data Stewards.

  1. On the submission page, click Add Message.
  2. Write your message and save.

When a message is added to an in-progress submission, a notification email is sent to the other parties.

Steering the Submission Forward

Each phase must be explicitly advanced to the next state. This is called "steering".

From state Who can steer Requirements
Initiation Data Steward or Submitter At least one submitter (contact) assigned
Metadata Entry Data Steward or Submitter At least one study and one dataset present
Data Upload Data Steward or Submitter Submitter confirms data has been uploaded

Click the Steer forward button on the submission page. Some transitions require confirming a responsibility acknowledgement.

Approving and Rejecting (Data Steward only)

Metadata Review

After the submission reaches Metadata Review, the Data Steward reviews it and either:

  • Approves — optionally adds a feedback message; submission moves to Data Upload.
  • Rejects — feedback message is required; submission returns to Metadata Entry.

Data Verification

After the submitter confirms data upload, the Data Steward either:

  • Approves — optionally adds a feedback message; submission moves to Complete.
  • Rejects — feedback message is required; submission returns to Data Upload.

Reverting to the Previous State (Data Steward only)

A Data Steward can revert a submission to its previous state at any point (except from Initiation, which has no previous state).

Use the Revert action on the submission page. Reverting from Metadata Review sends the submission back to Metadata Entry, and so on.

Cancelling a Submission

Active submissions (in Metadata Entry, Metadata Review, Data Upload, or Data Verification) can be cancelled.

  • Who can cancel: Data Steward or the submission owner (Submitter).
  • A cancellation reason is required.

On the submission list page, use the Cancel action and enter the reason. The submission moves to Cancelled state and a notification is sent to the submitter and recipient. Cancelled submissions cannot be reactivated — create a copy instead.

Deleting a Submission

Submissions can only be deleted while in Initiation state (before being steered forward).

  • Who can delete: Data Steward or Submitter.

Once a submission has been steered past Initiation, use Cancel to terminate it instead.

Duplicating a Submission

Any user with access to a submission can create a copy of it via Create copy (also called "Clone"). The copy is created in Initiation state and includes the basic info, studies, datasets, and contacts from the original. Messages and attachments are not copied.

This is useful when submitting a follow-up study with similar metadata.

Exporting a Submission

A submission can be exported as a DOCX report at any stage.

Click Export DOCX on the submission page. The file is named Submission_<ref_name>.docx and contains all metadata: basic info, contacts, studies, datasets, and use restrictions.

Export is available to Data Stewards, Submitters, and Recipients.