Skip to Content
Orders & SamplesSequencing Runs

Sequencing Runs

A sequencing run represents a single run on a sequencing instrument. Runs contain metadata about the sequencing process and link to the read files generated for each sample.

Run Metadata

Each sequencing run tracks:

FieldDescription
Run IDUnique identifier for the run
Run NameOptional descriptive name
PlatformSequencing platform used
InstrumentSpecific instrument model
Run DateDate the run was performed
Folder PathPath to the run output directory

Quality Metrics

Runs can include quality control metrics:

MetricDescription
Q30 ScorePercentage of bases with quality score ≥ 30
Cluster DensityClusters per square millimeter
Pass Filter %Percentage of clusters passing quality filter
Total ReadsTotal number of reads generated
Total BasesTotal number of bases sequenced

MultiQC Reports

If a MultiQC report is available for the run, it is linked in the multiQcReport field. MultiQC aggregates quality metrics from multiple tools (FastQC, fastp, etc.) into a single interactive HTML report.

Reads

Reads are the sequencing files linked to individual samples within a run:

FieldDescription
file1Path to forward reads (R1)
file2Path to reverse reads (R2, paired-end only)
checksum1/checksum2MD5 checksums for file integrity
readCount1/readCount2Number of reads per file
avgQuality1/avgQuality2Average quality score per file
fastqcReport1/fastqcReport2Paths to per-file FastQC reports

Read-Sample Linking

Reads are linked to samples through the sampleId field. Each read record connects a pair of FASTQ files to the sample they came from. A sample can have multiple read records (e.g., from multiple sequencing runs or lanes).

ENA Accessions

After ENA submission, reads receive accession numbers:

  • experimentAccessionNumber — the ENA experiment accession (ERX…)
  • runAccessionNumber — the ENA run accession (ERR…)

These are assigned during the ENA submission process.

Order Pipelines and Read Writeback

Order pipelines operate directly on these linked reads and write selected results back to the canonical Read record. This keeps downstream QC, validation, and submission workflows aligned on the same file metadata.

Current built-in writeback behavior:

PipelineWhat it updates on Read
Simulate Readsfile1, file2, readCount1, readCount2
FASTQ Checksumchecksum1, checksum2
FastQCfastqcReport1, fastqcReport2, readCount1, readCount2, avgQuality1, avgQuality2

Run-level outputs such as summaries, reports, and archives are still stored as pipeline artifacts linked to the corresponding run. The sequencing UI then uses both the canonical Read fields and these artifacts to present per-sample QC status for an order.