Configuration

When running a SampleDB installation, you can set environment variables to configure it. The following sections will describe groups of such variables and their effects.

E-Mail

E-Mail Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_CONTACT_EMAIL

An email address for users to contact

SAMPLEDB_MAIL_SENDER

The email address used for outbound emails

SAMPLEDB_MAIL_SERVER

The mail server used for outbound emails

SAMPLEDB_MAIL_PORT

The port to use for connections to the mail server (default: 25)

SAMPLEDB_MAIL_USE_TLS / SAMPLEDB_MAIL_USE_SSL

Whether to use TLS or SSL for connections to the mail server (default: False)

SAMPLEDB_MAIL_USERNAME

The username sent to the mail server

SAMPLEDB_MAIL_PASSWORD

The password sent to the mail server

While the SAMPLEDB_CONTACT_EMAIL, SAMPLEDB_MAIL_SENDER and SAMPLEDB_MAIL_SERVER variables are required, you may need to set one or more of the other variables to connect to your mail server, depending on its configuration.

LDAP

LDAP Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_NAME

The name of the LDAP server shown to the users

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_SERVER

The ldaps-URL of the LDAP server, or a comma separated list of ldaps-URLs to use more than one LDAP server

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_CONNECT_TIMEOUT

The timeout to use for connecting to the LDAP server(s)

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_USER_BASE_DN

The LDAP base DN to search users with

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_UID_FILTER

The filter to use for identifying a user in LDAP as python template, e.g. (uid={})

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_NAME_ATTRIBUTE

The name of the attribute containing a user’s name in LDAP, e.g. cn

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_MAIL_ATTRIBUTE

The name of the attribute containing a user’s email address in LDAP, e.g. mail

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_OBJECT_DEF

The object def to use for looking up user attributes, e.g. inetOrgPerson

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_USER_DN

The DN of an LDAP user to use when searching for other users

SAMPLEDB_LDAP_PASSWORD

The password for the user identified by SAMPLEDB_LDAP_USER_DN

SAMPLEDB_TESTING_LDAP_LOGIN

The uid of an LDAP user (only used during tests)

SAMPLEDB_TESTING_LDAP_PW

The password for the ldap user identified by SAMPLEDB_TESTING_LDAP_LOGIN (only used during tests)

If you use LDAP for user management, you can use these variables to configure how SampleDB should connect to your LDAP server.

Customization

Customization Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_SERVICE_NAME

The name of the service

SAMPLEDB_SERVICE_DESCRIPTION

A short description of the service

SAMPLEDB_SERVICE_LEGAL_NOTICE or SAMPLEDB_SERVICE_IMPRINT

The URL to use for the legal notice link

SAMPLEDB_SERVICE_PRIVACY_POLICY

The URL to use for the privacy policy link

SAMPLEDB_SERVICE_ACCESSIBILITY

The URL to use for the accessibility link

SAMPLEDB_PDFEXPORT_LOGO_URL

A file, http or https URL for a PNG or JPEG logo to be included in object export PDF documents

SAMPLEDB_PDFEXPORT_LOGO_ALIGNMENT

The alignment (left, center or right) of the logo, if SAMPLEDB_PDFEXPORT_LOGO_URL is set (default: right)

SAMPLEDB_HELP_URL

The URL to use for the help link

You can use these variables to customize how your SampleDB instance is called, described and which links are included in the footer. The logo at the given PDFEXPORT_LOGO_URL will be fetched when SampleDB is started and cached afterwards. To refresh the logo, you will need to restart SampleDB.

JupyterHub Support

JupyterHub Support Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_JUPYTERHUB_NAME

The name of your JupyterHub server (default: JupyterHub)

SAMPLEDB_JUPYTERHUB_URL

The base URL of your JupyterHub server

SAMPLEDB_JUPYTERHUB_TEMPLATES_URL

The URL of a Jupyter notebook templating server (default: SAMPLEDB_JUPYTERHUB_URL + /templates, if SAMPLEDB_JUPYTERHUB_URL is set)

For more information on JupyterHub support and Jupyter notebook templates, see JupyterHub Support.

Dataverse Export

Dataverse Export Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_DATAVERSE_NAME

The name of the Dataverse server (default: Dataverse)

SAMPLEDB_DATAVERSE_URL

The base URL of the Dataverse server

SAMPLEDB_DATAVERSE_ROOT_IDS

A comma seperated list of IDs of Dataverses, which objects may be exported to (default: :root)

For more information on the Dataverse export, see Dataverse Export.

SciCat Export

SciCat Export Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_SCICAT_NAME

The name of the SciCat instance (default: SciCat)

SAMPLEDB_SCICAT_API_URL

The base URL of the SciCat API server

SAMPLEDB_SCICAT_FRONTEND_URL

The base URL of the SciCat frontend server

SCICAT_EXTRA_PID_PREFIX

An additional prefix to use for generating persistent identifiers in combination with a UUID

For more information on the SciCat export, see SciCat Export.

Download Service

Download Service Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

DOWNLOAD_SERVICE_URL

The base URL of the Download Service

DOWNLOAD_SERVICE_SECRET

The shared secret

DOWNLOAD_SERVICE_WHITELIST

Whitelist in form of a json dict. Example: {“/normally/restricted/path/”: [userID, userID2]}

DOWNLOAD_SERVICE_TIME_LIMIT

Time the created download link is valid. In seconds. Default are 24h.

For more information on the Download Service, see Download Service.

Administrator Account

Administrator Account Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_ADMIN_PASSWORD

The password for the admin account.

SAMPLEDB_ADMIN_USERNAME

The username for the admin account (default: admin)

SAMPLEDB_ADMIN_EMAIL

The email address for the admin account (default: SAMPLEDB_CONTACT_EMAIL)

If no users exist yet and the SAMPLEDB_ADMIN_PASSWORD variable is set, a new user will be created with this password. This user will be a SampleDB admin. The username for this user will be set to value of SAMPLEDB_ADMIN_USERNAME and the email address for this user will be set to the value of SAMPLEDB_ADMIN_EMAIL.

If another user already exists, these variables will have no effect. It is meant for creating an administrator account as part of the initial setup.

Federation

Federation Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_FEDERATION_UUID

This instance’s federation UUID. See Federation for details

SAMPLEDB_ALLOW_HTTP

If set, insecure communication to other databases via HTTP will be allowed.

SAMPLEDB_VALID_TIME_DELTA

Valid time delta between SampleDB instances in a federation in seconds (default: 300)

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_DEFAULT_USER_ALIASES

If set, users will have aliases using their profile information by default (default: False). This will not apply to bot users or imported users.

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_FEDERATION_DISCOVERABILITY

If set, this instance will be discoverable by other databases in the same federation. (default: True).

Monitoring Dashboard

Monitoring Dashboard Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_MONITORINGDASHBOARD

If set, the monitoring dashboard will be enabled.

SAMPLEDB_MONITORINGDASHBOARD_DATABASE

The database URL for the monitoring dashboard (default: sqlite:///flask_monitoringdashboard.db)

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous Configuration Environment Variables

Variable Name

Description

SAMPLEDB_SERVER_NAME

The server name for Flask. See: https://flask.palletsprojects.com/en/1.1.x/config/#SERVER_NAME

SAMPLEDB_SQLALCHEMY_DATABASE_URI

The database URI for SQLAlchemy. See: https://flask-sqlalchemy.palletsprojects.com/en/2.x/config/

SAMPLEDB_SECRET_KEY

The secret key for Flask and Flask extensions. See: https://flask.palletsprojects.com/en/1.1.x/config/#SECRET_KEY

SAMPLEDB_WTF_CSRF_TIME_LIMIT

The time limit for WTForms CSRF tokens in seconds. See: https://flask-wtf.readthedocs.io/en/stable/config.html

SAMPLEDB_INVITATION_TIME_LIMIT

The time limit for invitation links in seconds.

SAMPLEDB_ONLY_ADMINS_CAN_MANAGE_LOCATIONS

If set, only administrators will be able to create and edit locations.

SAMPLEDB_ONLY_ADMINS_CAN_CREATE_GROUPS

If set, only administrators will be able to create basic groups.

SAMPLEDB_ONLY_ADMINS_CAN_DELETE_GROUPS

If set, only administrators will be able to delete non-empty basic groups.

SAMPLEDB_ONLY_ADMINS_CAN_CREATE_PROJECTS

If set, only administrators will be able to create project groups.

SAMPLEDB_DISABLE_USE_IN_MEASUREMENT

If set, the “Use in Measurement” button will not be shown.

SAMPLEDB_DISABLE_SUBPROJECTS

If set, project groups cannot have child project groups assigned to them.

SAMPLEDB_ENFORCE_SPLIT_NAMES

If set, force names to be entered as “surname, given names”. Note: this will prevent users with a mononym from setting their name correctly!

SAMPLEDB_PYBABEL_PATH

The path to the pybabel executable (default: pybabel)

SAMPLEDB_EXTRA_USER_FIELDS

A JSON-encoded dict containing extra user fields, e.g. {"phone": {"name": {"en": "Phone No."}, "placeholder": {"en": "Phone No."}}} (default: {})

SAMPLEDB_SHOW_PREVIEW_WARNING

If set, a warning will be shown indicating that the instance is a preview installation and that data will be deleted.

SAMPLEDB_DISABLE_INLINE_EDIT

If set, the inline edit mode will be disabled and users will not be able to edit individual fields.

SAMPLEDB_SHOW_OBJECT_TITLE

If set, object schema titles will be shown when viewing metadata by default. Users may override this setting in their preferences.

SAMPLEDB_FULL_WIDTH_OBJECTS_TABLE

If set, the table of objects will be the full width of the browser. Users may override this setting in their preferences. (default: True)

SAMPLEDB_HIDE_OBJECT_TYPE_AND_ID_ON_OBJECT_PAGE

If set, the object type and id, e.g. “Sample #4” will not be shown on the object page.

SAMPLEDB_MAX_BATCH_SIZE

Maximum number of objects that can be created in one batch (default: 100)

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_BACKGROUND_TASKS

If set, some potentially time consuming tasks such as sending emails will be performed in the background to reduce frontend latency or timeouts.

SAMPLEDB_TIMEZONE

If set, the given timezone will be used for all users instead of using their browser timezone or the one set in their preferences.

SAMPLEDB_USE_TYPEAHEAD_FOR_OBJECTS

Experimental: If set, a text field with typeahead.js based suggestions will be used for object references instead of a dropdown/select field.

SAMPLEDB_TYPEAHEAD_OBJECT_LIMIT

If SAMPLEDB_USE_TYPEAHEAD_FOR_OBJECTS is set, this value can set an upper limit for the number of object suggestions shown. Not set by default.

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_ANONYMOUS_USERS

If set, objects may be set to be readable by anonymous users, without requiring them to sign in.

SAMPLEDB_SHOW_UNHANDLED_OBJECT_RESPONSIBILITY_ASSIGNMENTS

If set, any unhandled object responsibility assignment will be shown as an urgent notification on non-object pages (default: True).

SAMPLEDB_SHOW_LAST_PROFILE_UPDATE

If set, show the date and time of the last user information update in each user profile (default: True). Updates by an administrator will be shown regardless of this configuration value.

SAMPLEDB_ONLY_ADMINS_CAN_MANAGE_GROUP_CATEGORIES

If set, only administrators will be able to manage group categories (default: True).

SAMPLEDB_DISABLE_INSTRUMENTS

If set, features related to instruments will be disabled (default: False).

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_FUNCTION_CACHES

If set, some functions with results that cannot change will use caches (default: True).

SAMPLEDB_TEMPORARY_FILE_TIME_LIMIT

Time that temporary files uploaded when editing an object are stored, in seconds (default: 604800 seconds / 7 days).

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_ELN_FILE_IMPORT

If set, .eln files can be imported by users (default: False). Importing .eln files is currently experimental and not recommended for production systems, as the file format is still a work in progress.

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_WEBHOOKS_FOR_USERS

If set, “normal” users can register webhooks (default: False). If this option is not set or set to false only administrators are allowed to register webhooks. See Webhooks.

SAMPLEDB_WEBHOOKS_ALLOW_HTTP

If set, using webhook targets that do not support https is allowed (default: False).

SAMPLEDB_ENABLE_FIDO2_PASSKEY_AUTHENTICATION

If set, FIDO2 passkeys can be used as an authentication method instead of just as a second factor.

SAMPLEDB_SHARED_DEVICE_SIGN_OUT_MINUTES

The time of inactivity after which users on shared devices will be signed out in minutes (default: 30 minutes).

SAMPLEDB_DISABLE_OUTDATED_USE_AS_TEMPLATE

If set, users cannot use objects with outdated schemas as a template (default: False).

SAMPLEDB_DISABLE_TOPICS

You can set this option to disable the Topics feature. (default: False, Topics enabled)

SAMPLEDB_LABEL_PAPER_FORMATS

Specifies label paper formats that can be used for qr code labels. For more information, see Label Paper Formats. (default: [])

There are other configuration values related to packages used by SampleDB. For more information on those, see the documentation of the corresponding packages.