Creating Orders
Orders are created through a multi-step wizard at /orders/new. Each order
groups samples for a sequencing request and tracks progress from draft through
completion.
The order wizard is fully configurable by facility admins through the Form Builder. Admins can add, hide, or rearrange fields, create custom groups, and enable optional modules. The steps and fields described below reflect the default configuration.
Order Wizard
The wizard builds its steps dynamically from the form configuration. Each field group becomes a wizard step. By default there are two groups, but admins can add more.
Order Details
The first default group. Fields:
| Field | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Order Name | No | Descriptive name for this request |
| Number of Samples | No | Pre-fills the sample table with empty rows (1–500) |
Your contact information (name, email) is automatically populated from your user profile and shown on the review step.
Sequencing Parameters
The second default group. Fields:
| Field | Required | Options |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | No | Illumina, Oxford Nanopore, PacBio SMRT, Ion Torrent, BGI |
| Instrument Model | No | Free text — specific instrument if known |
| Library Strategy | No | WGS, WXS, RNA-Seq, AMPLICON, Bisulfite-Seq, ChIP-Seq, ATAC-seq, Other |
| Library Source | No | Genomic, Metagenomic, Transcriptomic, Metatranscriptomic, Synthetic, Viral RNA, Other |
| Library Selection | No | RANDOM, PCR, RANDOM_PCR, RT-PCR, size fractionation, cDNA, PolyA, Oligo-dT, UNSPECIFIED |
If the admin has enabled the sequencing technology module, the Platform and Instrument fields may be replaced by a hierarchical technology selector with platform, instrument, kit, and read configuration.
Additional Steps (if configured)
Your admin may have added extra wizard steps. Common examples:
- Funding Information — grant numbers, funding bodies (requires
funding-infomodule) - Billing Information — cost centers, billing addresses (requires
billing-infomodule) - MIxS Metadata — select an environment checklist and per-sample metadata fields (requires
mixs-metadatamodule) - Custom groups — any grouping the admin has defined in the form builder
Add Samples
The Samples step always appears. It presents an editable table where you fill in per-sample data.
Default per-sample columns:
| Column | Required | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Sample ID | Auto | Generated automatically (S-{timestamp}-{random}), read-only |
| Organism | Yes | NCBI taxonomy search — type a name and select from results |
| Sample Title | Yes | A descriptive title for the sample |
| Sample Alias | No | Short alias, auto-generated if left empty |
Additional columns appear if the admin has configured per-sample custom fields (e.g. sample volume, concentration, barcodes) or if a MIxS checklist is selected.
Review and Submit
The final step is always a Review page showing:
- Your contact information
- All order-level field values, grouped by section
- MIxS checklist summary (if selected)
- Sample data summary
Review the summary, then submit to create the order in DRAFT status.
Order Number Format
Each order receives a unique number: ORD-YYYYMMDD-XXXX (e.g.,
ORD-20240126-0001). This number is assigned at creation and cannot be changed.
Draft Mode
Orders start in DRAFT status. While in draft:
- All fields can be edited
- Samples can be added or removed
- The order can be deleted
- No notifications are sent to the facility
Submit the order when ready to signal the facility.
Excel Import
For orders with many samples, you can import data from a spreadsheet:
- Export the current sample table to Excel
- Fill in your data using the template columns
- Import the spreadsheet back into SeqDesk
The import maps columns by header name and adds or updates rows accordingly.
Custom Fields
If your admin has configured additional fields through the Form Builder, they appear in the appropriate wizard step. Custom fields can be:
- Per-order — shown once in a wizard step, applies to the whole order
- Per-sample — shown as a column in the sample table
- Admin-only — visible only to facility admins (e.g. internal notes)
Field types include text, dropdowns, checkboxes, numbers, dates, and special types like funding and billing information. Fields can have validation rules, help text, and AI-powered validation.