# Measurements

View, filter, edit, group, print, export all program executions on your BactoBox®. All through a familiar spreadsheet interface.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="/files/ROu81vnZslSFufwUbLZX" alt=""><figcaption><p>Navigate to the <em>Measurements</em> page and view the latest program executions.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

## Rows

There is one row for each program (*Measure*, *Empty*, *Clean*, etc.) started on your BactoBox®. We refer to a started program as a *program execution* or just *execution* in short.

We sort the executions by the *Started at* column. The newest row comes first.

### Usable and unusable executions

We show *unusable* executions in faded grey colors (see the figure below).

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="/files/BrrDpesfBdbwM5tNFQzq" alt=""><figcaption><p>Example program executions from the <em>Measurements</em> page. The top execution is <em>unusable</em> due to the error. The other two executions are <em>usable</em>.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

An execution is unusable if any of these conditions apply:

* The execution resulted in an error message. E.g., "Error 3000: Too many particles".
* The execution was stopped. E.g., the user pressed <kbd>Stop</kbd>.
* The execution failed. E.g., due to a system error.
* The execution was abandoned. E.g., due to a sudden power off.
* The execution was excluded by the user. E.g., via a press of the ![](/files/ga2Mayj9vavcDfJ2RjFv) button.

Otherwise, the execution is *usable*.

**We ignore unusable executions in, e.g., analytics, plotting, reporting, etc.**

{% hint style="success" %}

### Made a mistake? Mark the program as *excluded*

Press the ![](/files/ga2Mayj9vavcDfJ2RjFv) button to *exclude* the execution. This excludes the execution from analytics, plotting, and reporting.

Examples: You measured the wrong vial. You used the wrong [dilution](/protocols/prepare-your-sample/hit-the-right-concentration.md). You forgot to [disaggregate](/protocols/prepare-your-sample/break-up-clumps-and-chains.md).
{% endhint %}

## Change cells

Change individual cells just like you would do in a spreadsheet. Click inside the cell and start typing. When you are done, press <kbd>Enter</kbd> or click another cell.

{% hint style="success" %}

## Press the <i class="fa-floppy-disk">:floppy-disk:</i> *Save* button to commit your changes

Alternatively, press the *Discard* button to explicitly revert (undo) the unsaved changes.

<mark style="color:$info;">We intentionally opt for manual-save over auto-save wherever possible. Manual-save both avoids accidental edits and offers</mark> [<mark style="color:$info;">transactional semantics</mark>](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transaction_processing)<mark style="color:$info;">. Both are important features in</mark> [<mark style="color:$info;">cGMP</mark>](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_manufacturing_practice)<mark style="color:$info;">.</mark>
{% endhint %}

Use this to, e.g., add a *Label* or *Dilution* to an execution. The list of [columns](#columns) below goes into more detail about each individual column and its purpose.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="/files/JpbY19ewsgTLf31oRzhI" alt=""><figcaption><p>Click the <em>Label</em> field. Type in your text. Click another field (or press <kbd>Enter</kbd>). Finally, press <em>Save</em> to commit your changes.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

### Unsaved changes

Rows with unsaved (pending) changes have:

* A thick, blue border to the left
* A faded, blue background

Moreover, the changed cells have a blue triangle in the upper right corner.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="/files/VNfcOPsjIZGckM1f76hz" alt=""><figcaption><p>The second row (ID <code>K57</code>) has unsaved changes. We changed the <em>Sampled at</em> column and cleared the <em>Label</em> column. Note the thick blue border to the left and the faded blue background. Likewise, the two changed cells have a blue triangle in the upper right corner.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

## Columns

There are many columns, so we split them into column groups. See below for details about each

### Individual

Columns that are individual to each execution.

<table data-full-width="false"><thead><tr><th width="100">Column name</th><th width="100">Example</th><th>Description</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>N/A</td><td><img src="/files/ga2Mayj9vavcDfJ2RjFv" alt=""></td><td>Press to <em>exclude</em> this execution. Excluded executions are <em>unusable</em>.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Button.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Status</td><td>Error 1200</td><td>If this execution is <em>unusable</em>, this column shows why.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Program</td><td>Measure</td><td>The name of the program.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Started at</td><td>2025-12-19 11:13</td><td>When you started the execution. E.g., when you pressed <kbd><mark style="background-color:purple;">Measure</mark></kbd>.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Sampled at</td><td>2025-12-19 09:15</td><td>When you grabbed the sample from, e.g., the bioreactor.<br><em>Used as the x-axis in various auto-generated plots.</em><br><mark style="color:$info;">Date and time field.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>ID</td><td>A01</td><td>Mnemonic measurement ID.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Label</td><td>E. coli</td><td>Can be any of species name, bioreactor name, experiment name, etc.<br><em>Used as to group measurements in various auto-generated plots.</em><br><mark style="color:$info;">Text field.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Cells/mL</td><td>3 800 000</td><td>Cell concentration of the diluted sample.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Total/mL</td><td>3 830 000</td><td>Total concentration of the diluted sample.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Dilution</td><td>1001</td><td><a href="https://help.sbtinstruments.com/protocols/prepare-your-sample/hit-the-right-concentration">Dilution</a> used in the sample vial.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Non-negative integer field.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Cells/mL × Dil.</td><td>1.90e+9</td><td>Cell concentration of the undiluted (original) sample.<br><em>Computed from Cells/mL and Dilution.</em><br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Total/mL × Dil.</td><td>1.92e+9</td><td>Total concentration of the undiluted (original) sample.<br><em>Computed from Total/mL and Dilution.</em><br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>CFU/mL × Dil.</td><td>1.88e+9</td><td>CFU concentration of the undiluted (original) sample. Determined through, e.g., plate counting.<br><em>Used in, e.g., the correlation plots.</em><br><mark style="color:$info;">Number field.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Measurement group</td><td>rc-01 test</td><td>Name of the measurement group that this execution belongs to (if any).<br><em>Used as basis for analytics, plotting, and reporting.</em><br><mark style="color:$info;">Options field.</mark></td></tr></tbody></table>

### Group

Columns shared between all executions in the same measurement group.

<table data-full-width="false"><thead><tr><th width="100">Column name</th><th width="100">Example</th><th>Description</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Created at</td><td>last Wednesday at 04:57</td><td>When the measurement group was created.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr></tbody></table>

### Additional information

Columns that are individual to each execution but used less often.

<table data-full-width="false"><thead><tr><th width="100">Column name</th><th width="100">Example</th><th>Description</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Software</td><td>2026.01</td><td>Software version used during this execution.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Flow cell</td><td>2F5A1I4T</td><td>ID of the flow cell used during this execution.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Conductivity</td><td>1750 µS/cm</td><td>Electrical conductivity of the sample vial.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr><tr><td>Classification</td><td>BacTotal_v2024-10</td><td>The <a href="/pages/gtRl1NJmwYvSftxOizIl">gating</a> settings (<a data-mention href="/pages/4zaaHJO7qFaOJ1i7MXSK">/pages/4zaaHJO7qFaOJ1i7MXSK</a>) used for this execution.<br><mark style="color:$info;">Read only.</mark></td></tr></tbody></table>

## Filter columns

Several columns has a filter function. Use these filters to narrow down the entries in the table.

### Filter by *text*

Type into the *Filter* field just below the column header. The filter applies instantly as you type it out. All text filters are case insensitive (as shown below).

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="/files/QX8nvMQlrNKlVYFf2PP9" alt=""><figcaption><p>Filter executions by the <em>Program</em> column. The filter applies instantly as you type it out. Note that the filter is case insensitive.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

### Filter by *date range*

Choose either a *From* date, a *To* date, or both. This narrows in executions to the chosen range.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="/files/zEJ7d8sCjpmqoiTBjvfC" alt=""><figcaption><p>Choose a date range to narrow in the executions.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

## Export CSV file

Press the <i class="fa-file-csv">:file-csv:</i> *Export CSV* button to download a CSV file of the *current view*. By current view, we mean the [filtered](#filter-columns) executions. Clear the filters to export *all* executions.

<div data-with-frame="true"><figure><img src="/files/TkjgjZ8HhsAAhEy4rk7U" alt=""><figcaption><p>Press the <em>Export CSV</em> to download a CSV file. Open the CSV file in your spreadsheet editor of choice. E.g., Microsoft Excel as shown in this quick clip.</p></figcaption></figure></div>

### Exported columns

The CSV file contains most [columns mentioned above](#columns). We exclude action-only columns such as the column with the ![](/files/ga2Mayj9vavcDfJ2RjFv) exclude button.

For some columns, the CSV file transforms the value first. Here are some examples of this:

| Column type                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                | Value in Access                                                                                                             | Value in CSV file                                                                                                        |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| <p>Date and time<br><mark style="color:$info;">E.g., </mark><em><mark style="color:$info;">Started at</mark></em><mark style="color:$info;">, </mark><em><mark style="color:$info;">Sampled at</mark></em><mark style="color:$info;">, </mark><em><mark style="color:$info;">Created at</mark></em><mark style="color:$info;">.</mark></p> | <p>last Wednesday at 4:57 PM<br><mark style="color:$info;">Human-friendly format relative to current local time.</mark></p> | <p>2026-01-07 16:57:50<br><mark style="color:$info;">Machine-friendly format compatible with Microsoft Excel.</mark></p> |
| <p>Numbers<br><mark style="color:$info;">E.g., </mark><em><mark style="color:$info;">Cells/mL × Dil.</mark></em><mark style="color:$info;">.</mark></p>                                                                                                                                                                                    | <p>3.10e+5<br><mark style="color:$info;">Scientific notation</mark></p>                                                     | <p>310000<br><mark style="color:$info;">Decimal notation</mark></p>                                                      |
| <p>Numbers with units<br><mark style="color:$info;">E.g., </mark><em><mark style="color:$info;">Conductivity</mark></em><mark style="color:$info;">.</mark></p>                                                                                                                                                                            | <p>1750 µS/cm<br><mark style="color:$info;">Number with unit</mark></p>                                                     | <p>1750<br><mark style="color:$info;">Number without unit</mark></p>                                                     |

**The value transformations used in the CSV file are still subject to change!** A software update may change the value transformation.

### Difference to the *summary.csv* file

At a first glance, the [summary.csv](/encyclopedia/software/file-formats/download-your-data.md) file may seem identical to the CSV file mentioned above. However, there are some key differences:

<table><thead><tr><th width="100">What</th><th>summary.csv</th><th>Exported CSV file</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Software version</td><td>Since 1.0.3 (released 2020-08-17).</td><td>Since 2026.01 (released 2026-01-13).</td></tr><tr><td>Columns</td><td>Basic info.<br>See <a href="/pages/ofGth5qdqVupXtEbGHFf#columns">summary.csv columns</a>.</td><td>Advanced info.<br>See <a href="#columns">above</a>.</td></tr><tr><td>Rows</td><td>Long form: Everything.<br>Short form: Max 200 rows.</td><td>Current filter settings.</td></tr><tr><td>Value transform</td><td>Yes, for compatibility with Microsoft Excel.</td><td>Yes, for compatibility with Microsoft Excel.</td></tr></tbody></table>


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