The ELN file format is an archive format for exchange of experimental results and data.
This file format can be created and read by software such as Electronic Laboratory Notebooks.
The file format is specified in the SPECIFICATION.md file. It follows the RO-Crate specification and bundles the files into a ZIP archive.
The .eln file/extension is an accepted and recognized media type (previously known as MIME type), see IANA assignment:
https://www.iana.org/assignments/media-types/application/vnd.eln+zip
This file format was created to enable better interoperability between different ELNs. The editors of the ELN software who are members of the .eln consortium felt that it would be useful for users to have an archive format that can be easily understood by several ELNs.
We have created a FAQ that addresses recurring, incorrect criticisms of the .eln file format.
Generally working with some quirks here and there.
| Implementation | .eln import | .eln export | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| eLabFTW | ✅ | ✅ | elabftw |
| Kadi4Mat | ✅ | ✅ | kadi4mat |
| Pasta | ✅ | ✅ | PASTA |
| SampleDB | ✅ | ✅ | SampleDB |
| Rspace | ✅ | ✅ | RSpace |
| NOMAD | ✅ | ||
| LinkAhead | ✅ | ||
| OpenSemanticLab | ✅ | ✅ | OpenSemanticLab |
| SciLog | ✅ | SciLog | |
| datalab | ✅ | datalab |