Design and implementation of a tool to manage experimental metadata

FRED

FRED (FaiR Experimental Design) is a program to generate, edit and search metadata in a predefined structure.

Main features

File-based dynamic and hierarchical structure for metadata storage
Generation of metadata files according to the structure
Search for experiments based on metadata

FRED provides the user with a flexible design for a machine-readable metadata format that conforms to the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) and enables the storage of data containing any omics technology. FRED as a toolbox includes a dialog-based function for creating metadata files as well as a structured semantic validation and logical metadata search. Furthermore, FRED offers an interface for external calls, e.g. via a web frontend. The tool requires little IT effort and is intended to be used by non-computer scientists as well as by specialized institutions.